Welcome to the TravelPod forums

[introducinlyric]

i read this about dubai and it made me laugh

Dubai's a pretty interesting place, for about a day. Then you realise it's like the hot girl from your school: it looks all smart and sophisticated, but scratch the surface and it's a shallow beast, obsessed with riches and good looks. Once you've gazed in wonder at all of the ridiculous excess, there's not a lot more to do except head back to the airport.

[smart_semsem]

No one might know anything about Dubai without the contruction booming..

Actually Duabi ,itself & for sure thier people have chosen its destiny to be kinf of universal , dropping some of its original style or even traditional ethics.

The continous boming of the construction accomopanied by some extreme engineering projects is the breathing lung of Dubai to the World air ..

or it is most likely , the face changing that Michael Jakson used to adopt to keep his fame ..otherwise both of them ,Dubai and Michael , lose thier brightness and impact in memories and minds

[jenny22]

Hi Susie,

I understand your thoughts. I've just come back from Dubai from the holidays with my boyfriend. It is an uber-modern place...definitely worth visiting!
And as you say - the lifestyle and surroundings seem pretty surreal while being there. As if you were in a totally different reality to the one we are accustomed to back home...
All the luxury, the exoticism, the heat...
We stayed on Palm Jumeirah in that amazing beach hotel called Atlantis the Palm. I can assure you that you would be treated with utmost care and respect! It is fantastic!

So if you haven't got plans for this year's holidays yet - do visit Dubai! You won't regret it!

[wakingdream]

Glad you enjoyed your holidays! Thanks for the tip

[raniroo]

There are some wonderful hotels that do have wonderful customer care and awesome facilities offering the guest a relax and pampered stay....Dubai is known for this type of travel.

I would recommend visiting here. I think everyone needs to experience it.

However, once you have been here for awhile you start to see the under side of it.. and there isn't alot to really do (in my opinion). The culture is not as rich as in other middle eastern countries...the boom had a lot to do with that, it's taken away so much from the locals (yet given alot back in wealth too)....customer service can be non-existent (particularly as sales is paid very low and no commission), there is lots of red tape and "protocol" which becomes very frustrating and the economy has declined and not bouncing back as much as one would hope. Many people are leaving the desert, some fleeing and leaving everything behind or face gaol terms because they cannot pay off loans when they have been made redundant). No such thing as bankruptcy here.

Summer is torture (so I suggest not coming between May-October! At the moment it's reaching 45-50 degrees (although never officially "50" because the labourers have to stop working outside if it reaches 50)...so it's never made official, even though the mercury does rise above it! Those poor souls live in poor conditions and are working 12 hour days, 6-7 days a week in that heat....for about $300 dollars a month.

I have lived here for nearly 3 years....and yes I have enjoyed my time here, but there is a downside that many people choose to ignore or brush under the carpet.

Perhaps I have overstayed, perhaps I am looking for a more simplified way of living...but this incredible city has been built on sand....it will eventually sink over time (in some form)