Dubai, a city with a building for every decade

Why did I decide on 10 different cities on Europe instead of the world? My decision was part of the new year resolution. Anyways, like all previous resolutions, it is going nowhere after 2 months into the new year. Had I chosen wisely two months back, I would have been closer to my goal. Today, I was in Dubai. I could have stuck one down from my list if I had chosen wisely.

I had 9 hours to kill before boarding the return flight to Paris. Time flies. When the transit visa was done, 2 hours had already passed. I am lucky because I was able to catch up with friends despite today being a working day; a couple of friends whom I haven't met for a decade and a half.

What is there to see in Dubai? Shopping malls, the tallest tower in the middle of the desert, Marina with a lot of boat tours... These are among the many ways to spent time here for the tourist. But time is of essence here. You cannot fit all of this into a short time span as these places are far away from each other.

Desert is not new to me. Having spent a year with my dad at his workplace, I have seen the sand dunes, the oasis and the amazing power of 4-wheel drives before. Sitting inside a car, you will not find any of these in Dubai. What you find is the varied architectural styles of buildings which clearly gives away the decade in which it was built.

I decided on two places to visit - the towering Burj Khalifa and the man made Marina. At the Burj Khalifa, I was greeted by the "Sold Out" sign for the ride on the elevator. Marina turned out to be a better option with many boat tours aimed for the tourists. Here again, time was the main constraint. So whatever I wanted to do remains to be done.

Inshallah, there will be another time. As for now, meeting up with friends after a very long time makes me happier.