Zamzam Books Dubai

[Paskasi Coppola]

Anotherbuilding next to our hotel which was the Barjeel Guesthouse, -guest-house-dubai.php. Barjeel mean wind tower in Arabic. The narrow alleys help to keep things cool by providing shade and funneling cooling breezes through them.

The entrance to the souk near our hotel. I bought some spices there, including saffron. I got so excited, I forgot to bargain, so I paid more than I should have. Oh well. It was all a bit overwhelming.

Breakfast at the hotel. Despite the non-western haphazardness of our hotel. After a day on a bus traveling through Dubai I am so delighted with where we stayed. We definitely felt like we had wandered into another culture. I began thinking about period pieces I had read of course and imagining the pages of books had come alive.

After breakfast Jim talked Sean and I into taking a bus ride around the city. I had never taken one of these before and will never do it again. I visit countries to take in the sights and sounds and meet people, not to be driven from place to place on a bus tour, but it was eye-opening. It was a great view into the dichotomy between the haves and the have nots. Once we got of the main street that smelled very strongly of rotting fish, we walked through streets that did not look rich or glitzy. My guess is this is where the immigrants are living with multiple people to a room.

This is a 7 star hotel. Note the presence of women everywhere, including in bikinis. This is the Western side of town, and it is as if you have walked into a different world from where we were staying.

I wanted to get a photo for all of you. Women were much more commonly viewed on this side, with traditionally dressed women everywhere in these outfits. I felt bad taking a photo which was sort of objectifying in a country where women are totally objectified. Btw, the color black on the UAE flag stands for natural resources. I really hope that is not what the black color of the burkas stands for. And black of all colors! It is really hot here.

One final view of our hotel front. The non-creek side. This entire area is being renovated. Before they started renovating it, the area was home to Pakistani and Indian workers. One day the government came in and bulldozed it down and told them all to leave and live somewhere else.

Car beeping if you go over a certain speed: In the UAE cars are equipped with a beeping sensor, and if you go over a certain speed limit the car starts to beep at you. It is very annoying, and effective at maintaining speed.

3a8082e126