Dazzled by Dubai...

I have always heard mixed reviews of the city in the desert, some people love it and some hate it - it's quite literally the marmite of cities. This being said I felt I obviously had to go and see it for myself, what was the fuss about and is it really all its cracked up to be?

My Tourist Snap in front of the Burj Kahlifa 

Now as a lowly backpacker I couldn't afford to actually stay in Dubai, no - I did it the traveller way and booked a flight with an 8 hour layover (you get a 30 day free visa if you have a British passport). So with my limited time I couldn't do everything, in fact I could only do two things really, though that's ok because there really only seemed to be two things to do, at least according to everyone I spoke to and the research I did. So ignoring the sign for taxis I went to navigate the UAE's answer to the tube.

Not going to lie, my first impressions of the city weren't great. First of all I have never felt so under-dressed in my life - apparently kikoy trousers and a safari hat just dont cut it in the Middle East. As far as I could tell the city was pretty much a glorified shopping centre, however I didn't want to be too negative so I kept going - first stop The Dubai Mall. Might seem an odd choice seeing as I had about £10 to my name but I heard it was worth a trip. Surprisingly there is an aquarium in the middle of the shopping centre - erm why? And the most unnecessary fountain, but whatever floats your boat I guess.

Dubai Fountain in the Dubai Mall 

Now as I was here I thought I had better make my way up the worlds tallest building, I mean why not? so up I went, all the way up to floor 125 of the Burj Kahlifa (tip: book tickets in advance they are much cheaper). And yes this was pretty cool, I have been in places with better views no doubt about it, but it was great seeing out across the city into the sand dunes beyond on one side and Dubai's famous man made Islands on the other. This is not for someone with vertigo though, never has there been a better time to say "don't look down".

The view from floor 125! 

The third thing I made time for before rushing back to the airport was the fountain show - this was awesome! And I can really see why people come from all over the world to see it - it was pretty spectacular, and I found myself wanting to see it again!

The Fountain Show - Definitely Worth a Peek! 

I had a total of 4 and a half hours in the city, and to be completely honest that was more than enough for me. Dubai is buildings and sand and not much else and amongst the hundreds of people decked out in designer gear I'm afraid there just isn't room for a Kenyan girl with her bright  trousers, flip flops and safari hat. 

Still at least I got to tick off something from my bucket list! 

Until next time 

x

Expat diaries