Middle East 2018

After a few hours of rest, it was time for another movie. This time it was "Murder on the Orient Express" - filmed in 2017 - classic Agatha Christie. I knew how it would turn out, but it was great to watch anyway. Breakfast was very good - and served with real cutlery. The flight landed right on time at 6:30 p.m. Dubai time. Temperature 28 deg. C. - a huge difference from the 5 deg. C. that it had been in Toronto. Patty and Bob, Doug's sister and brother-in-law had coached us on how the airport works and so we got through quickly. The airport is gorgeous - Emirates is the only airline that uses that terminal. Patty and Bob were there to scoop us up. One speed bump - their car had a flat tire. Doug to the rescue. He had it changed in 13 minutes flat. All that time spent at Clausen's Garage finally paid off!! First observation. Dubai has some wonderful architecture and many buildings are lit up with coloured lights. Second observation - the traffic is crazy. Patience is not a virtue on the roads here. If you hesitate for a millisecond when a light turns green, you will get honked at.

Here, courtesy of Wikipedia, is some information about the United Arab Emirates:

The United Arab Emirates, sometimes simply called the Emirates, is a federal absolute monarchy sovereign state in Western Asia at the southeast end of the Arabian Peninsula on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman to the east and Saudi Arabia to the south, as well as sharing maritime borders with Qatar to the west and Iran to the north. In 2013, the UAE's population was 9.2 million, of which 1.4 million are Emirati citizens and 7.8 million are expatriates.

The country is a federation of seven emirates, and was established on 2 December 1971. The constituent emirates are Abu Dhabi (which serves as the capital), Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al-Quwain. Each emirate is governed by an absolute monarch; together, they jointly form the Federal Supreme Council. One of the monarchs (traditionally always the Emir of Abu Dhabi) is selected as the President of the United Arab Emirates. Islam is the official religion of the UAE and Arabic is the official language although English, Urdu and Hindi are widely spoken, with English being the language of business and education particularly in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

The UAE's oil reserves are the seventh-largest in the world while its natural gas reserves are the world's seventeenth-largest. Sheikh Zayed, ruler of Abu Dhabi and the first President of the UAE, oversaw the development of the Emirates and steered oil revenues into healthcare, education and infrastructure. The UAE's economy is the most diversified in the Gulf Cooperation Council, while its most populous city of Dubai is an important global city and an international aviation hub. Nevertheless, the country is much less reliant on oil and gas than previous years and is economically focusing on tourism and business.

Dubai is the largest and most populous city (about 3 million) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It is located on the southeast coast of the Persian Gulf and is the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, one of the seven emirates that make up the country. Abu Dhabi and Dubai are the only two emirates to have veto power over critical matters of national importance in the country's Federal Supreme Council. The city of Dubai is located on the emirate's northern coastline and heads the Dubai-Sharjah-Ajman metropolitan area. Dubai will host World Expo 2020.

Dubai emerged as a global city and business hub of the Middle East. It is also a major transport hub for passengers and cargo. By the 1960s, Dubai's economy was based on revenues from trade and, to a smaller extent, oil exploration concessions, but oil was not discovered until 1966. Oil revenue first started to flow in 1969. Dubai's oil revenue helped accelerate the early development of the city, but its reserves are limited and production levels are low: today, less than 5% of the emirate's revenue comes from oil.

The Emirate's Western-style model of business drives its economy with the main revenues now coming from tourism, aviation, real estate, and financial services. Dubai recently attracted world attention through many innovative large construction projects and sports events. The city has become iconic for its skyscrapers and high-rise buildings, in particular the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa.En savoir plus