As I was telling you, this place they call Dubai is not a place for the meek hearted ones. Apart from the adverse climatic conditions, the laws of the land are also too hash; not a surprise especially, Dubai being located on the Arabian Peninsula, one expected a sort of Sharia law, surprisingly, it is not the case though it tends to the same. History has it that, the Territory spans across what used to be British Protectorate (colonies), with the advent of handing over Hong Kong back to China, Britain began planning way ahead and decided to replicate the Hong Kong in Dubai. That was not a mean feat though Dubai still lags much behind Hong Kong! It is quite obvious, Dubai is just a business transit point, virtually, business organisations from all over the world bring their wares and buyers from all over the world come to buy! I wouldn’t call Dubai a manufacturing of productive state; it is just a middleman state save for Abu Dhabi that boasts of huge chunks ofPetroleum, Dubai has none. Most probably, that is why Dubai was hit by the economic crisis whereas Abu Dhabi has little or no effect!To an ordinary visitor, Dubai is a Paradise on planet earth, so many tourists flock here more than any other country. Much as we hear of Terrorist threats elsewhere, Dubai is an island of calm in the volatile Middle East, thanks to the amounts of money stashed here by all the stakeholders in the violence; I suppose, no one wants to rock the boat!Sincerely speaking, you should endeavour to visit Dubai; this must visit before you die (not that you will die if you don’t)! Instead of wasting your time and money trying to fly into Europe or USA, countries that do not like you visiting them; how else would they love you visiting if they have so tight and prohibitive entry requirements not forgetting the umiliations you go through to get that VISA; as for Dubai, there is no much bureaucracy in getting the visa! That said and done, I wasn’t ready to leave Dubai without having a glimpse of the vast desert. As I was chatting with a vone (one) Mr Santosh of SATGURU Travels, he pointed out that, I could go on a Desert Safari and that, it involved taking a ride in a 4X4 to the heart of the Desert and nice dinner punctuated with a popular Arabian dance (the belly Dance). This is the weekend pastime activity here. The Desert Safari has replaced the Camel rides. Who is interested in riding on the back of a camel when one can ride in the comfort of an air conditioned Land cruiser Lexus? Friday is strictly a non working day. All Offices and businesses are closed. It is a day of prayer and nothing else. In order to usher in the weekend (Friday and Saturday), there are lots of fun activities on Thursday evening. The Desert safaris are very common on the Thursday afternoons. Thursday evenings are as lively as our Friday evenings! mfashumwana@fastmail.fm
