Dubai, United Arab Emirates (Day 1)

Try as we might, nothing could have prepared us for the severe change in scenery and lifestyle once we landed in Dubai. We had heard rumors, some good and some bad, about what to expect but one thing is for sure, leaving a country that has the oldest buildings in the world and arriving in another where the oldest buildings are 15 to 20 years old leaves one in a bit of shock. The airport had palm trees in it. IN IT FOR PETES SAKE! The cabs outside the door were lined up, patiently waiting their turn as you approached the Taxi Pick-up area. A gentleman assisted you with your bags into the taxi and you were off. Gone was the pandemonium of Cairo's street, replaced with sleek cars actually using their signal lights to weave in organized fashion along the 6 lane highway. We cruised by modern skyscraper after modern skyscraper, passed buildings of incredible architectural wonder, and arrived at our couch surfing destination. The modest apartment of Salih and Ibraham featured a comfy pullout couch, big screen, surround sound, thousands of digital movies, pool, weight room and best of all Salih and Ibrahem themselves. They welcomed us in and made us feel at home. "This will do nicely," we thought. The following morning we took our time getting started and did a little wardrobe shopping at the Mall of the Emirates in preparation for tea in the afternoon. "Dressing for tea?" you ask. The answer lies in the location of set tea time, the Burj al Arab Hotel. But first lets touch on the Mall of Emirates. Its a fine enough establishment if you wish to spend a small fortune on designer anything (Jeff thinks he saw designer fundies there but Anelia says no... if you don't know what fundies are take a trip to you nearest San Fransisco store). The most notable attraction of the mall however is the indoor skiing. Yes when you tire of the shopping you can always don your skis and shoosh down the 1 or 2 thrilling runs at the indoor ski slope. (ummm, anyone who actually skis would not waste their time). From the mall we moved on to tea at the one and only self acclaimed 7 star hotel, the Burj al Arab. We pulled up to the gates of the hotel and leisurely strolled past the packs of tourists who were snapping photos, asking all the while how they could get in to the hotel. Flashing our reservation to the gatekeeper we (with as much pomp and self importance we could muster) raised our noses just a hair to look down at all these peasants and allowed the gatekeeper to open the gate and let us in. Then we took four thousand photos and ran around the hotel like a couple of idiots. It was opulent, it was grotesque, it was beautiful, it was ridiculous and it was spectacular, all at the same time. After some difficulty we managed to ascertain the location of our afternoon tea. It did not disappoint. The food was scrumptious! It was a seven course tea consisting of oriental crackers and sauces, Dim Sum, followed by some kind of porridge/soup (the only thing that was actually not good at all), some kebabs, then Chinese buns with jams (including a jam made of coconut leaves that was sensational...who new) and finishing off with Chocolate brownies and fried sugar coated banana. But that was not the best part. During the whole 2 and a half hour ordeal you were continually changing the type of tea you enjoyed while wolfing down the scrumptious repast. The teas were one of a kind and outstanding! Jeff did his best country bumpkin impression while although managing to catch himself from licking his knife early in the feast (which was halfway to his mouth) was kindly reminded by Anelia later not to drag his fingers across the plate and lick them. Anelia responded with equal quaff while attempting to get the last drops of tea from the pot with such vigor it resulted in a loss of the tea pot lid into the cup with a clatter. Buffoons! Lucky for us these indiscretions went without notice. Needless to say a grand time was had by all. The evening festivities included the grand opening of the Burj Dubai tower, the worlds newest tallest building. Standing 828 metes tall (just think about that for a second) it makes the surrounding skyscrapers look like Lego buildings. Although we didn't quite make the fireworks, a short drive past the newly crowned tallest structure ever built by mankind was enough to leave you breathless. All and all, a very different and wonderful day for the super tour.
Pictures:
1- Jumeriah hotel and beach. Nearby Burj Al Arab
2- Hotel Burj Al Arab (7 stars)
3- Tea time
4- Walkway to elevators inside Burj
5- View of man-made Palm island from top of Burj
6- Lobby of Burj
7- Lobby of Burj
8- Jeff in waiting room for tea
9 to 15- Our 7 course afternoon tea! Just like you were there.