A long way home: Dubai, under construction

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I'm sitting there... for a moment the funny thought of feeling cold runs through the smoke over my head I actually feel cold; I mean, I feel cold in Dubai!! What the heck... Or maybe it's this shisha... maybe it's because I'm not a smoker and water pipe makes me high! With an exaggerated hand movement I shove away the smog from my face and along with it any thought of coldness... I'm now able to see again the Egyptian guy talking.

We are sitting in a doggy place... it's past 11pm, we are in a parking lot on the sand... but still: there is a table, chairs, people and water pipe. I grew up so much used to diversity that it seems so normal being in a group with people coming from so many different places, carrying different backgrounds and cultures. But here in Dubai, with Egyptians, Estonians, Americans, Turkish, Lithuanians and an Italian of course, I get the chance to remind myself of such a beauty.

What we are talking about, or rather what I'm listening about is Dubai... The negative sides of Dubai! The difficult role of a woman, the impossibility of display any affection (PDA... Public Display of Affection) the drinking (non drinking!) the no sense, the inconsistency of daily life things.
I think Dubai it's a city without a present... trapped between a very culturally rich past and economically rich future.
In Dubai you'll easily find out that everything is about being the biggest, highest, fastest, XXXest of the world, and experience that here is definitely a worth experience: it's a city literally under construction! Towers, malls, villages, business districts, airport and even islands... the whole aiming to overtake in extravagance and luxury what already is in Dubai, which is not nuts!
But in Dubai you'll also find hidden slavery in the form of non integrated Asian people (above all Indians and Pakistani), social barrier are strong and foreign integration with Emirate people is not easy to witness...

The Muslim atmosphere often has to deal with the arrogance of a "superior" western culture but it's probably unable to really explain itself and the beauty of it's root. It would be amazing to find out how many people would chose to follow the Islamic doctrine if it were better understood... or we were keen to understand Islam better!

I also experienced a funny desert riding sand dune and dancing belly dance... I went to the North tip of the peninsula... I had a look at Iran and wonder how would it look like to live in Oman, where I was!

I believe my experience in Dubai has been extremely fascinating thanks to insight I got from my dear friend Peep and his own friends there... It's amazing what a better idea you get from interacting with people living there that are anything but tourist! Thanks Peep!!!