Modern Middle East

I grew up watching the Jetsons on TV. I also watched the Flintstones. My last travel adventure, I visited both places.

When I am able, I like to visit a destination before I offer a tour there, especially if I’m using a new company or it’s a place I’m not familiar. Hubby Doug and I have been watching the way Jordan is becoming a very popular travel destination. We recently met some people that got us excited with their tales of Petra and Wadi Rum. I’d never even heard of those places. I’d heard of the River Jordan all my life, sang in church about its “stormy banks” and swung low in my chariot to “look over Jordan and what do I see?”

If you are going to fly for fifteen hours, I believe one should see as much as one can on that trip. Dubai in the United Emeritus was on my Bucket List, so away we went to be two passengers on a group tour with folks from all over the USA, and I wasn’t even in charge.

We had a direct flight on Emirates Airlines from Dallas to Dubai. I was thinking this would give me time to read my guide books so I would know where I was taking us. Airlines have come a long way and Emirates is now a favorite. Over 400 movies to choose from on my own private screen, good food with real silverware and a warm face cloth at takeoff and landing made my middle seat much more comfortable.

How do I begin to describe Dubai? Think Jetsons in the desert. This country, United Arab Emirates is 43 years old. The forward thinking of the late 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. Established in December 1971, Zayed brought the seven emirates together to create this new country, UAE. The capital city, Abu Dhabi had the oil. Many of our Phillips 66 guys have stories about watching this area develop. They wouldn’t recognize it now. The UAE's oil reserves are the seventh-largest in the world, (USA is eleventh) while its natural gas reserves are also very high. Dubai didn’t have the oil, but it had a shoreline of the Persian Gulf. Commerce and trade would develop into a global hub for tourism, retail, and finance.

Perhaps you’ve seen pictures of Dubai, the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, a seven star hotel that is shaped like a boat sail sitting at the edge of the ocean. You might have read about the Burj Khalifa. The world’s tallest building at 2,722 feet and 163 floors. A 33 feet per second elevator ride to the 143rd floor observation deck gives one the bird’s eye view, literally, of this ultra modern city rise out of the sand. Fountains and famous architecture all glimmer like the oasis they are, as banks and hotels and anybody that is anybody has a presence in Dubai. The UAE nationals or original people make up only 10-15% of the population and live on the “rodeo drive” of palaces provided by the emerite. The other 85% is made up by expatriates. Remember less than fifty years ago the whole lot was living in the desert including the Sheik! We stayed at a newly renovated Hyatt in the older, historical part of town. The area was 15 years old. Our guide tried to describe how this empire has gone from “this was all sand here” to high end retail stores, restaurants and hotels in three or four years. Yes, this is the place where you can see Palm Island, the manmade island shaped like a palm tree fanning in the ocean with the opulent Atlantis Hotel at its crown. Oh, yes, all the real estate has sold and they are building more islands, 200 are in the works that will look like the continents on the globe from the sky.

This Muslim country with a mosque and mineret within walking distance for everyone. The people are friendly, and English is everyone’s second language. Due to their strict religious beliefs on peace, crime is very low. The Muslims we spent time with were just as sickened by the radical actions of a few as we were.

It’s always a good idea to find out about what is accepted/not accepted when visiting a different culture. Many churches and religious sites request head covering and modest attire: I have no problem with that. It seems that many American celebrities want to go to Dubai for the fashion and night life, but then want to visit their holy places while flashing skin and taking “selfies.” Good Grief. I kept my ankles covered and was impressed by the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque . It reminded me of the Taj Mahal with better light fixtures, accented by four HUGE Swarovski Crystal chandeliers with handmade carpets to match . Wow.

Yes, there are vending machines that sell gold. Put in your payment and you can purchase a gold charm within the image one of the cities iconic buildings. Don’t worry, the gold standard price is updated every 60 seconds on the machine to give you the current rate.

Next week, I’ll tell you about the Flintstone cites in Jordan.