Dubai

We landed and we were greeted with a wall of heat and humidity.  It was great!  We made our way to immigration where Robert was sent away to buy a surprise one day visa. I could enter into Dubai freely as a European, but Robert, with his Canadian passport had to buy a visa to enter Dubai.  There was some issue a year and a half ago with Canada not giving visas to people from the UAE so the UAE returned the favour.  So Robert went to get his visa. I claimed our baggage and went to meet our friend, Spencer who was waiting for us in arrivals.  It is always great to see a friendly face waiting for you at an international airport.

Driving from the airport to Spencer's place was great.  Dubai is a very futuristic city.  I could imagine cars flying and zooming between all the tall buildings.  Spencer has lived in Dubai for almost 6 years and has seen the city grow.  It was interesting to hear about how the city has changed from a complete desert into the metropolis it is now.

Burj Khalifa

We loved being at Spencer's place.  It was very modern and had a fantastic view of the Marina.

View from Spencer's apartment

Spencer's pool and beach

Chilling with Spencer

After some chilling out, Spencer took us for a one day tour of Dubai.  We went to the sail building and a touristy souk where there were many sparkly things.  The best thing about being in the souk was the air conditioning.  It was super, super hot outside - only bearable for a couple minutes and then we craved air con.

After a visit to the Souk, Spencer took us to the desert.  WOW!  This was our very first time being in a desert together.  It was amazing.  HOT, very, very hot and windy.  It was like a Wellington wind, but hotter, much hotter.  I loved how peaceful it was - almost eerie.  I could not hear anything but the wind, no birds, no trees, just wind and sand.  Watching the sand move was awesome.  It was like fine dust particles floating and weaving their way to their next destination.  The sand itself was very fine and soft.

After the desert, we went back to Spencer's place and went down to the beach for a swim and for some beers.  The ocean water was like a hot bath!  It was lovely.  Spencer and Robert took the kayak out and I soaked in the sights and sounds.  I listened to the birds and the sound of construction.  The sun started to go down and the lights of the buildings started to twinkle.  It reminded me a little bit of Hong Kong. 

We only had a day in Dubai, but it was a fabulous day and it made us feel excited that this would be our 'weekend' spot away when we are in Jordan.  It'll be lovely to have such a good friend close to us.  We are really looking forward to our next visit to Dubai.

Look! We have a stow away from New Zealand - Buzzy Bee Belle.  Thanks Emma :)

Next stop - Belgium!