UP HIGH IN DUBAI
- shoediva9
- Sep 19
- 3 min read
APRIL, 2025
As we head to Athens, I am reflecting on all the wealth and extravagance of Dubai. It is hard for me to believe that there is so much money spread between so few people. Incredible.
The architecture is magnificent, the buildings are unique and they are tall. Of course none taller than the Burj Khalifa.
From the top (yes, we did indeed splurge), I was struck by all the sand. Obviously, Dubai is built in a desert, but you don’t notice that when you are driving through the city. Colourful billboards block all construction. Everything is clean and uniform. But from the top, you can see all the sand between the extravagance. And also the less opulent developments where the rich don’t live.
Incredible to think that only 10% of the population are citizens. Your father has to be native to this land. We met a tour guide whose mother was from Dubai but because his father is from Pakistan, he and his siblings are not citizens. They are allowed to live and work in Dubai, but they must renew their paperwork every two years like everyone else.
The next biggest group represented in Dubai are Southeast Asians, followed by Indians and then it’s about the same for Chinese, Pakistani and Filipinos.
The aesthetic of the cityscape is amazing. Everything is sandstone coloured, concrete, steel and glass. When you see it from the water or from the top, it is quite stunning against the backdrop of the desert. The interest lies in the architecture of the buildings themselves, as there are no pops of colour. I imagine it is an architect’s dream to come here and build something.
I also know Dubai was luxurious, but seeing it up close is something else. And to think that basically all of it didn’t exist before the 1980’s. Incredible.
Recently, as in as recent as the war in Ukraine, many Russians have come to Dubai to escape and/or avoid the war. They are buying and building real estate like crazy! We say entire marina developments that have been built in the last few years.
When they opened development on the second Palm development it sold out in 24 hours and it still isn’t even completed.
Of course all the construction work is done by foreign workers. They come here and send money home to their families. We met drivers, pool attendants and restaurant workers from Bangladesh, Sierra Leone, Pakistan and more. 3 of them talked about Canada with us. Our pool attendant had tried 3 times to come to Canada. Our taxi driver last night was planning to apply next year. Canada is his favourite country. He has three children and a wife in Pakistan and when he goes home it is usually for 2 months at a time.
I posted a reel on Instagram during our visit, set to Louis Armstrong’s What A Wonderful World. Later, I worried if it sent the wrong message to people. You just never know. Obviously, I don’t condone much of what the Arab world embraces, especially for women. But the city is full of contrasts and people busy living. I am from a small town in southern Manitoba. I was a teacher. I visited Dubai.
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There is also many different guided trips into the desert if you are interested - it was not for us
It is a wonderful world to think that I can travel the way I have been over the past few years. I would have never expected the opportunities that I have had. It is indeed a wonderful world.
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