Dubai Rising

We visited Dubai two weeks ago and finally got a good look at the city. It's an amazing place in that it seems to appear that over 65% of the tall buildings are still under construction. There's so much development that driving is always adventurous to drivers who say that sporadic street openings, closures and detours are very common.

Here is a photo of the tallest building in the world under construction. How would you like to be the crane operator of this one. If you notice the base of the crane, it doesn't dare to touch the ground and instead rests on a small perch.

Fujairah 50 years ago

Not too long ago before the UAE's oil wealth was discovered, the country's homes here in Fujairah were built from indigenous materials and simpler construction techniques. The photos show a house built of local rock and a mud like stucco, which has plenty of shells in it, common in the dirt here. Palm frawns were used in the roofing. With the new wealth these homes were abandoned for newer, larger and more modernized homes.

Beach time in Khor Fakkan near Fujairah

30 minutes up the coast is a beautiful stretch of beach called Khor Fakkan. Several beach resorts have sprouted up here and it's a nice place to enjoy the sun and surf. Supposedly, there's also good scuba diving here too.

On this day we drove up for brunch with our friend Patricia.

More Fujairah Shots

Shot of Meg's school. It's a nice, secure campus of a few buildings. It's very open and has all the amenities for a positive learning enviroment.

The food here is delicious. This is from a Lebanese restaurant. One of many here. Makes you want to visit Lebanon.

A view of Fujairah. The building with the "golf ball" is the telephone company. I suspect there is radar/satellite equipment in the ball. None the less, it's a landmark here. The city is layed out with main boulevards that intersect at traffic circles and ovals. Due to the numerous traffic circles, I've only counted 3 stoplights so far in this city of 140000 people.

Universal Signage

Signs for the restrooms. You can't help but love them.