Dubai - You’re hot, damn hot, literally

My dear Dubai,

As I wait for my glasses to de-mist as I exit the hotel foyer into the forty degrees and 70% humidity, I start to wonder whether I had made the right decision to visit you. You have your Burj Khalifa, The Frame, Museum of the Future and so much more that feels like Disneyland on steroids. I then find little gems that seem to be devoid of tourist, most probably due to heat.

I walk through the reconstructed Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood and stumble on a coffee museum. Even in this heat, I need my caffeine. Yet, you do not offer me either a modern or traditional coffee. You rather I go to a Starbucks or similar to quench this desire. I see the game you are playing, so I go to Alserkal Avenue, a block of warehouses which is now home to art, food and fashion. This is great, even with the heat; a mixture of locals and expats trying to be trendy.

Yet you still try to convince me to see what the Bedouins who once lived these lands by asking me to sit in a brand new air-conditioned 4WD to experience the Bedouin way of life. No, I won’t have any of it! Put me in a vintage Land Rover with no air conditioning or suspension and then take me to a mock Bedouin village where the henna tattoo disappears in a pool of sweat after 5 minutes. Now I feel like I have experienced the true Dubai.