[DUBAI - United Arab Emirates]

As I found Amman (Jordan) to be dull and boring is Dubai in the United Arab Emirates colourful, bright and glitzy. But both cities are my least favourites!

Dubai is kitsch. Full of psychotic flashing bill boards, opulent jewellery shops, American malls and wide 5 lane roads that are full of expensive, air-conditioned cars. But its a city of men! Immigrant men, cheap labour from Pakistan and India, where they stay in what they call 'labour camps'. Spot the Arab was my favourite phrase. The oppressive heat coupled with the diarrea that has been giving me the proverbial shits since Palestine didnt add to my experience. 3rd time I have had food poisoning since my travels...call it a 'vacational' hazard.

I took a day trip with some young travellers out to the desert via public transport. We ended up next to the border of Oman still a good 10kms from the watering hole we hoped to visit. In the local super market, I happily watched the 2 guys try and ask a local in a mix of Arabic and English how and where was the watering hole...when I had another de je vu. We had to laugh later because I couldnt tell them how my dream ended, if we made it or not... As it often is with independent travelling, the 'getting there' was just as interesting as the 'being there'; we managed to get a number of lifts from friendly Arabs and take a refreshing dip in the only water source for miles.

It was short stay but long enough, on the 12th October I landed in Bombay India.

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