I landed in Dubai at about 1 o’clock local time after seven and a half hours in the air and went though the usual immigration/security stuff. I have to say, Dubai immigration was the least efficient of the three countries that I’ve visited on this trip. And that was as a Brit – as such I could go through a fast-track procedure. Other arrivers, from India for example, had to join the back of long, slow-moving queues. It looked as if they were in for a long wait.
Anyway, I got through and was quickly taken to my hotel, the Hilton on Dubai Creek. It turned out that Trailfinders had got me a super-deluxe room, on a corner, and therefore with views in two directions, including of Dubai Creek. The room was very spacious – probably the best room I’ve stayed in, in fact. (Apart from the Holiday Inn in Rotherham that Val and I stayed in the time the boiler was kaput and we fled the house. That was an enormous room, and very comfortable, although it didn’t have a view. Still, it would have been a view of Rotherham – Canklow, actually, for those who know South Yorkshire – so I reckon a view of Dubai Creek wins it.)
After settling in and taking my ease for a while I went out to explore. Mainly this was to locate the nearest Dubai metro station, which turned out to be Union station, on both the Red and Green lines. It was just about 15 minutes from the hotel which meant a warm walk. However I was immediately struck by one difference between Dubai and Singapore – although the temperature figure was the same (30° or a bit over), Dubai was much drier. As the evening wore on it definitely got cooler which it never did in Singapore, so score several points for Dubai.
After returning to the hotel and eating I went out again and explored the Creek. To be honest this was a bit less exciting than I had hoped – just a dock with a lot of old Arab shows moored. Interesting enough, but not especially exciting. By this time I was very tired – it was nearly 10 o’clock locally, which meant 2am by my time given that I had started the day in Singapore. So I went to bed and and slept well; until the call to prayer from the mosque next door at 5:45 or so. By this point I was wondering a bit about Dubai. But I got back to sleep and eventually rose at about 8am ready for the new day.
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