Who Says You Can't Have It All??

They should come to Dubai!!

In the past 24 hours we have:

1. Had dinner and drinks at the world's largest all-suite luxury hotel

2. Seen souks (markets) filled with beautiful spices and the shiniest yellowiest gold 

3. Been to the Middle East's largest mall which includes every designer and regular store ever, an aquarium, a skating rink, a dinosaur?, and waterfalls. And this wasn't even the one with the ski slopes...

4. Been to the top of the world's tallest building and free-standing structure to see the views of Dubai- a desert filled with high-rises and continuous construction projects for even more. 

5. Seen a fountain show by the same person who designed the Bellagio show in Las Vegas. 

If you also want to have it all, come to Dubai! The glitz and glamour will be waiting for you!

POINTS!

Today was the easiest country point* collection in history. We three sheikhs got four country points in about a one hour time span!

Last night my dad, AT, and I all converged in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Dubai is one of the seven emirates and has been a top destination for me for quite some time. It's a crazy modern city built in the middle of the desert and has gone to all extremes. The world's tallest building is here! The largest all-suite hotel with a helipad is here! There is a man-made island in the shape of a palm tree! The mall has a black diamond ski slope! I mean, come on!! I want to see that!!!

We arrived late in the evening and rendezvoused at the hotel for a good ol' cheeseburger with none of the Indian food worries. From the airport to the hotel AT and I marveled at the first-world-ness of it all. The litter was gone, cars drove in lanes without honking, and I've yet to see a cow or any of it's trappings.**

This morning we had a car trip planned to see four of the other emirates (and every one of them is a point!). We drove directly to the farthest emirate, Ras Al Khainah, and then worked our way back to Dubai from there. We drove through three emirates on the way which brings AT to a whopping 107 countries, me to 88, and Dad to 67. But who's counting?***

The views along the way ranged from barren desert 

to high-rise central 

to Persian Gulf views. 

There was an obligatory fort-turned museum stop where I climbed towers, Dad and AT talked with mannequins, and we all read about shells to stay in air conditioning. 

From there, we backtracked to another emirate, Umm Al Quwain. In it we had a seaside stop and some lunch. Lunch will be a difficult time this whole trip because we are here during the month of Ramadan. Ramadan is a period of reflection, charity, and gratitude for Islamic people and they fast during the daylight hours. This means many places are closed and it's even considered impolite to eat or drink in public. Accordingly, we had fast food in the car. Shameful, I know, but a necessity. The McDonald's**** is not pictured, though I definitely should have!

We continued on back to Dubai with drives and quick stops in Ajman and Sharjah. Ajman was full of palatial private residences and official buildings while Sharjah was the big honking city (pictured toward the top) where all the people live. We also learned about the royal families and, thankfully, there was a billboard to illustrate. 

In no time we were back to Dubai and this killer view:

Tonight we're heading to the most-exclusive hotel to view the ultra-glamorous Palm Island. Dazzle us, Dubai!

*I know I've talked about this before but it was an entire blog location ago. AT is a current member of the Traveler's Century Club and my dad and I are hoping to make it as members one day! To join, you will have traveled to at least 100 countries on their pre-approved list, which is available here: http://travelerscenturyclub.org/countries-and-territories Go ahead. Count yours up!! 

**"Trappings" is a very polite code for something else. 

***WE ARE! And we're more than a little obsessed. Obviously. 

****I know. Don't even start with me, I don't even eat there at home. If there had been a Wendy's...

Hi Dad!!!

Happy belated Father's Day and welcome to the country counting, Dad!!

AT and I have been at this for about a month and are so excited to have you along. Here are a few pointers for traveling with us:

1. We prioritize meal time. Want to see one more temple/mosque/UNESCO site but it's dinner time? Too bad. That thing has been there for thousands of years and will definitely still be there next time you visit. Menu, please. 

2. Speaking of meal times, AT requires an iced tea at lunch and KT requires a diet coke. Coke Zero is a poor substitute but will do if that's all you're offering. Don't you dare put lemon or sugar in AT's iced tea, either. 

3. Want to get up for the sunrise tour? Take lots of pictures and tell us all about it!!

4. "We can totally walk there" -Kelly

"Too d--n far and too d--n hot" -Terry

We look forward to you being our tiebreaker. 

5. KT would like that crossword and sudoku from your newspaper, please. "Ooh, there's a Hitori??? I love it here!"

6. Learn how to look busy in a store. AT will take about 150% longer to examine everything than you were expecting. 

7. We haven't turned on a television yet, but we know you like your international news programs. Not a problem unless you pass an episode of "Friends" dubbed in Arabic. That looks like a real winner. 

8. There are some things hugs can't buy. For everything else, there's MasterCard.