Dialog - U.A.E.

Isabelle and me on a week's trip to visit Julia, a friend of ours who lives and works in Sharjah (the city and capital of the emirate of the same name).

After having slept in to adjust to local time and while waiting for Julia to return from school we stepped outside and walked around near her apartment, which is located right off Al Khaled lagoon in the city of Sharjah.

The Madinat area is a resort designed in form of a mini city using traditional arabic architecture - most eye (and wind) catching: the wind towers). Adjacent to the Burj al Arab and the Jumeirah beach hotel, it's a nice area, open to public to stroll around, with small stores, food courts, snack bars, music and waterways.

A day's trip to Dubai, starting at the newly opened Dubai mall, driving along the "Jumeira First" beach, to stop and leasure-walk around Dubai Marina.

On Al Mamzar beach, which is right outside of Sharjah in the adjacent Dubai for a relaxing November:-) morning.

The Atlantis is a resort at the Palm Jumeirah (which is the first of three palm islands in Dubai) - we missed its grand opening on November 20th when millions of Dirhams worth of fireworks where blown up - but still got a sneak preview beforehand!

Out at the 360° bar - a circular bar at the end of a pontoon from the Jumeirah beach hotel - for a drink after soundown, looking at the Dubai skyline and the Burj al Arab.

A trip to a small place south of Sharjah, where we got to "feel" what desert means - moving sands, wind, heat, camels, a scarce but nevertheless existing vegetation and a tremendously fast but beautiful sundown.

The "Eye of the Emirates" ferris wheel is part of a recreational area called "Quanat al Qasba" between the Khaled and Al Khan laggons in Sharjah, where Isabelle and me went out for an unhurried evening stroll.