Similarities Between Dubai International Airport and Vegas...

Posting from Dubai International Airport in UAE. Samsung is kind enough to set up an email station from which we can access the internet for free! Anyway, while there's much to catch up on regarding the Tanzania leg of the trip, I thought I'd write a quick post on the bizarreness of this airport in the middle of the desert.

In some ways it's like Vegas but (unfortunately) without the gambling or the sex (more on the latter below). It has that 'up all night no idea what time it is' feeling and the 'tacky kitsch mixed with wealthy glamour' appeal. At 1:00 am it was crowded with couples and families wandering the fancy duty free shopping. Palm trees line the center of the terminal and Arabian motifs abound. The shopping ranges from high class (fancy chocolates, cigars, etc.) to kitschy (giant gold hookahs, teddy bears dressed in traditional Muslim garb). When Wabes tried to obtain an update on American pop culture by flipping through magazines in the bookstore we noticed an interesting practice here in UAE; several people must spend several hours removing offensive content from western publications, as they all have dark marker lines over revealing photos of cleavage.

Anyway, I feel I've taken up my share of free time here at the Samsung station. But I'll try to post again before our flight takes off for Frankfurt.