A short hop to Dubai for a day. I didn’t bring my camera this time, so it’s another old photo I’m afraid. You can tell from the columns on the left bank of the road. These are now the supports for the metro track, which is almost complete including stations. The photo above was taken in February 2008.
Dubai is still quiet – but the queue for the taxis at the airport was unbelievably long.
Dubai is awake again. Whilst it’s still not to the Dubai I knew before the recession, there are plenty of positive signs. I used the Sheikh Zayed road to measure the activity level on a previous trip. This time I was actually stuck in traffic on a few occasions. There are still unfinished buildings with no obvious signs of any work in progress; but roads, shops and restaurants are reasonably busy. With the summer heat, malls feel busier and I’m told hotels are taking more and more bookings for the summer.
Work-wise, some of the projects previously on hold have been dusted off and are taking shape – even if only on paper. In all my meetings, I sensed a readiness to do business again.
I hope this continues and I wish Dubai all the best.
I’m in Dubai again today. Although I thought I had imagined it last time, the place is really very quiet. The airport was virtually empty with no queues for immigration and taxis. The roads are, in Dubai’s standard, deserted!
The above is a view that I’m very familiar with. I stay at this hotel many times during the year. The main road, Sh Zayed Road, usually has bumper-to-bumper traffic most of the day – and the early part of the night. The swimming pool is always, and I do mean always, so busy that I never thought of going down for a quick swim. During the busy afternoon time on a glorious sunny day, there were four people there.
I’m sure Dubai will pick up again. I pray it’s soon. They deserve it with all the hard work that has gone into it.
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