Sheikh your booty

Let's comment on some architecture. The Dubai metro is simply fantastic. Swift, swish, and suave.

The stations are like space-age cocoons, super clean and sleek. But I was quite taken by one station in the old town. I'd reached a place where there should be a metro station, but all I could find was this small classic building.

Subtle. (no seriously, it's actually subtle - give them credit!).

It turns out, it is the station! Of course it was Friday morning and even the metro was closed. I checked out the buses in vane as the midday sun baked me into a prune and I hopped in a taxi before I became a date. I was treated to some views of the skyline which is nothing short of impressive.

Dubai skyline.

Build it and they will come, they said. They've built it, and I've come, so you have to give them credit. And, from the Burj, here's an 'inspiring' quote from his highness:

I've added a minor detail. Probably just being pedantic

Malled by the Emirates

There's Ibn Battuta, which has gone for the classic/ancient style. Here's one of the decorative domes inside:

A decorative dome inside a 'classic' mall

Then there's the Mall of the Emirates, which has gone for the classic/European style. Here's one of the decorative domes in the background:

(hello again mother)

They've perfectly captured the spirit of classic Italy by making wonky buildings and putting the lampposts not in a straight line. Incredible.

And then there's the gold souk (market), which is actually classic. If you Google it then you'll see it's bustling with people and full of refulgent gold; alas, on a Friday morning the shutters are down and it's all but silent.

Gold souk. Mostly closed on Friday mornings.

At least there were some benches, which is more than I can say for most of Dubai.

Ray's bar

"Is it on the top floor?"

"No, it's on the 62nd"

The atrium envelopes us in its opulence. We're joined in the bejeweled lift by bewildered middle class British people dressed their best and out for a cocktail, and are greeted on the 62nd floor by a waiter and a stunning view of Abu Dhabi.

We choose from the endless fabulous and expensive cocktails and admire the decor. The bar is full of people instagramming themselves, so pleased to be there among the elite. I wonder where the actual elite are. I go to the loo and am enamoured by the sinks.

A large glass container holds within it a smaller marble block. The water falls to the block and runs down its side, and splashes the glass too. I return to the bill and am not enamoured. I pull a face. The waiter re-assures me:
"It's expensive to keep clean a sink of such disproportionate surface area"