The ME, Myself and I

[Sumbitch]

I heard 1000 Mbps is available. Now that is only 1 gbps.

[Bettyboo]

Especially when there isn't a 700b BJ Bar 50 meters down the road.

I suspect, in Dubai, there is...






Oh dear, so 3rd world...

[Neo]

Yeah whatever... it's all about the ping

[blue]

its grim up north.....

those immigrants will pay for driving me out of the cities

[Luigi]

Can't they light some more coal, increase the speed of the search engine?

[Sumbitch]

Oh dear, so 3rd world...

Time to own up Betts. The cost of living in Korea is higher than in the U.S. Cost of Living Index by Country 2016

[Luigi]

^ It's worth paying the price to be surrounded by a populace that are on average half the weight and twice as a intelligent.

[Sumbitch]

^ Agreed. If one can afford it.

[Neo]

A download speed of 35 Mbps is something to be grateful for.

its only Grade B*
poverty is relative...

It certainly is in Dubai... I live in Marina, but I don't have a balcony

[Neo]

I went to the Burj Kalifah a couple of weeks ago, this is the tallest building in the world at 830m and 163 floors. It's in the financial district next to the Dubai Mall, which is about 10k from Marina.

There are two ticket types, the standard takes you to the 124th floor and the premium 'At The Top' ticket which takes you to the VIP lounge on the 148th, which is £100 and gives you priority in the queues and lift system and a dedicated guide to talk you through the experience.

So in the cab just coming into the financial district, the Burj can been seen from quite a distance obviously, but the sheer scale of it gets more impressive the closer you get..



Actually getting in the building means going through the Dubai Mall, which being the biggest mall in the world is an absolute slog, so I got the taxi driver to drop me as close to it as he can, despite his protestations.



and there's the money shot..

[Neo]

So a walk around the back to find my way into the mall, some quite nice buildings around a series of pools with blue tiled bases which you will see stand out later in the view from the top. The water made for a really cool breeze, and you can see in this pic a deathslide running from the top of one skyscaper to the roof of the mall which must have been at least a 1000 metres, sounded like they were having fun as they went screaming past... I must give it a go one day.



More buildings going up, EMAAR is the most reputable property developer here, and their buildings are known for having good maintenance, as is with mine.



Into the entrance hall inside the mall, tickets are booked with half hour intervals due to the large number of people that want to visit the Burj, so people are just hanging out waiting for their slot. This was around 3pm which was fairly busy, later on toward sunset it gets heaving.

[Bettyboo]

^ nice pictures there. But, how long do you reckon you'll keep loving Dubai for? Is it one of those places you love then a few months, later get bored of, then start to hate?

Time to own up Betts. The cost of living in Korea is higher than in the U.S. Cost of Living Index by Country 2016

I reckon the cost of living in Thailand nowadays is the same, or in some places, more expensive than Spain.

Dubai is not cheap to live either.

Building money in the bank, expendable cash, quality of life, etc, Korea is just fine - far better than Thailand, imho. It's great that Neo is enjoying Dubai, but I hope he's saving lots of money and not spending it all!

[Neo]

Well I spent a bit last night.. but she was worth it..

Got a litre of Stoly at the airport the other day after coming back from Qatar that cost 69 aed (£15) paid that for a double vodka and tonic in a bar last night..

There are some quite frustrating things that come from the Arabic mentality of take it or leave it and the forced subservience of anyone in a minor position.

The cost of housing here is extortionate, but is priced similar across all areas, unlike most other places where the closer you live to the centre the more expensive it is, likewise with the prices in restaurants and bars, no difference between the Hilton in JBR and Nelson's in Tecom... although the quality is very high and the surroundings luxurious. Dubai is very superficial.

Being forced into paying a years rent up front for a property on a years lease is galling, being told by Du the internet provider that they only offer two year contracts is a kick in the bollox and very typical of how business here is done... you know you will lose out somewhere along the line.. the system is highly rigged.

Service people here are not generally employed to have an opinion or make a decision, but on the same token are afraid to say no or they don't know for fear of angering an Arab and being catapulted out of the country, (a situation that can happen at any level by the way), which means trying to get a straight answer or a correct answer on anything of importance is seemingly impossible and generally leads to being led in circles with increasing frustration.. but this is the way its done here and seems to be accepted with a shrug and 'thats just the way it is'

But... is any society perfect..? There are many positives to living here.. the cosmopolitan society, the lack of aggression, (until you get in a car that is), the vibrant mix of like minded expats, the overall experience of such an extravagant city, the sense of success of surviving another day here

I'm very fortunate that most of my time will be spent outside of Dubai, although it's still early days... it was a welcome relief to return after a couple of days in Doha last week. If I was in Dubai 24/7 I think I would pop a cog sooner rather than later, but really overall it's a very positive and rewarding experience.. just not for the faint hearted.

[Neo]

I'll post more pics later.. time for a feed

[Bettyboo]

Nice 'precis', Neo.

Certainly a nice change.

[Sumbitch]

I reckon the cost of living in Thailand nowadays is the same, or in some places, more expensive than Spain.

Dubai is not cheap to live either.

Since you asked, of 122 countries, with Bermuda having the highest cost of living and India the lowest, the UAE (Dubai) ranks 28th, Thailand 82nd and Spain 40th. Spain has a cost of living twice that of Thailand.

Cost of Living Index by Country 2016

[Neo]

So here's our little VIP group waiting with the tour guide to go in the lift, the current lift position is lasered onto the doors.. fastest lifts in the world apparently..



Inside the lift was a laser show projected on the walls as we ascended, unfortunately most of these shots came out very blurred, but it tooks us past images of all the tallest buildings throughout history starting with the Great Pyramids, on to the Tour Eiffel, the CNN Tower etc, Imagine the great glass elevator, it was really incredible and gave a sense of flying up in space, this last image was as it came to a rest at the 125th floor, as high as this elevator went, I'm pretty sure this was only for the VIP trip and the other elevators have the same images but on a single screen in the wall.





Into the next elevator and up to the VIP lounge at the 148th floor





And then you arrive...







North toward Deira and Sharjah in the far distance

[Neo]

South toward Marina in the distance and the Burj al Arab on the coast



These are all on the phone camera, so image quality isn't great, but it had rained the day before so the air was quite clear





It felt like being in an airship and the staff were like cabin crew, really nice to chat with they were obviously happy to have such a great job and were really keen to talk about their experience and the fact that no two days seem the same as the weather and atmospherics change the view. They did say that early morning and mid afternoon were the best times to come as it gets very crowded before sunset with people turning up an hour or so before and hogging the windows.

[Neo]

Out onto the terrace and some clearer shots without the glass interference





Looking up to the last bit at the top, there are offices up there though the last few floors tend to sway a lot and are unused



North



East



South



and straight down..

[Dillinger]

It'd be fun being up there during an earthquake......not

[Dillinger]

Could you see your condo from up there?

[Neo]

Then on the way back down via the cheap seats on the 124th floor, actually it's split on two levels with a spiral staircase going down to the 123rd which has another open air terrace









and then all the way back down and out through a multimedia exhibition of the construction of the tower



It was all a very relaxed and unhurried experience, definitely worth the extra to go to the top and I'll certainly do it again and go early morning on a clear day to catch a different perspective on the view. Its certainly worth a visit and a good reason to make Dubai a destination even if only for a stopover.

[Dillinger]

Its certainly worth a visit and a good reason to make Dubai a destination even if only for a stopover

It felt like being in an airship and the staff were like cabin crew

Mate, if you lift your window shade on the plane before landing you can see all that bollocks for free, from a greater height, with real cabin crew on a real airship

[Bettyboo]

Great shots, Neo. You would not get Flyer Slaps up there!

[Sumbitch]

Is the building commercial, residential, mixed? Did it look like it's fully rented out? Notice any big company headquarters or such?