I arrive in Singapore with this empty feeling. Granted, I'm famished, but non-the-less... It feels like I've been traveling forever. That's the one thing about traveling for two and a half days; you begin to comprehend how far from home you really are, and it makes you realize, there's no going back.
I'm starting Part Two of my adventures in Asia. Coming back is difficult. It's difficult because I know what challenges to expect, but at least I know I've already overcome some of the biggest challenges of moving: finding a place to live, adjusting to a new culture, a new city, adjusting to the strains of graduate school. But some of the same challenges remain: finding inspiration, finding motivation, finding ways to connect with friends and family who are 10,000 miles away!
But a journey has to start somewhere, and my current journey started on the airplane. I flew from JFK to Dubai, Dubai to Sri Lanka, and Sri Lanka to Singapore. Think about all the different corners of the world I traversed just to get to Singapore! It's these kinds of experiences that excite me; it's these experiences that make me realize why I'm doing what I'm doing, why I put myself through sometimes miserable experiences just to go to school on the other side of the world: and it's because I'm seeing the world in the process, and I wouldn't trade that for anything...well, almost anything.
I had a seven hour layover in Dubai, and I decided to take advantage of it. Adding another stamp in my passport, I left the airport and hopped a cab into the city. The cab driver was very helpful, I told him I wanted to see the city, see the main attractions. He drove me all over, showing me on his GPS where we were and where we were going, pointing out the different landmarks and explaining them to me. I only understood about 1/4 of what he said, but that was enough to know that I have to go back to this enigma of the middle east!
As far as modern cities go, Dubai was a true beaut, especially at night all lit up! The zany architecture was incredible; the sparkling buildings reflected into the water that surrounded the city. It's incredible that over ten years ago, this place was nothing but desert and now it's a full and alive city! Apparently, the city is being worked on 24 hours a day, in ten hour shifts, according to the cabby.
In some regards, Dubai is similar to Singapore; the futuristic aspects, the river, the heavy focus on shopping...and yet, I think I would enjoy Dubai much more!
For one, while Dubai is extremely extravagant (and I don't consider myself a very extravagant person...don't laugh Mom!...), I feel like its extravagance is earned. What I mean is, I don't feel like Dubai is pretending to be something it's not; it just let loose and went crazy! It's kind of bad-ass in that regard, it's like it's saying, "we're ridiculous but we don't care!" Whereas, sometimes I feel like Singapore is just an illusion; it's emphasis on shopping, etc, is just some facade.
Also, when you first arrive in Singapore, it's easy to forget that you're in another country...another continent even! But despite the inevitable Western influences of Dubai, you still feel that you're in another country, far removed from your own. (After all, you are in the United Arab Emirates!) and you can see influences of the Middle East in the architecture and decor of the city. Also, unlike in Singapore (with some exceptions of course), someone like myself stands out a little more in the crowd. (Being an uncovered woman, for instance.) In other words, the Muslim influence is much more prominent here than in Singapore (not that it's non-existent in Singapore, because it isn't.)
The skyline is something to talk about. The driver pointed out a tall building that is currently being built (171 stories high), and also, the Burj Al Arab, the tallest hotel in the world (and the funkiest looking building I've ever seen!) At night it was lit up in a purple-ish/teal color, and it's situated on it's own little islandette.
He also took me to this underground water park, and a beautiful hotel that looked like a castle! Part of it ran through the water, and it was simply stunning. (I have to go back just to see this place again! Hopefully in the daylight.) It was extremely grandiose and it had giant statues of horses lining the driveway. Apparently, the Dubai World Cup is the richest horse race in the world! The taxi then took me to a part of Dubai called The Palm (because the roads weave together in the shape of a palm tree). There are hundreds of housing developments there, and the Atlantis Hotel. This one looked like a sultan's palace. I got out of the cab and went into the shopping portion of the hotel (they wouldn't let me on the grounds of the actual hotel because I wasn't checking in). It was just filled with fancy American stores (more American than Singapore, actually). We had to take a tunnel to get to The Palm/ Atlantis, and the cab driver seemed really impressed with the fact that we could drive under the water (i.e. like the Holland Tunnel). I guess this is a novelty to a place like the U.A.E. because it was all he could talk about! He also showed me the beach (though it was dark and I couldn't really see it too well), and then I asked him to drop me off at the Emirates Mall. Okay, I'm by no means a mall rat (and most of you know how much I detest malls), but I was told if I went one place in Dubai, this is where I should go. And as far as malls go, this one was pretty darn impressive. And if I left the airport for only one reason, this was a pretty good reason: to see the indoor ski slope in the Emirates Mall! Yes folks, we are in the middle of the desert, yes we are in the middle of a shopping mall, and yes, we can go skiing. It sounds silly, but it was quite remarkable to see.
The other thing that fascinated me about the mall is that they had a Theater and Arts Center attached to it. I took a look inside, and it had funky sculptures/artwork; they featured acting and dance classes; it actually looked like a pretty impressive place!
After I got a glimpse at the mall, I hopped back in a cab for the airport, and I still had about four hours left until my plane takes off. Go figure. At this point, it's past midnight on Sunday January 18th. I'm confused because I left the United States on Friday, January 16th and I STILL had two legs of my journey left. Crazy confusing.
Let me briefly give you the factual 411 on Dubai:
Dubai is one of the seven Emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates. It is considered the commercial, leisure, and sporting capital o the Gulf. It is known for its liberal attitude and minimal bureaucracy. It is considered to have some of the best golfing in the world, as it hosts the Desert Classic Tournament, and as I said earlier, it is well known for its horse racing through the Dubai World Cup. (Okay, admittedly I got all that off the "info" section on the airplane television set.)
Once on the next plane, headed to Colombo (Sri Lanka; exciting, I know!), I had the window seat of a three-seat section. The young man seated on the aisle seemed very interested in the fact that I was writing in a journal. So interested, in fact, that he told the guy in the middle seat that he would like to sit there.
I took pictures from the airplane as we landed in Sri Lanka. It was pretty exciting to see (Sri Lanka is a long, thin island that wraps around like a snake!) We were forced to stay on the plane while the cleaning crew came on and cleaned the airplane, which quite frankly, makes no sense. After about an hour or so, we're back in the air again headed towards Singapore. Again, landing in Singapore was very nice to see from the plane. I took pictures again, you can basically see the entire island from up there, and it's so weird to see an entire city packed into a small island! Once off the plane, I felt obligated to give my business card to the guy next to me (it was the fastest way to get rid of him); he seemed so eager to sit next to me, after all! (Instead of watching him stand there awkwardly trying to ask me, I figured I'd spare him the trouble, and me the time, and got it over with for him. I just wanted to get my baggage and get out of there.) It's great having a resident's card. I get to skip the "All Other Passports" line at the airport and go right through customs with the locals. I was through in no time.
Once back in my apartment, I cried. I don't know what it was, but I think it had to do with that empty feeling in my stomach. I decided to go and eat some food.
