ysteph:
It's not only back home. (Let me not mention my country too. LOL).
I left my bag in an Old Navy store in Los Angeles say for about 15 mins before i remembered and by the time i remembered and located my bags, my DOLLARS(hard earned for that matter) was gone. I still cry when i remember the incident.
So just so you know, you were lucky to have your bags intact. It has nothing to do with your country alone.

pele

It happened this evening; i was at a changing room in Max Al Ghurair Centre and a lady was looking for something she misplaced; she couldn't find it ooo Na God do my own.

My people, sorry for the break in transmission; i was out all day in Abu Dhabi but story continues now

......


Not only is Dubai beautiful, but it is well thought out. A big shout-out to the ruler of Dubai HRH (His Royal Highness) Sheikh Al Maktoum and the crown prince of Dubai HRH Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum for their insight and leadership. It is clear that their own executive meetings yield results (I don’t know what they do in the Federal Executive Meeting here in Nigeria but God will help us sha). I can’t really explain the beauty of Dubai other than to describe it as ‘Real Estate Money’ at its best. Dubai is Real Estate money but Abu Dhabi is Oil money. The president of UAE is also the crown price and ruler of Abu Dhabi while the vice president of UAE is the ruler of Dubai. From my research so far, they are exceptional leaders – of course, no one is perfect, but they are really doing great things for their nation. Let me digress a bit further and talk to you about Emaar Properties; yes, there are many construction companies in Dubai, but Emaar Properties is the ‘Olori’ or first of them all. Top construction companies in Dubai include Emaar, Damac, Nakheel, Meydan etc. and they are all making their money but clearly one’s balance sheet will be bigger than the other.


It is not uncommon to see many towers in Dubai with the Emaar logo on them; they are heavily involved in properties, malls, entertainment and hospitality. Their valuation as of 2017 was $14.6 billion and they aren’t slowing down. Emaar properties was instrumental in building Burj Khalifa and the Chairman is (as at when I watched the documentary) the 5th most powerful person in Dubai. How did the Burj Khalifa come about? HRH Sheikh Al Maktoum (the ruler of Dubai) called the CEO and said he wanted the tallest building in the world in Dubai. He gave him examples of all the tallest buildings as at then and HRH said ‘add them up and build one taller than them all’ and that was how the Burj Khalifa became a money making center for Dubai because there is an observation deck on the 124th, 125th and 148th floors (I haven’t been there yet but will get there eventually) where tourists can go and ‘observe’ (of course for a price) and there is also the a club on the 144th floor – highest level club in the world. There is an assess point from Burj Khalifa to the Dubai Mall. Dubai is really a product of vision and good leadership. What they don’t know, they source for it worldwide and bring such man power to their country, make them comfortable and the end result is magic!! The downside of living in Dubai is the smoking habit; because in every building, smoking is prohibited, so smokers just chill on the streets and smoke their lives away and the air becomes polluted.


My journey to and fro via the metro was an educational moment for me; I was able to connect with all the places I had read about but soon the train was back to Al Rigga meaning I was back ‘home’. I got down and went to Al Ghurair (but this time I didn’t enter the mall) where I proceeded to go to Burger King for lunch. I got a whopper burger for 23 AED – fries, burger and a drink before going to Juice world to try something new and believe me, there was something new. It was 3 different types of ice-cream filled with assorted fruits and almond (na wa o, these people here are living the life) all for a whooping 30 AED (hey, you only live once abi?’ I quickly made my way back to my hotel so I could devour the meal ‘Tobi Bakre style’. But immediately I ate, my head started pounding; I guess my body was dehydrated from the fast so I took a nap thinking I would be relieved but upon waking at 8.45pm I wasn’t relieved so I knew it was time for me to dress and go buy Panadol.
Stepping out of the hotel, I saw one white guy (he may not be European but he is sha white), our eyes met and I continued my journey. 5 minutes into my journey, I looked at my side and saw the dude! He asks me for my number and says he followed me from the hotel to where he intercepted me (na wa o). I didn’t have a UAE sim which I told him, and he asked if I was staying at the hotel to which I answered affirmative (imagine, we were both staying at the same hotel) and he asked nicely for me to call his intercom. I was just laughing. My people, night waka is wonderful ooooo. See people dining, smoking, shopping and chilling at past 10pm. Shops were showing no signs of closing even Banks were still open! People were changing money at that hour – that’s security and stability @ its peak! There was no fear or uncertainty over there. I was not left out as I did some light shopping too. There are stores along the road from Pierre Cardin outlet store to Philippine store to Mimiso and some restaurants – clearly Dubai doesn’t sleep. I must have some more evening/night trips. I returned to my room and had a peaceful night rest, tomorrow was Mall of Emirates adventure.

1st Pic is the ruler of Dubai
2nd Pic is the crown prince of Dubai (he's handsome ba? but he is a no nonsense person ooo)
3rd Pic is Emaar taking over
P.S. if you know anyone in Emaar properties, i am interested in a job there oooo

Dubai dining...

This is the 3 flavored icecream with all manner of fruits in it

Thanks for the wonderful updates. Please tell us about Abu Dhabi. I have not been there, been to Dubai twice and I looooove it. I plan on going there this year but would like to know if I should also go to Abu dhabi.

carry on my dear

I think i will be among the few here wondering how many millions you took to dubai and what you do for a living...

Sapphire86:
......


Not only is Dubai beautiful, but it is well thought out. A big shout-out to the ruler of Dubai HRH (His Royal Highness) Sheikh Al Maktoum and the crown prince of Dubai HRH Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum for their insight and leadership. It is clear that their own executive meetings yield results (I don’t know what they do in the Federal Executive Meeting here in Nigeria but God will help us sha). I can’t really explain the beauty of Dubai other than to describe it as ‘Real Estate Money’ at its best. Dubai is Real Estate money but Abu Dhabi is Oil money. The president of UAE is also the crown price and ruler of Abu Dhabi while the vice president of UAE is the ruler of Dubai. From my research so far, they are exceptional leaders – of course, no one is perfect, but they are really doing great things for their nation. Let me digress a bit further and talk to you about Emaar Properties; yes, there are many construction companies in Dubai, but Emaar Properties is the ‘Olori’ or first of them all. Top construction companies in Dubai include Emaar, Damac, Nakheel, Meydan etc. and they are all making their money but clearly one’s balance sheet will be bigger than the other.


It is not uncommon to see many towers in Dubai with the Emaar logo on them; they are heavily involved in properties, malls, entertainment and hospitality. Their valuation as of 2017 was $14.6 billion and they aren’t slowing down. Emaar properties was instrumental in building Burj Khalifa and the Chairman is (as at when I watched the documentary) the 5th most powerful person in Dubai. How did the Burj Khalifa come about? HRH Sheikh Al Maktoum (the ruler of Dubai) called the CEO and said he wanted the tallest building in the world in Dubai. He gave him examples of all the tallest buildings as at then and HRH said ‘add them up and build one taller than them all’ and that was how the Burj Khalifa became a money making center for Dubai because there is an observation deck on the 124th, 125th and 148th floors (I haven’t been there yet but will get there eventually) where tourists can go and ‘observe’ (of course for a price) and there is also the a club on the 144th floor – highest level club in the world. There is an assess point from Burj Khalifa to the Dubai Mall. Dubai is really a product of vision and good leadership. What they don’t know, they source for it worldwide and bring such man power to their country, make them comfortable and the end result is magic!! The downside of living in Dubai is the smoking habit; because in every building, smoking is prohibited, so smokers just chill on the streets and smoke their lives away and the air becomes polluted.


My journey to and fro via the metro was an educational moment for me; I was able to connect with all the places I had read about but soon the train was back to Al Rigga meaning I was back ‘home’. I got down and went to Al Ghurair (but this time I didn’t enter the mall) where I proceeded to go to Burger King for lunch. I got a whopper burger for 23 AED – fries, burger and a drink before going to Juice world to try something new and believe me, there was something new. It was 3 different types of ice-cream filled with assorted fruits and almond (na wa o, these people here are living the life) all for a whooping 30 AED (hey, you only live once abi?’ I quickly made my way back to my hotel so I could devour the meal ‘Tobi Bakre style’. But immediately I ate, my head started pounding; I guess my body was dehydrated from the fast so I took a nap thinking I would be relieved but upon waking at 8.45pm I wasn’t relieved so I knew it was time for me to dress and go buy Panadol.
Stepping out of the hotel, I saw one white guy (he may not be European but he is sha white), our eyes met and I continued my journey. 5 minutes into my journey, I looked at my side and saw the dude! He asks me for my number and says he followed me from the hotel to where he intercepted me (na wa o). I didn’t have a UAE sim which I told him, and he asked if I was staying at the hotel to which I answered affirmative (imagine, we were both staying at the same hotel) and he asked nicely for me to call his intercom. I was just laughing. My people, night waka is wonderful ooooo. See people dining, smoking, shopping and chilling at past 10pm. Shops were showing no signs of closing even Banks were still open! People were changing money at that hour – that’s security and stability @ its peak! There was no fear or uncertainty over there. I was not left out as I did some light shopping too. There are stores along the road from Pierre Cardin outlet store to Philippine store to Mimiso and some restaurants – clearly Dubai doesn’t sleep. I must have some more evening/night trips. I returned to my room and had a peaceful night rest, tomorrow was Mall of Emirates adventure.

1st Pic is the ruler of Dubai
2nd Pic is the crown prince of Dubai (he's handsome ba? but he is a no nonsense person ooo)
3rd Pic is Emaar taking over
P.S. if you know anyone in Emaar properties, i am interested in a job there oooo

have you been to Abu Dhabi to see Ferrari world most especially their formula rossa because it is the fastest formula Rossa in the world and also YAS Waterworld, they are both nice places to visit

NewBea:
I think i will be among the few here wondering how many millions you took to dubai and what you do for a living...

All power belong to God

mokikeoj:
Thanks for the wonderful updates. Please tell us about Abu Dhabi. I have not been there, been to Dubai twice and I looooove it. I plan on going there this year but would like to know if I should also go to Abu dhabi.

The post on Abu Dhabi is coming; still finishing the write up. Stay tuned or should i say committed to the thread

NewBea:
I think i will be among the few here wondering how many millions you took to dubai and what you do for a living...

see this one... How does what she does for a living concern u? So somebody cannot go to Dubai and enjoy herself again ba?

Sapphire86:



The post on Abu Dhabi is coming; still finishing the write up. Stay tuned or should i say committed to the thread

thanks dear for your captivating write-up. you got me hooked to my phone.
well done


how is the IT sector over there most especially cyber security and cloud computing?

NewBea:
I think i will be among the few here wondering how many millions you took to dubai and what you do for a living...

Bro, you're not the only one

peacengine:


Bro, you're not the only one

Just enjoy the story peacefully.

nowpresence:

thanks dear for your captivating write-up. you got me hooked to my phone.
well done


how is the IT sector over there most especially cyber security and cloud computing?

I know their IT sector is great however I don't know about cloud computing/cyber security and thank you for the accolade

Sapphire86:


I know their IT sector is great however I don't know about cloud computing/cyber security and thank you for the accolade

thanks for your response

.....


I woke up this morning excited – did my prayers and went for my breakfast 10 minutes to the end of breakfast time to avoid any rush. I think the manager has a crush on me; he keeps looking at me, like he wants to say something but fear is holding him back (well, except he wants to refund my hotel bill, I’m not interested in listening to any grammar). I dash back to my room to get changed and ready to go. Today, I am walking majestically to the metro, buying my ticket like a resident and heading to UAE Exchange train for my journey to commence. Who would have known that yesterday I was like a jelly fish out of water clouded with uncertainty as to the direction for my journey? Let me tell you a bit about the metro; it’s underground, it’s got restaurants and a bureau de change office. The AC there is on point – in fact you can never see anybody fan themselves inside any building in Dubai (it’s an abomination); their AC is standard (you will catch cold there). The train is divided into 2 sections – the gold class and the standard (regular) so you proceed as per the price you paid for the ticket. The standard class has 2 sections – men and women (& babies). It is a crime for men to be in the women’s section and it attracts a fine of 100 AED so be warned but women could be in men’s section (I have seen some women stay in the men’s section due to availability of space), no fine there.


My journey to Mall of Emirates was an easy one; by now, I was familiar with the train stops but I still enjoyed the view of the buildings (don’t think I can ever get enough). I saw the Burj Al Arab hotel, the Atlantis and Jumeriah hotels all from the view of the journey (that would be a journey for another day or trip). Those hotels reek of MONEY – you can’t go there stay there if you are broke or struggling. Burj Arab is the only 7-star hotel in the world, Atlantis and Jumeriah are top notch 5-star hotels. One day, I will write about my experience there (amen somebody?) As we passed through train stops and I saw the grandeur of the city of Dubai, I couldn’t help but say God bless their government. Kindly google Dubai in the 90’s and Dubai now, you too will pray for the Dubai government. In fact, Dubai should be renamed ‘the Tower City’ because they don’t like buildings in duplexes but in towers – you can hear ‘50th floor, 70th floor’ etc.


I got off the train at the MOE train stop and as usual, the metro was connected to the MOE building so it was easy breezy, but I wasn’t expecting the beauty I was greeted with. Ah, ‘wo na wo si be’ (they spent money there) – it was elegant, classy and there were LOTS of shops there. It is safe to say you CANNOT exhaust all the shops there in one day. It is so big that security and mall directory maps were there to help you with directions. The security was well trained and polite; they knew about all stores in the mall, no excuse such as ‘ask the security on the next floor’ was given. There were shops waiting to take your money from high end stores such as Hermes, Gucci, Prada, Chopard to affordable brands like Zara, H&M, Bath & Body but be careful, their prices were reflecting their location so don’t complain. I got lost and tired because I had no particular store in mind for shopping, I was merely sightseeing and shopping by chance of a good deal. There were food courts on every floor, decent and well arranged. Carrefour supermarket was there to cater the needs of supermarket shoppers. Carrefour is the Shoprite of UAE; it was EVERYWHERE I went, and they knew how to do SALES. Warning: don’t every enter a shopping mall thinking you won’t spend money.

......

Before heading to the food court for a Hardee (can’t remember the name) burger meal (yeah, I love burgers; it’s very expensive in Nigeria), I went to Ski Dubai in the Mall. Yes, Dubai has all the good stuffs to make you part ways with your money. Ski Dubai is an artificial snow park in Dubai (we all know Dubai is hot as hell) so FOR A PRICE, you can pretend you are in Chicago at Christmas. Ski Dubai wasn’t on my budget, so I couldn’t go inside for more pictures, but I was contented to take pictures from the outside and I wasn’t the only one!


Mall of Emirates (MOE) has two 5-star hotels linked to it – Sheraton & Kempinski and for a WONDERFUL price, you will be treated like the royalty you are because they are giving you an experience. These hotels are very big structures, so I guess business must be booming for them. Now, it’s time for the metro back to Al Rigga (I’m fast becoming a metro girl).

Nice documentary

......

Today started out slow for me; I was tired and exhausted, but my Abu Dhabi trip was scheduled for today. I kept snoozing the alarm severally hoping to catch few more minutes of sleep but alas, I had to get up, eat and get ready because I hate keeping people waiting. The tour rep told me to be ready between 8 & 8.30am and I did just that. It was a Landcruiser jeep taking 5 of us (2 couples from 2 different hotels and I) to Abu Dhabi. Shortly we began our journey for the at least 90 minutes car ride.


Driving out of Dubai we were able to see all the buildings with a better and I took some pictures (hope they come out nice). Burj Khalifa was shining so bright like a diamond that it was and Burj Al Arab was standing out from other buildings as it should; one of the couples in the car told us that she tried to have dinner at the Burj Al Arab some nights back and was told it was 750 AED, she ran back! Yes, they were selling the experience of a 7-star hotel as well as picture stories!


The following are pictures of my ride along in Dubai

......

Ninety minutes later we arrived at the famous Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque and it is BEAUTIFUL. It’s Arab money in its glory! It is the 8th biggest mosque in the world but holds the record for the most luxurious mosque. It also holds the record for the longest carpet and largest chandeliers (all Swarovski crystals) in the world. The top of the mosque was all pure gold; inside the mosque were marbles and exquisite finishing. First, we the women had to wear their Abaya (Islamic clothing) because at least for me, my Ankara top was short sleeve and we were given rent free. We proceeded to go inside but first we had to take off our shoes (hmmm); apparently it was standard for everybody (even the security guards). The marble floors were clean and sparkling white with cleaners on standby to clean it around the clock. What I can say are order and neatness were maintained round the Mosque. They were lots of tourists there and all of us snapping away with our phones and cameras. There is a gift and coffee shop in mosque building selling at tourist price (of course) so feel free to shop away but after a while, I got tired of the place. I had taken enough pictures.

More on the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

More pictures


There are many more pictures of the mosque, I guess these will do for now

Nice. Very nice.
Such a beautiful Mosque.

.....


Then we proceeded to see Abu Dhabi and I must say, though Abu Dhabi is the largest emirate of the 7 emirates, Dubai is the life of UAE. Abu Dhabi has lots of islands – over 200 of them, some are man-made and some are natural. I really wouldn’t like to live in Abu Dhabi full time; it is too dull, not much to do. We stopped at the President’s palace (of course we couldn’t enter, as no one could pop in to the seat of power uninvited) and took pictures from a distance. My people, that palace is GINORMOUS – only for one person! Apparently, nobody knows the exact number of Sheikh Zayed family – there are always official and unofficial wives and of course, children could spring forth from these unions.

More pictures from Any Dhabi tour

1. The coin building is the government house; sorry the picture isn't so clear. It was taken in the car ride

2. Other buildings in the city

3. Marina mall Abu Dhabi

....


The next stop was Etihad towers and if you remember Fast & Furious 7, you would understand my excitement – all I could imagine was Vin Diesel & Paul Walker doing their car stunt. Etihad Towers is BEAUTIFUL and tall; it was hard to take a picture that could fit all buildings. You can’t take pictures in front of the tower because there was nowhere to park so all pictures had to be taken across the towers. Next to Etihad Towers was Grand Hyatt Hotel which was also a sight to behold but you need no prophet to tell you that your wallet mustn’t be empty.

......


Finally, we go to the grand finale of the trip ‘Ferrari World’ and it is BREATHTAKING. Ferrari world as the name implies is the world of Ferrari. It is massive with a number of Ferraris parked there and of course EXPENSIVE! When I say expensive, my people I mean EXPENSIVE! I saw t-shirts (t-shirts ooo) sold for AED 229 (haba, those people do not have the fear of God). To take pictures in the Ferrari F1 car with the race clothes and of course the picture would be taken by their photographer was AED175. Let’s just say there were recouping their money back.


There is a Ferrari store where everything there was made by Ferrari – shoes (2k+ AED), luggage, handbags, perfumes, sporting gears, t-shirts, face caps and even pens! It truly was a Ferrari world and it costs money. Ferrari world houses the fastest rollercoaster in the world so for a fee you can enjoy the best 2-minute adrenaline experience of your life (if you are brave enough). There is also a shopping mall located in the Ferrari world so you can covered from food to drinks to souvenirs. After taking in the sight and beautify of the place, it was time to head back to Dubai. I’m not someone who sleeps on journey, but boy did I sleep on this journey to and fro. When I got back to Dubai, did some light purchases and went back to my hotel to have dinner.

......


Today was experience; they have sighted the moon so fasting started today. Ramadan makes Dubai look like a shadow of itself. Everywhere was on lock up and Muslim women were wearing their Abaya (for a slight second that I thought every woman was to wear that). I looked out my window and I was unsure – women wearing Abaya, people weren’t all bubbling and in my mind I said ‘ile ya (it’s time for home)’. I had to find out from the reception if I had to cover my hair but he said no, only that I was not allowed to eat and drink in public places. So, during Ramadan, NOBODY is allowed to eat, drink and smoke in public. When I couldn’t take the hunger anymore at 12:30pm, I dressed up and hit the mall area. Everywhere was dry; some food vendors were closed, and the ones opened would only serve from 12noon till downwards or 3pm downwards but it had to be takeout. I went to Mc Donald’s and it looked like a graveyard; the sales lady told me she could only serve me on takeout basis which I was cool with. Ramadan is when these restaurants’ delivery guys would work a great deal – don’t get me wrong, people were buying food but most of them were invisible (thanks to delivery men). What you could do was order you food and take it to your destination to eat. I took my order and graciously went to my hotel room to do justice to it and when it was about past 6pm, I decided to go out to observe and beloved, Dubai was coming back to life. People were coming out to dine and wine and smokers were just lurking around the corner waiting for their moment to huff and puff away.

.....


As my trip to Dubai currently whines down and Lagos is becoming clearly visible in my mind’s eye, I did some last-minute shopping trips. I tried to eat as much as I could from places I knew weren’t in Nigeria but the more I tried to try something different, it became obvious to me that one cannot sample all delicacies in Dubai except you are a resident there. There are just too many. UK & US food franchises were making their marks there and even Indian and Chinese restaurants were not lagging behind either. In Dubai, customer service is key; the way people greet you when you enter a store or restaurant is nice (Nigeria take note) whether you patronize them or not. It’s a habit we need to inculcate in our service delivery here; restaurants staff, boutique staff, and even fuel attendants are harsh and rude (sometimes).


I understand that we are angry as a nation, but our attitude has got to reflect in our jobs. The pace at which pedestrians cross the roads here in Dubai is amusing and somewhat annoying. They don’t cross in groups or walk fast so it may be that as someone finishes crossing, another person wants to start, and you MUST wait. I have become accustomed to walking and crossing with ease as well (Lagos is waiting for me). Even boutiques at the shopping malls are not exempted in some type of customer service. When shopping and taking clothes from the rack to try on in the fitting room, the ones that don’t fit shouldn’t be taken out to the rack at the fitting room entrance or even the rack at the store but no, not here in Dubai! They just leave it on the floor in battalions for the staff to pick up (nah, I didn’t partake in such though I was tempted to). Sales attendants in boutiques over here are trying; I hope their staff discount is huge.


Pic is of a changing room stall in the mall

..........


As all activities on this trip are gradually winding down, I can say it’s being wonderful. I really can’t wait to come back or even be a permanent resident here. Dubai has been amazing. God bless Dubai, the UAE and even Nigeria. God bless us all!

Thanks so much for this beautiful rendition. May God be with you on your journey back to Nigeria.