I was just in a country that borders a country that borders a country that my brother is in

And for the record, Dubai is in the United Arab Emirates, not India (see the comments for the Dubai post if you want to know why I said that - sorry katie, but hey, it made me laugh). With respect to the title of this post, both Iraq (where my brother Eddie is currently stationed with the US Marines) and the UAE border Saudi Arabia. I only realized while I was flying from Dubai to London (where I am currently) that I was so close to Eddie. In fact, my plane barely skirted the edge of Iraq as we flew over Iran and Turkey on our way to Heathrow.

After my post from Dubai yesterday I made good on my words to go out and explore town. While I sadly did not get a chance to see the Burj Al Arab hotel that Dubai is so famous for, I did get a chance to walk around, get a sunburn, explore the gold souq, and buy some safron at the spice souq. All in all Dubai was a nice place to visit, but I can't really see myself yearning to go back (unlike China, to where I'm already planning my next trip).

The one thing that really did stick out in my mind (besides the heat, god it was hot) was the ultra-conservative manner in which women are treated. I had to be careful to wear long pants since showing one's knees is a faux-pas but that in no way compares to the Emirati women who walked around covered from head to toe in black cloth. In some cases, only their eyes were visible, and in other cases they wore a mesh screen in front of their eyes. This pretty much meant that they were transformed into moving black blobs - not a way that anyone should have to live. I understand that it's a different culture than the west, but this is something I really can't come to fathom on any level.

On a side note, I'll never fail to appreciate the luxury of a cold shower again. The hotel I had in Dubai only had hot water. In fact, I managed to burn (yes, burn) my hand with the cold water tap. Since the pipes run underground, which is made of hot sand, all water is heated. It's a good thing I took that last shower in Hong Kong before my flight, because, well, I couldn't bring myself to get into hot water in a place where the daytime temperature averaged 110 F. In the words of my British compratiots, I was mingin'.

Today was pretty uneventful as I went to the Dubai airport and flew to London. The only real development was that I realized about 1/2 an hour before my flight took off that I had left my debit card at the hotel. I was able to call and have the desk attendant cut it up, so theres little security risk and I'll just cancel it when I get home in two days. It's a good thing I have both US dollars cash, and some travellers check (and another credit card).

Jet lag is kickin in, and I'm about to pass out.

night,
Andrew