Dubai: From old to new in the blink of an eye
Spend time with someone who lives in Dubai and at some point you’re guaranteed to have the “when I first came here” conversation: “When I first came here Mall of the Emirates was just a patch of sand” (2002); “When I first came there were more empty sand lots than buildings on Sheikh Zayed Road” (2001); “the Hard Rock Café was way out of town” (2000); “there were rumours about them building a palm-shaped island.” (1999); “Dubai ended at World Trade Centre” (1990); “there were still arish [palm frond] houses in Jumeirah” (1986); “the road to Abu Dhabi hadn’t been paved yet” (1975); “there was no road to Abu Dhabi” (1970).
Dubai: From old to new in the blink of an eye http://en.nauticwebnews.com/375
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