Dubai: The City of Dreams
Dubai is a city that is often called by different names like, the city that never sleeps, the city of gold, and many others. It has many world records including the tallest skyscraper and the biggest mall. It is the capital city of one of the seven Emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the most populous city of the UAE.
Curiously, the Emirate that the city is the capital of is also named Dubai (Emirate of Dubai) and that raises a lot of confusion. But here we are going to talk about Dubai city.
Located within the Arabian Desert and along the coast of the Persian Gulf, this is the modern business hub of Western Asia. Contrary to popular belief, Dubai’s economy is not oil-based. It did enjoy its oil wealth though, from the 1960s to the 1990s, but that wealth was used to build physical infrastructure thus strengthening its other sectors.
Today, its economy is largely dependent on trade, tourism, real estate, and aviation. With two of the world’s largest ports (Jebel Ali and Port Rashid) trade remains the core of its flourishing economy.
With skyscrapers spreading out on the entire canvas of the city, Dubai is a dazzle amid a desert. Let’s find out more about this amazing city and see why it’s often called the dream city.
Cityscape
The weather of Dubai is typical arid or desert-like with summer temperatures reaching as high as 52 degrees Celsius. Most of the year the city skies charm a warm blue and if it does rain, it does so during the winters. However, the weather is generally tolerable and tourism is in full sway throughout the year.
With very few natural sites, Dubai is a man-made wonder and you can’t help but awe at the giant glitzy malls, sky-piercing builds, and the fine dining restaurants. The western part of Dubai has small stretches of sandy beaches and in an attempt to increase the city’s limited natural seafronts the developers there have constructed giant man-made islands off the city’s coast. Palm Jumeirah is the most famous among these, getting its name from its palm tree shape. Others need mentioning include “The World Islands”, a small cluster of islands that look like a world map when viewed from the above.