In April, we decided to fly over Dubai just to see the expanse of the city. Once the plane came to fetch us, the rest was easy.

We set the coordinates for the sights we wanted to see and set off.

We flew south-west down the coast. The Burj Khalifa is clearly not just a little bit taller than any other building! It will retain its title as the World’s Tallest Building for years to come.

Burj Al Arab is also a building in its own division, league or any other classification. There is no point trying to compare it to anything else you may have seen.

Further along is what we call the “New Dubai“. NONE of this was built when we first arrived in Dubai in 2001. Now, there is no reason to go to “Old Dubai”. The new area has everything and more including lovely public beaches (see the next blog – coming shortly).

We then looped around, flew over our villa, and turned back towards the Persian Gulf.

Along this part of the tour, we flew over the American School of Dubai, where Annette works.

We flew out over the Palm Jumeirah, which, regardless of whatever publicity you may have heard, is a truly spectacular place, both from the air and from the ground.

A Frond on the Palm

The Atlantis Hotel. This very night we went to NOBU where we had the best food I have ever eaten in my life – a blackened Miso Cod made with Alaska Cod. I don’t care what people may say about the extravagance of the Palm and this hotel – it is simply fantastic.

The nearest ski hill is only minutes from home. Once inside this sloping tunnel, you actually do feel like you are in a winter locale. The lighting makes it feel like perpetual dusk. There is even an “apres ski” pub at the bottom.

A parting shot of the Burj al Arab kept us entertained until we…

… flew over the Meydan Racetrack, home of the Dubai World Cup, the largest Prize money horse race in the world.