August 2008
Dubai
I visited friends in Dubai for a few days on the way back from Scotland to Oz. Woah - that was an experience an a half! That place is nuts. And really really hot; it was high summer, so when I was there the temperature was in the mid 40s with high humidity.
I left my digital SLR with my friends there (doh!). So I'm now reduced to using my crappy backup digital camera. Anyone traveling to Oz with a stopover in Dubai any time soon? If so then please give me a call. The parcel companies refuse to ship cameras for some reason.
The highlight of the trip was a visit to the Sharaja Wildlife Park - which is absolutely brilliant. In spite of the starkness of the landscapes and the heat there are actually an amazing number of bird, mammal, reptile and even a few frog and fish species. Unfortunately you aren't allowed to take photographs in the park because most of the creatures are housed in dark nocturnal enclosures, and wouldn't cope with camera flashes. But off the top of my head we saw (big breath): camels, big-horn goats, orynx, leopards, cheetahs, wolves, ant-eaters, honey bears, two species of mongoose, innumerable rodents, flamingoes and loads of other birds, about 5 species of fish, a bunch of frogs, several turtle species, several cobra species and loads of other snakes and lizards. Like Australian fauna many of the mammals and reptiles are nocturnal, and many of the smaller ones looked very much like Australian rodent and marsupial counterparts. Well worth a visit!
Dubai city centreThey're building frenetically on a vast scale. The whole place is a giant construction site.
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UAE sprawlThe coastal plain of the United Arab Emerites from the coastal dunes and back 5 to 10km into the desert is a bourgeoning suburban sprawl. |
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OmanThe north of Oman is a mountainous region. Centuries of grazing by goats has probably accentuated it's starkness.
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Desertscape
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