Day Ten: Atlantis Dubai

So for the past week, my team and I have been doing non-touristy things for the most part. We have been trying to capture the "real" Dubai, (whatever that may be.) But I couldn't come all the way to Dubai and not go to the famous Atlantis Resort. There are only two Atlantis hotels in the world, one in the Bahamas, and the other one on the Palm Islands in Dubai. Being a shark lover, I had to experience their famous, "Leap Of Faith" slide in which guests slide down a steep slide that leads into a clear tube, while there are hundreds of sharks swimming underneath. You definitely need to be brave to handle that one. If you are afraid of heights, or sharks, there is another amazing slide in which you can go down a dark tunnel and then arrive in the center of thier aquarium when reaching the bottom. Surrounded by glass walls, you can clearly see the fish and other sea creatures swimming around you on all four sides. Hard to explain, but pretty amazing. Aside from the water park, the Atlantis is an impressive resort. The hotel itself is beautiful and the staff is very kind. They even have their own private beach for guests! Even if you aren't into tourist attractions, this is definitely worth a visit.

I've posted a few pics...enjoy! =)

Day Nine: Dune Bashing in the Desert

From a five star hotel to a...desert? After checking out of our wonderful villa, we returned to Dubai to prepare for our overnight safari in the desert. Our drivers picked us up and headed towards the desert. Our tour guide Usman, drove us through the desert. Actually scratch that. He dune bashed his way through the desert, while us girls feared for our lives in the back! I'm kidding, it wasn't that scary. Dune bashing turned out to be an amazing experience. Every time we turned, I thought the car was going to flip over! Almost as if we were on a roller coaster! Okay, so it was pretty scary after all. But no worries...we arrived there safely, took some great pictures, so camels roaming the desert, and enjoyed the incredible view. We got some footage of the desert for our documentary, including a shot of a herd of camels crossing the street. =)

More pictures to come!

Day Eight: Upgraded!

Our UAE adventure continues as we traveled to Al Ain, a province in Abu Dhabi. Since our tour guide, (and friend) had another group to cater to, he sent a replacement, a young 21 year old Dubai born Pakistani named Usman. This guy is perhaps one of the funniest guys I've ever met. He definetly kept us entertained during our journey to Al Ain. He took us to the highest peak in the UAE as well as the camel market. The camel market was a sandy, farm like atmosphere where all types of camel were herded into small pens. The conditions were far from sanitary/safe. The men selling the camels lit up as they saw us stepping out of the bus. It was as if they hadn't seen a woman in years. In fact, our tour guide had to fight some off. After I got a picture, of course!

We got back into the bus, our shoes smelling like...well you know what. We were tired and in dire need of some R&R. We arrived at our beautiful 5 star hotel that we were upgraded to last minute. We were welcomed by a very kind staff and as we approached the check in desk, the manager pulled us aside. We were offered yet another upgrade...to a VILLA and a SUITE! There was no way we were going to turn that down, and thats how we ended up VIP at this amazing hotel in Al Ain. Tomorrow...off to the desert! Hopefully we'll get some good footage for the documentary and possibly of me riding a camel! =)

Last photo courtesy S. Robinson (the view from our balcony!)

Day Seven: Thrill Seekers, Rejoice!

So here is the blog everyone's been waiting for...

Today we experienced the brand new Ferrari World Theme park in Abu Dhabi. Just opened a few weeks ago, the park was how do I say this...empty. The theme park is the size of seven football fields, yet there were no more than 50 people there. I wasn't complaining though, it felt like my personal theme park, and no waiting in line! Most of the rides are family friendly. The first roller coaster we went on was a train of three Ferrari style cars and went approx 60 mph. Talk about fast...but it was definitely fun.

Want to feel like an F1 racer? Well the Ferrari World theme park has the fastest roller coaster in the world...150 mph!!! Since there were only a few people, we didn't have to wait longer than five minutes. I got into the car, strapped in (there are no shoulder straps) and I could already feel my adrenaline pumping. I was so excited I screamed before it started! haha The ride operator told us to keep our head backs, and prepare ourselves. The anticipation was killing me...

Then a jolt of speed...at 150 mph I could barely feel my cheeks. It was the most exhilarating thing I have ever experienced in my entire life.

Although the rest of the park was, (shall I say not very exciting), the fastest roller coaster in the world makes it worth the visit. For Ferrari lovers this park will seem like a candy store, for thrill seekers, this is a once in a life time experience they are bound to love!

Day Six: Behind The Scenes of The National (newspaper)

The UAE's most important English paper is called The National, and it is run from Abu Dhabi. We finally got some answers! The journalists working at The National are from all around the world, and many of them come from the UK and US. These journalists are accostumed to more open-minded methods of reporting. However, because of the laws in the UAE, they have to learn how to be good reporters but also follow the strict rules. After interviewing and talking to a variety of journalists at the paper, I found that their team does a great job of covering the news while overcoming these obstacles. ( I have also done a semester long content analysis on this paper to back my conclusions). So far, this has been the first media outlet that offered us clear answers. Too bad most of them were off the record!

After getting some footage, we visited the 8th largest Mosque in the world. Beautiful architecture, and again, extravagant to the fullest. My pictures only capture a portion of the beauty. Inside this Mosque holds the largest and most expensive chandelier in the world. It is said that it was built to mirror what heaven may look like. It was indeed, heavenly.

Day Five: Live On Air!

Ever been live on air? Its nerve wrecking to say the least...but being live on air in the UAE is like swimming with sharks. Today I went live on air on the most popular radio station in the UAE. Exciting, scary, stressing all wrapped up in one. The radio station is called Dubai Eye, and is run primarily by ex-patriots. The on air talent were all very kind and welcoming, but I must say, I am glad I'm not them!

We also visited the Nakheel offices in Dubai. Nakheel is the company that headed the creation of the Palm Jumerah Islands. They are currently working on a series of man made islands that form the shape of the map of the world. These group of islands are going to be sold to high profile people and can only be bought by those who are invited by Nakheel. Dubai sure understands the meaning of extravagance. The presentation that we attended was a great PR stunt. Amazingly put together, and cleverly danced around the hardball questions we had. So far, the UAE has been successful in being secretive. This documentary may turn into something we never expected...a story within itself.

Day Four: University of What?

Today we journeyed to Al Sharjah, a neighboring Emirate of Dubai. On our way to our appointments, we stopped at a traditional "souk" (market place) where I did some bargaining for handmade Emirati treasures. Our bus driver pulled up to the gates of the American University of Sharjah, where we had set up interviews. The security guard checked to see if our papers were in order, and then allowed us to proceed to the university grounds. I can only tell you that what we saw blew us away. The university grounds is larger than the White House grounds. After getting passed the enormity of the area, my jaw dropped as we approached the front steps. The main buiding of the American University of Sharjah is an amazing piece of architecture. Neither words nor pictures can do it justice.

The American University of Sharjah is a private university that employs American professors and teaches using American methods of educational instruction. It is a diverse university with students from many parts of the world. Although forced to dress modestly, all the students there keep up with the latests fashions. Every single girl has a designer bag, and most students drive expensive cars. Its a world of its own.

I was lucky to find Emirati students to interview. They went well and we got some great footage for the documentary. Emiratis are usually reluctant to do any interviews, but these students were open-minded and agreed to answer any questions I had. Definitely a productive day for the team.

Day Three: In Search of Culture

Every time I travel to a foreign country, I try to learn the culture and assimilate myself in it. I love to learn about different ideals, traditions, food, clothing, everything that sums up a cultural atmosphere. But where is Dubai's culture? In the skyscrapers? Seven star resorts? Or perhaps in the one of the world's biggest mall? Dubai has been stripped of its culture in order to make room for the incredible, and at times outrageous landmarks. Everything has become a tourist attraction, impressive, but not the experience I was hoping for.

However, not all hope was lost. We took a boat ride (through a man-made canal) to a marketplace. We saw spices, jewelry, clothing, and other items such as Hookahs.

While visiting a "heritage culture center" that was clearly all for show (many tourists bought into it) we saw old building that had been renovated and expanded. While walking around, something caught my eye. I saw a building that said "Journalists Association." I asked someone what it was and was surprised to say the least. The "Journalists Association" is a meeting place for all journalists in the UAE. The Royal family of Dubai meets with all journalists to tell them the "rules" of reporting. They are not allowed to report any stories that may make Dubai or the Royal family look bad. This is why we are having so much difficulty getting "real" interviews, however, that is not going to stop me from being a journalist. I am prepared to ask difficult questions...but maybe I'll just wait until my last day to ask those!

Day Two: Out With the Old, In With the New

Day two of our Dubai trip consisted of a tour of "old" and "new" Dubai. There was one problem though--there's not much "old" left here. Dubai has gotten rid of its old, historic architecture and had a complete makeover. It has become a metropolitan city full of tourists attractions. Emiratis sign the checks, while laborers from Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, and the Phillipines work long hrs in the heat to build enormous structures. Dubai is a place full of the "biggest and best in the world" attractions. At times I feel like I'm in Las Vegas or Manhattan and I forget that I'm in the Middle East. However, I must say, Las Vegas ain't got nothing on Dubai.

All laborers and blue collar workers in this country are foreigners. The fish markets are full if Indians and Pakistanis while the hospitality industry consists of Filipinos.

Filming was a bit difficult, not just because of the language barriers, but because of the censhorship laws here in the UAE. Most people have been afraid to talk to us because of the harsh penalties of speaking out against the Royal family. Photographing a police car is illegal. While visiting the Sheik's palace, we had to make sure not to get any of the security's vehicles and we could not stand passed a line that was (literally) drawn on the Palace ground.

Although Dubai looks like a western, developed country, culture shock definitely kicks in when we see all the restrictions and laws we have to obey. Hopefully we will get a honest interview by the time we leave.

Day One: Filming in the Market

First, I have to say that finding free wifi is impossible in this country! The internet is controlled by the UAE government, so it is very limited. There is even a list of sites that are blocked here, including skype.

After a 16 hr journey and going through a long line at passport control, we finally arrived at our hotel close to 2 AM Dubai time. We had about four hours of sleep and then started our tour. In the UAE, Friday is a "Holy Day." Since it is their day off, we decided to go to the labor camps to get some interviews. We arrived at a market near the labor camp, set up our cameras and I prepared the mic. All the while, every man in the market place was staring at me and Jessica, (who was running the camera.) Before we knew it, we were completely surrounded by men. I conducted 5 interviews in the market place. All of the men I interviewed were labor workers from India and Pakistan who had left their country and families to find work in Dubai. Our first day and we already have great footage for our documentary. Although the day was tiring, we were able to get some great interviews and learn about the culture simply by interacting with the locals.

New Year, New Adventures!

Happy New Year All!

Its the first day of the new year and I'm already preparing for an exciting trip. On the 5th, I will be jet setting to the UAE...DUBAI! Myself, along with our team of eight (reporters, photographers, videographers) will be exploring and filming a documentary for two weeks. Our itinerary includes travels to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Al Ain. We will also be camping in the desert for a night! I will document the trip through this blog and post pictures to the best of my ability. (Hopefully we will have internet access throughout the trip.) This is only the beginning of my exciting year that awaits me. Stay tuned!