This wasn’t quite the Dubai that I’d pictured. A famously salubrious destination set between desert and sea, this Persian Gulf city is renowned for its luxury. Michelin-starred chefs cooking up sumptuous gourmet meals in top-shelf restaurants. Streets filled with Range Rovers and Bentleys. And we’ve all heard about that “seven-star” hotel.
But today I was rumbling down Sheikh Zayed Road on a big, red, double-decker bus. We wheezed through heavy traffic. Around us, the famous skyline rose into a crystal-clear desert sky. To the left, the Burj Khalifa cut a steely, unmistakable figure, the world’s tallest building, its summit more than 2,700 feet in the air.
