Dubai 
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By Speedboat (Valfajre-8 Shipping Company) we cross in 6 hours over the Strait of Hormuz into a new world - the United Arab Emirates (UAE)
| We leave Iran and reach Sharjah on the Arab Peninsula in the first class
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We are curious - what would it be like in Dubai?!
| On board the scarf dress code is still valid
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While crossing the sea, we see many tankers, freighters and oil boring platforms as well as a group of smugglers with small speed boats, which bring alcohol and all possible forbidden stuff into Iran
| Our first impression of Sharjah, the neighbour Emirate of Dubai. The two cities merged with one another in the meantime
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On the ship we meet coincidentally Alice and Cedric, whom we met in Yazd already. The two have a contact family in Dubai and as soon as we came out of the customs, Raia carries us forward to her home!
| Alice and Cedric speak Esperanto and therefore had the contact to Raias family by internet, where we can also live now for the next few days
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Before we go to Raia's home, we are invited in a French cafe (we could only dream about it in Iran!)
| The "Café Gerard" in Sharjah is at home in the beautiful 'Al Qasba Canal' area (www.alqasba.ae), a promenade along a channel as in Venice with many pretty cafes and restaurants
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Finally we are happy to use again Wireless Internet and Skype!
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...and even over the enormous TV in the living room we are online - until the computer exploded with loud bang and lots of smoke!
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The next day we make first a trip to the beach of Sharjah
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Sharjah Beach Park, Al Mamzar
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Alice and Cedric with Kalina (the daughter of Raia and Milo)
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Alice and Cedric of Portrait de Planete: www.everyoneweb.fr/portraitdeplanete
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Khaled Lagoon in Sharjah - actually we wanted to put our tent at the beach in Dubai; but for the sake of the comfort we live still in Raia's home!
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Sharjah beach idyl (seen from the car-window!)
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Kalina, the daughter of our homestay family, goes to the Russian school into Dubai...
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... and we hold our first lecture here over our journey (together with Alice and Cedric)
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The pupils are interested, very open minded and ask also interesting and intelligent questions
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Alice and Cedric with their "sleeping bicycles". They started exactly on the same day as we and drove nearly exacltly equal kilometers as we (5600 km until Dubai)
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Breakfast with the family
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Trip around Dubai with Kalina
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We exchange our bicycles for a brand-new Lincoln Navigator 4x4
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In each seat a DVD player
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First impressions of Dubai
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Sheikh Zayed Road: Dubai is unfortunately not developed for Bicycles
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Everything is a little bit bigger in Dubai
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In the background the building site of the nearly finished Burj Dubai, 818 meters, the largest building of the world. Opening in September 2009, 160 floors, construction costs: 4 billion USD
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Multistoried buildings of the superlative: Sheikh Zayed Road Dubai
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Also in Sharjah is developing in full speed
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Entrance to the Sharjah aquarium
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Jasen (13), the son of our family
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Sharjah Corniche
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Sharjah Mosque
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Yeahhhh, we go into the aquarium
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Sharjah Aquarium
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WC for ladies and Sheikhs
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Entrance to the aquarium
| Lionfish (Scorpaenidae)
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Nemo 1
| Nemo 2
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And the whole contamination due to the natives and (oil)-industry is concealed!
| After our visit to the aquarium we go to the animal fodder market - looks as in the spice bazaar!
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Bazaar for domestic animals - here one can buy everything! A real racoon is squeezed in and nose bears in the rear cage
| In a shop we find a half dozen of hunt falcons with covered eyes
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Small squirrels
| How many small birds can you squezze in a cage?
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In the same bazaar are some shops, where one can slaughter the bought poultry directly
| Many different animals, which we saw in the bazaar are actually under the protection (this small cat unfortunately not!)
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| 7 stars hotel in Dubai: Burj al-Arab
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With Raia we drive to the beach, directly beside the Burj Al-Arab. Public parking lots in Dubai are free of charge, even at best locations
| Kalina
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Andi and Raia - in the background the tower of the Burj Dubai, where in November 2008 the largest Shopping Mall of the world was opened
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Madinat Jumeirah Al Qasr (the palace) - another top luxury hotel in Dubai
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In the hotel area are some channels as in Venice, where the guests can enjoy a ride by Dhow from the restaurant to the beach and back to the room
| Frangipani
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State of the art - with this car we are like small kings: in front of the hotel lobby someone opened the door, in addition the automatic footboard drives out and then the car is parked by the hotel staff!
| “Hey baby, wanna ride with me?!”
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Kalina...
| ... found something in the hotel park!
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On our discovery journey in Dubai we visit the artificially built “The Palm Jumeirah”
| A tunnel under the sea leads us directly in front of the newly opened Atlantis the Palm Hotel
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Lobby of the Atlantis hotel; with Raia we can walk-in everywhere!
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Orchids (Orchidacae)
| Throne for small Atlantis princesses
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Andi takes some pictures in the lobby (while in the background the constant floor shining runs)
| ... and Kalina also!
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The toilets are breathtaking! Non stop is one of the staff there and hands you even the towels
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Camels for Susi (www.arab-art.ch)
| Souvenier-Shop, Atlantis
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The hotel-own, enormous aquarium with hundreds of fish - and divers, who clean the thick glass permanently from the inside (Martin wanted to apply immediately in the hotel business - until he heard that sometimes the divers are attacked by the irritated sharks!)
| The only hotel in the world with an own whale shark - the largest shark (up to 26 m). Enviromentalists of www.seashepherd.org fight for its releas into the sea
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With big, fat Atlantis luxury sedans...
| ... are the guests moved in!
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Dubai Marina
| Within a short time a whole city with ten-thousands appartments and offices was built
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Dubai Marina
| Dubai Kalina
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The eyes of the Fatima
| Bazaar in Dubai
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Heritage Village
| Traditional arab women still carry their face mask for some religious reasons
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Western Barbie dolls
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Arab Barbie dolls
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The small rabbits of Kalina always hide themselves under the car of dad and we must them chase out, before he can drive to the office
| Saved!
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Pancakes for the whole family!
| Andi & Kalina
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Who does not drive a giant-large 4x4 in Dubai, does not belong to it...
| Drive-through ATM
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Cedric with his bike...
| ... in Sharjah
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We have to cross such big roads again and again by bike
| Waiting for a long time and then RUNNING!
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Because we are the only ones who drive without GPS in Dubai, we are repeatedly lost - however always is a nice Arab men, who is willing to help to us to find our way
| Because we did not want to drive on the large motorway, we are totally lost and cross an enormous building site, where soon will stand skyscrapers
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Heap of sand - enormous quantities of sand and stones are tilted in the sea and whole quarters are built on it
| Construction worker on one of the innumerable new multistoried buildings - most of them from India and Pakistan work for miserble wages
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Luxury and waste of energy - waiting for the bus in air-condition
| Recycling is unheard in Dubai (and everything is simply tilted into the desert)!
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Together with Alice and Cedric we visit also the American School Dubai
| The pupils watch and listen to our slide show
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After our presentation we give even interviews for television: www.city7tv.com (Media)
| The pupils are totally curious and over-accumulate themselves with questions. Most do not believe us that one can drive with the bicycle from Europe to Dubai!
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Al Khaleej Road Dubai
| The Garden of Raia
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Sharjah
| National Bank of Dubai
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Traditional ships for transport of goods, Dubai Creek
| Dubai Creek is a part of the city full of live. Many small Indian shops and restaurants and thousands of peoples in the street from all over the world
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Dubai Creek
| Yacht with noble woods
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In Dubai everything was made flat to the ground, in order to stamp out concrete towers, until they noticed that nothing old is left - then they developed simply few "Heritage Areas" in the traditional style
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Dubai Hyatt Regency Hotel
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With this small dhows you can cross for a few few Dirhams the Dubai Creek
| Dubai Creek
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