Something I didn’t mention in my posts in Dubai are some of the cultural differences that are quite noticeable.
The first is obviously the religious and traditional dress. Men wearing their throbes and women covered completely with the burka. The other thing was while I was both at the airport and mall, it happened to be mid-afternoon and over the PA and noticeboards was a call to prayer. The PA for 15 minutes or so, played the Muslim chant.
The other noticeable difference is how tight laws are with alcohol. Pubs are located inside international hotels. So you are actually going into big name (and often pricey) hotels just to frequent the pub. There is hardly anyone pissed, no one stumbles the streets and drink driving is unheard of.
But that has all changed heading into London. Few nights out on the town around Picadilly Circus was mayhem. It’s school summer holidays at the moment so kids are out. I was on a “pub appreciation walk” (or a Pub-crawl, whichever is a more accurate description) starting a Convent Gardens and ending in Picadilly Circus, and it was at the time we got to our final pub, that a show or several theaters had finished. It was just a mob of people everywhere. Big night. Fun times.
Anyway, I have to run. Gotta get ready to jet off to Edinbrough and Glasgow today. Then off to Munich on Thursday. Stay tuned for more and photos to be uploaded soon too.
L
