One fine Friday morning, an Architect flew to the United Arab Emirates until he finally landed at the Dubai International Airport. The purpose of his visit there was for a business meeting with one of his design firm's most valuable Arab clients. He had the entire weekend to himself and enjoyed the extra time to spare because the scheduled appointment was still on Monday of the following week. So, he had more than a couple of days to explore the marvelous metropolis of Dubai and other interesting landmarks within that remarkable location.
Without hesitation, he made the decision to hire a taxi driver to tour him around the wonderful destinations of the urban neighborhood. He immediately paid his local guide a generous sum of US$200 and instructed him, "Kindly show me around your beautiful city of Dubai and impress me with all the famous architectural spots here".
"Absolutely Sir!" The taxi driver was overjoyed due to the huge amount of cash offered to him, thus he gladly started their journey until they saw an interesting building shaped like the letter D.
The Architect then asked with a smile, "What's that white floating building on top of an island on the sea?"
"Oh, that's the Burj Al Arab, the most luxurious hotel in the world! It took 5 years to construct that building!" The cab driver replied.
"I see. Well, we can build a hotel like that around 2 years back in my home country!"
They continued cruising around the vibrant vicinity until they suddenly got fascinated by a magnificent edifice that resembled a royal palace.
"What about that amazing landmark?" The Architect asked as he peeked outside their vehicle's window with wide-opened eyes.
"Ahhh, that's the Atlantis The Palm Jumeirah hotel Sir! It may look like a modern castle, but it's actually one of the biggest hospitality centers here. That massive establishment, by the way, took approximately 6 years to complete!" The cab driver answered as he pointed towards the site.
"Okay, that's wonderful! But back home, we can construct a large complex like that in just over 10 months!" The Architect proudly responded in a loud voice.
After several hours of driving around, they stumbled upon an extremely unique skyscraper that couldn't escape their line of sight. The tall aluminum-clad building immediately caught the Architect's attention that he requested the cab driver to stop the car so he could go outside and have a closer look.
While being flabbergasted, the Architect screamed at the top of his voice and asked, "WOW!!! What's that twisting silver building over there - at the left side of the wooden boat on the water canal?!"
While scratching his head repeatedly, the cab driver stared back at him and shouted, "I HAVE NO IDEA! THAT BUILDING WAS NOT THERE YESTERDAY!".
I had a sudden strike of nostalgia, in a good way. Excellent storytelling! It is so true! Dubai Marina is an architectural smorgasbord with towers popping up just like that. I remember going away for 2 weeks overseas and then feeling lost when I returned because I didn't recognize the usual route I took every morning. All of a sudden there were new lanes and big interchanges that were not there. Cab drivers are the best!
This story might sound a bit exaggerated however, the point here is to give credit to Dubai for the tremendous contributions it has offered to architecture. Because of its cutting-edge construction technologies, design advancements, and architectural developments, this vibrant metropolis has transformed into the world's hotbed of remarkable buildings that we could only dream of! No wonder, so many people were impacted by its progress. Your unique experience with the Dubai Marina is one proof of how unbelievably amazing this modern landscape continues to be until now.
Happy National Day to the UAE as they celebrate this joyous occasion today!