Em Dubai, o mais rico dos 7 emirados árabes, eu fiz apenas uma escala. Sequer saí do aeroporto (que, de fato, é impressionante). Quando voltei me perguntaram mais sobre “a cidade que aparece na novela” do que sobre os campos de refugiados que visitei no sudeste asiático. Enfim, como disse: pouco sei sobre Dubai. Mas li agora o relato abaixo que apresenta um olhar diferente sobre Dubai, bem diferente do imaginário das pessoas.

Dubai Is Nuts!!!

You know what guys? Dubai is probably up there as the worst place in the world.

Let’s see:

• Totally soul-less architecture that outdoes even the tacky carbon-copies in Vegas when it comes to designing without any subtlety and class. Oh yeah: “Let’s make a hotel shaped like a sail !!!” and “Let’s make an island shaped as a palm tree !!”, bloody creative that lot.
• The whole one-upmenship and building “tallest-ever-this” and “biggest-ever-that” is what urban planning would be like if it was ran by 12 year olds.
• It’s a supposed tourist destination where you can’t even drink alcohol (outside of your hotel), you can get arrested for even acting like you’re gay, and where books mentioning evolution get censored or banned.
• Not to mention that all those ugly skyscrapers are built with slave labour. Everyone should watch the VICE/BBC documentary “Slaves of Dubai”. How can anyone spend money in that place with clean conscience?!