Hello Dubai - Joe Bennett (2010)
This is one of those travel books, that isn't really about travel. It explores the city, its history and tries to uncover why so many people flock to Dubai. Joe Bennett has travelled their before, but returns to find out what Dubai is really about.
For me it became a bit of a hard sell. Once you get past the mcmansions and the flashy cars and jewellery, their are issues that ensnare Dubai and make the funny stories a bit less palatable. I don't think that the Philippine and Indian workers really enjoy the benefits of working in Dubai, Joe doesn't really find out how much they earn or think about their working conditions. The bevy of women of many nations who are are dancers in bars, one wonders if it is just a modern form of sexual slavery and how trapped they are so far from their home countries.
I don't think that Mr Bennett managed to really capture the reasons why so many people clamour to Dubai other than earning the quick tax free buck. In the end I wasn't interested either, and it made me think it was one place that I have no need of visiting in my lifetime. 3/5
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