I have the biggest one!

No no, you dirty reader.
Don’t think at that kind of things right away. There is more in life.

Like the crazy city of Dubai. And its just as crazy emir and rulers.
But first a bit of history of this federal country, actually seven countries, where we are now: the United Arab Emirates.
In the 20th century the fishing village of Dubai developed into one of the bigger trading centres in the world, when Sheikh Maktoum bin Hasher al Maktoum comvinced foreign traders to use the strategic harbour for their base by offering them attractive trade conditions. The city developed into a great trade centre, but the nine emirates were divided literally and figurative. Cooperation was difficult and often not existing, borders were being disputed constantly.
Under the ruling of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al Nahya of Abu Dhabi the United Arab Emirates was founded in 1971, in which the seven emirs and emirates retained a part of their autonomy. Each emirate was named after its capital. Qatar and Bahrein, number eight and nine, did not join the new country and became independant.
In 1958 and 1966 enormous oil reserves were found in Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively and it transformed the federation from one of the poorest countries of the world to one of the richest. Life in the Emirates changed drastically: goat tracks became broad highways, wooden slums and tents converted into airconditioned palaces, Toyota Landcruisers took over the work of the camels and in the desert sky scrapers and green plantations arose.

The wealth and abundance that oil and gas brought the Emirates, appears to have turned the heads of the sheikhs. The best example is Dubai, after Abu Dhabi the richest emirate. The city has been expanding explosively for the last twenty years, and still is. It looks like one big excavated building site. Everywhere black topped, illuminated roads are being built, new hotels appear daily, and sky scrapers rise out of the yellow desert sand, the one of an even more daring architectonic superiority than the other. The airport is one of the fastest growing airports in the world, where cranes and building sites are a part of the furniture. Every district has one or more giant shopping malls where you can buy about anything you want, Rolexes fly around your head and shopping carts are twice as big as in the Netherlands.

The first and only seven star hotel in the world was built in Dubai: the Burj al Arab. The cheapest room is about two and a half thousand euro a night excluded breakfast, but for this amount of money they will fly you to the special helicopter platform high on the building. Meanwhile Abu Dhabi built the second seven star hotel, they did not want to come short of Dubai. In front of the coast of Dubai, in the Arabian Gulf, islands are being built in the shape of palm trees. With enough money one buys a house or books a hotel room here in the coming years. And in 2008 “The World” will be finished: a project of three hundred islands, that seen from the sky have the form of the continents and earth, and so big that they’ll be visible from the moon. It won’t be enough to just be a millionaire to buy one of the islands and build your own water resort.
The highest sky scraper in the world, the Burj Dubai Tower, of which the exact height still is kept secret, is being built in Downtown Dubai now and will reach its highest point in a couple of years (expectation: about 750 metres, two and a half times as high as the Eiffel Tower). At the same time they are busy planning the first underwater hotel in the world.
It is going to be crowded in the Gulf.

And, in this lunacy, every local is building a house of his own. The government takes good financial care of the (local!) people: health care and education are free of charge, there are no taxes and loans are very cheap.
During our stay in Dubai we make a couple of cycling trips to catch a glimpse of the preposterousness of this city. Cycling around Dubai is no fun: the roads are big and busy and the car drivers are the kings and act like that. They don’t care a damn about speed limits and especially on roundabouts we have to be very careful: at full speed the cars race onto the exits while we try to finish half or three-quarter of the circle. The biggest or the most expensive car has right of way and often that’s a Porsche Cayenne, Lamborghini, Mercedes 600 or an ordinary Landcruiser V8. for the first time in our lives we see a Maybach. Everything is possible here.

And we?
We shamble on our more than four years old dear and dirty bikes through the glimmering traffic, while a fat Nissan Patrol comes next to us. Its electric window glides down fast and with the latest model cellphone somebody takes our picture. Because what is really, really special in Dubai?
Right, two white cyclists.

We cycle through the dangerous Shandagha tunnel under the Creek, survive and pay a visit to the southern part of the city, Bur Dubai. An hour later via the Soukh Madina Jumeira we walk into the Madina Jumeira Hotel and gasp at the luxurious buffet and the big bellied tourists. Distracted we sit on the white beach with a marvellous view of the Burj al Arab. Later we visit the Heritage House and have a glance of life as it was only twentyfive years ago, without electricity, without running water, without airco. The contrast could not be bigger.

After four days in Dubai we make a last evening walk along the super cosy Creek, enjoy the illuminated boats and the old wooden dhows that cross the Strait of Hormuz for the trade with Iran. Tomorrow we will cycle into the old familiar desert and leave the biggest.
The biggest what?
The biggest show of outward parade in the world.