I opened this book (published in 1999) with trepidation, a question on my lips:  “Do I really want to go to this inhospitable place, if only in my mind?”  There are no photographs, but as I read, I realise that pictorial images aren’t necessary.  Thubron’s descriptions are rich, delving below the surface, showing how history and environment[…]

Dubai – Mirage in the Desert We glide through the Arrivals hall; its soaring ceiling high above. Pillars and palm trees slip past. The Muezzin calls the faithful to prayer. Immigration formalities are fast, carried out by men in gleaming white ankle length dishdasha, their head cloths held in place by twisted black agal. Our[…]