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These are recent stories - the rest are in my latest book,"Walking Through Adversity."

Stories about Middle East Trips (2)

Rob bryant
2006-01-09 11:39:38

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Discovering the United Arab Emirates - I flew an hour West to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. After going through customs, processing my visa, and picking up my luggage, I went outside to view a sea of taxi drivers and families waiting. I rolled through them and saw a man holding a sign which read, "Beach Rotana Hotel welcomes Rob Bryant of DynCorp." It was a sight for sore eyes. My driver spoke broken English and he pointed out the sights on the way. We drove over an hour past enormous hotels, businesses, and Sheik holdings. He pointed out the Arab Tower Hotel and is the only hotel in the world billed as a 7-star. It costs over $6,000-$10,000/night and is used by Sheiks, princes, and oil barons. Oil companies lined both sides of the road with headquarters with nearly obscene extravagance. We passed at least two of the ten palaces owned by the Sheik. He explained that there were seven tribes in UAE, and the chief of the largest one became the Grand Sultan. There are still 7 kingdoms (Emirates) each with it's own prince, yet they share the same currency and military. I noticed that Dubai is truly an Oasis along the Persian Gulf as we drove to Abu Dabi to the North. While driving, the phone rang and it was the hotel manager calling to make sure I was OK and on my way. "Mr. Bryant, we look forward to meeting your needs. Sir, there are several messages for you. Please do not bother with the front desk. Please go to the Business Center where you will be given your faxes and e-mails. Then we will show you to your room where an attendant will ensure any further needs are met." I was astounded at this level of service (not typical in the states). I had not seen anything yet. Upon arriving, I saw a plaque in the lobby from the World Hotel Association, rating the Beach Rotana Hotel as one of the top 25 hotels in the world and I could believe it.

Open Says-A-Me - Abu Dhabi has had so many Hollywood Movies ...