True, he sure let a of time pass between that 7th day, and he had a lot of help from imported labor, contractors and a great geographical location, but when God decided to show fearless ambition in the Middle East, it resulted in Dubai.

At least that was my reaction when I arrived at the airport last night and was driven along the Sheik Zayed road towards where I am staying while I am in Dubai. Although I was more excited to see great friends who I had not seen in almost 14 years, I was still smitten with the obnoxious, bombastic and stellar Dubai skyline.

What not too long ago was mostly sand dunes is now a built environment that makes Las Vegas look like Battle Mountain and reduces New York to Vegas’ New York, New York. Despite Dubai’s recent debt crisis, the construction projects are still occurring, as you can see in some of the pictures I took this morning while I went for a run in this new development in which I am staying.

Dubai and the United Arab Emirates ooze wealth, audacity, ambition and confronting the impossible. Stay tuned for more observations of a fascinating place. The visits to the coast, business centers and of course, malls cannot come soon enough.

Actually, don't count on the development stopping anytime soon

Actually, don't count on the development stopping anytime soon

The Dubai skyline in the distance

The Dubai skyline in the distance

Construction of a new residential neighborhood

Construction of a new residential neighborhood

GreenGoPost.com's temporary home!

GreenGoPost.com's temporary home!

About The Author

Leon Kaye

Leon Kaye is the founder and editor of GreenGoPost.com and its advisory division, GGP Media. Contact him to discuss how he can work with your organization or event. His focus is making the business case for sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR). He writes for San Francisco-based Triple Pundit, Inhabitat and now The Guardian, for which he writes about corporate responsibility, water, and green building. He has also written for AIA's Architect Magazine. Leon works out of Fresno and Silicon Valley, California, and when he has free time, he enjoys hiking, gardening, cooking, weightlifting, and planning his next trip to one of the 60 countries he has visited. He has an MBA from USC's Marshall School of Business and is also a proud graduate of the University of Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC) and Cal State-Fresno.