major talking point on board - this entry may never be published as I have not been able to connect for a few days.
Dubai is even bolder and brasher than on our last visit. After exposure to the vast antiquities of Egypt and Jordan, one is led to ask, after viewing the Burj Khalifa (828 meters), will it last as long as the Pyramids. Will Dubai even be there after 100 years, or will its bubble pop before then?
We visited the Gold Souk and had a close look at a gold necklace for Anne, but when the young sales lady doubled the price after making a mistake with her calculator, we opted out!
Muscat in Oman, just around the corner through the Straits of Hormuz, was every bit as exotic as the name promises. Very Arabic with forts perched on hill tops, white marble buildings with the scent of frankincense all pervading. We visited a very beautiful mosque and saw the outside of one of the seven of the Sultan's palaces, as well as one of his massive yachts. One wonders why the plebs don't object to his ostentation, but if one pays no tax or rates, health and education are free and petrol is 39 cents a litre ( less expensive than water!) one has few complaints...
Mind you, Mrs Mountbatten lives just as ostentatiously, and we still venerate her.
Today ( Weds 14th) we are cruising south just west of the Indian Coast, (having braved Pirates Alley once again), heading for Cochin in Kerala, south west India.
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