when the Choc Nut and Christmas islander blogs within the breeze of the Gulf

What not to miss while attending an annual conference in Dusit Thani Hotel?

To take photos of Burj Khalifa. From the hotel, it has a nice view of the tallest tower.

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I am in UAE for quite a time now but it was only this year I checked the (Annual) Dubai Shopping Festival. With tired feet and hungry monster tummies, there was no better way to culminate last Friday night than visiting the Rainforest Cafe. We have passed by here when we checked the Dubai Aquarium last time but I never thought that this cafe offers more than the usual.

I think that this cafe is well-conceptualized in the sense that this is currently one of a kind in the UAE. For the naturally greenery scarce Gulf, an artificial rainforest environment will be appreciated by many. There is a reptile at the entrance, and as you take more steps to the dining hall, you will be greeted by a serpent. Then the rest of the tigers, gorillas and butterflies are strategically situated. Although these creatures are available in their artificial form, it is hugely entertaining because approximately at every 10 minutes , they would air some sounds of animals and synched with their movements. The banging of the thunderstorm signals that these creatures will become alive.

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Dubai Police made this remarkable piece of documentation of its theory about one of the biggest stories in the UAE right now: the murder of Palestinian commander in one of the hotels in Dubai. It is a so-called highly sophisticated crime because it was perfectly executed by arrival of suspects (from different countries) at varied and strategized times to Dubai Airport, checking into different hotel rooms, meeting in shopping malls, wearing disguised looks, reprogramming of entry to the hotel room, and using an advanced communications instruments that during their conversations they used encrypted messages.

See how the closed circuit cameras helped the Dubai Police to name the suspects in 24 hours after the discovery of the victim’s death. A natural death as it seemed was not the real case.

The suspects include six British nationals, one French, one German and three Irish nationals, including one woman. The list was officially publicized yesterday. How quick they are to solve this case, eh?

Until today, it was confirmed that the suspects travelled to Dubai on fake passports. And Israel’s in the dock over fake passports.

What a strategy. How smart. I hope knowledge has been used only in good faith.

How do you solve a puzzle like this?

Update: 25 February 2010 – There are now 26 suspects. Click here to see how they are connected.

Find me if you can. No, I didn't see it live.

Talk about five years in the making, Burj Khalifa (formerly known as Burj Dubai), the tallest tower in the world was officially inaugurated last night. The first time I saw this up and personal was few months ago when we checked the fireworks in the dancing fountain in Dubai Mall. It is really, really gigantic that it felt like looking up to eternity from that point. I did not get to see the launching face to face though. I hoped that they would do it during a weekend that I probably might have considered going there to be one of the many spectators, with eyes bewildered, as you can see in one of the photos. (I photographed these from the pages of one of the leading broadsheets in UAE.)

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Taken in June 2009. Dune bashing as part of Desert Safari is one invigorating experience that you should not miss when you’re visiting Dubai.

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