I found this article in Gulf News 2 days ago, titled ‘Building Dubai’s Image’ by Rhus Jones. It started off by the ‘International Image of Dubai’ and marketing that on billboards and subways of Europe, and how the city established the ‘Brand Dubai’ that is also being pushed further and further.
Dubai is indeed an international hub that I think one of the major reasons for creating that hub was the slogan ‘Everything is Possible’. Architecture-wise, the city is up for any idea that some called it a ‘testing field’. Very true. Burj Al Arabi (notice the ‘i’ at the end of the word) is proof, along with the Big Ben replica.
Everything is Possible (!)
I suggest a new slogan though: ‘-EST Everything!’. Indeed! LargEST artificial island (The Palms), tallEST building (Burj Dubai), largEST mall (Dubai Mall), highEST commercial tower (Burj Al Alam), FirST 7-star hotel worldwide (Burj Al Arab)…, etc etc.
However, the article seems to be on the edge of sarcasm while mentioning outrageous figures that made me realize the word Billion is the new Million!
Tatweer launched their multi-billion Badawi project, which is by the way the longEST hotel strip in the world, featuring more than 30 hotels with 29,000 rooms in total. that is outstanding! But what is really outstanding is this:
Some £140 billion ($275 billion) will be spent to further push ‘Brand Dubai’ up until 2010. The money will be spent to build even more free-trade zones, to build the busiest ports and airports to boost the city’s tourism market. It will also be directed to building one million new homes for three million new residents, and building a global sporting centre, which can accommodate the Olympic Games.
Now the long-awaited Dubai Metro is claimed to carry 1.2 million passengers a day, which “Dubai’s authorities hope will reduce the number of cars on the city’s roads”, but there will be 3 million new residents, great, 1.8 million more on the roads!
In an interview I read lately in one of the newspapers with Dubai RTA director Mattar Al-Tayer, he said that 62% of the all-day-long dubai traffic jam is “not enough roads for the vehicles”!!
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