My first glimpse of Dubai is breathtaking, and I mean that in the most literal sense possible. Stepping into the heat and humidity of this Arabian Gulf haven is quite a shock to the system. My sunglasses fog up, as does every single pore on my body. I scramble to find an air-conditioned taxi, and indulge in some instant relief. My taxi driver is from Cashmere, speaks no English and drives like an Italian, overall not a good mix. Luckily, the sprawling city skyline does a good job of distracting me and I soon find myself driving towards one of the most iconic landmarks in the city: Palm Jumeirah. This absolute feat of human engineering is where my friends Suzanne and Martin live. They moved here 2 years ago, to get out of the hustle and bustle of Sydney, and to take advantage of Dubai’s incredible financial opportunities. I hesitate ever so slightly getting out of the taxi, I somehow foolishly expect the Palm to somehow sway; even though I know it was built using almost 1000 million cubic metres of sand, and almost seven million cubic metres of rock. ‘WOW!” Is the first word I utter upon seeing my long ...

The Palm Jumeirah is a man-made island that, from the air, looks like a palm tree. Considered by many to be the 8th Wonder of the world, the Palm Jumeirah islands are one of the most thrilling and inspiring tourist destinations in the region. There are over thirty hotels offering top class luxury, many Dubai villa rentals and numerous upscale shops, boutiques, restaurants and leisure facilities. The trunk of the Palm Jumeirah is a road that is two kilometres long with numerous branches leading to the left and right. Towards the end of the last century, Dubai wanted to expand its tourism industry but only had a limited amount of natural shoreline. His Highness Sheikh Mohammed decided to commission three islands, Palm Jumeirah, Palm Jebel Ali and Palm Deira that would literally double Dubai’s 70 kms of white sand beachfront.The Palm Jumeirah is connected to Dubai by a 6-lane highway and also by a monorail enabling people to travel to and from the mainland with ease. Situated along the Palm Jumeirah highway are several hotels with superb restaurants including the Fairmont Palm Hotel and Resort, and the Trump Hotel and Tower, which are accompanied by elegant shops gilding what is ...