Sonya's SpotLight Celebrity News Reviews and Interviews

The Land Called Dubai

I learned so much about the Middle East and world culture during my recent trip to Dubai that I don't even know where to begin. The most striking information I learned concerning the Middle East is how much of the power, status and wealth is attributed to oil and family royalty.

You see, once upon a time, many of the so-called "Locals" of the Middle East, or Arabs who were already established there, found oil on their various properties that became highly valuable around the world. And just like a #1 draft pick out of college who goes pro, these men and their families became wealthy, powerful, and "Royal" instantly. And as long as these families would remain tied to the international oil, they would remain wealthy and powerful.

As these Arabian families continued to pass down millions of oil money to their various family members, and continued to be courted by the greed of the West for gasoline, a few of the royal rulers of the United Arab Emirates or U. A. E. came up with the grand idea of building a commercial playground in Dubai, with the largest malls, hotels, and attractions to seduce the people of world commerce to travel there "duty free" and spend, spend, spend - instead of the royal families being so dependent on oil deals.

And shish, boom, BANG - the nation of Dubai shot up out of the sand, with immigrant workers traveling there from all over the world to help build it, international architects and engineers to design it, real estate investors to help finance it, international employees and staff to work it, and everyone who can afford to play in it to travel there and enjoy themselves. And boy, let me tell you, by year 2014, this place will be one of the most dynamite human cities in the world. But right now, they're still building everything.

Well, as I always do when I travel to a new book location, I try to cover every solid inch of the cultural environment while I'm there. And yes indeed, I was over in Dubai not for a simple vacation, but to explore business. I will soon write about the Dubai and do business there.

But again, there is just so much to write about that it would literally take me pages and pages of text to do it. So, for now, Enjoy the pictures . . . and stay tuned.

Omar Tyree
www.OmarTyree.com
Omar Tyree, a New York Times best-selling author, a 2001 NAACP Image Award recipient for Outstanding Literature in Fiction, and a 2006 Phyllis Wheatley Literary Award winner for Body of Work in Urban Fiction, has published 15 books and has sold more than 1.8 million copies worldwide. With a degree in Print Journalism from Howard University in 1991, Tyree has been recognized as one of the most renown contemporary writers in the African-American community. He is also an informed and passionate speaker on various community-related and intellectual topics. Soon to enter the world of feature film making, self-help / business books, and urban children's books, Tyree is a tireless creator and visionary of few limitations.