Skype Is Not Allowed In Dubai

This is the real strange thing in Dubai. You are now allowed to use Skype. The moment you type www.skype.com in your Internet Explorer, this message will be displayed.

But the message appear mislead you to think that this is Skype Server problem, because it show "The Web Server may be down . . ."

So those local people will never be able to use Skype, because you will not be able to download Skype software. How about foreigner who enter Dubai and already have the software installed? The answer is, "some time you can use". But most of the time you will not be able to use it, because you just can't sign-in.

I heard from some of the people in Dubai, they say Skype is barred because the Telco "Etisalat" wants to ensure their profit. If they allow Skype, then their business will be affected. For comparison, if I call back to Malaysia using mobile phone, per minute it cost me about RM12.00. If I were to use Skype, the cost is only about RM0.30. So you can roughly know how much profit the Telco is making.

Desert Safari Tour

	We went for the desert safari tour on Friday. Over here, Friday is week-end instead of Saturday. I was a real exciting tour, the driver really drived the 4WD (Toyota Land Cruiser) to reach its maximum limit. They will only start the journey when they are in a group of 5 to 10. They do not travel alone in the desert.
	After about half and hour cruising in the desert, we stop down and wait for sunset to come. This is also time for the vehicle to take good rest.
	Unfortunately, one of the machine broke down. The driver has to replace the tyre.
	This is the first time in my life to see camel in the desert, it is definitely different from what I have seen on zoo.
	After sunset, we went to the camp for our dinner, and there are many types souvenir are sold here. To me, I found this is the most special one. Of course I bought one for my self. The artist put the sand (coloured sand) into the bottle to drawing sand picture in the small bottle.
	After the dinner, there is belle dancing performance. She is a well trained dancer, all of us were very enjoy with the performance.
	At night, the desert is quite and beautiful, you can even hear the sound of someone talking at about 500 meters away.
	Just sitting in the middle of the desert and enjoy the beauty part of the desert. But it is definitely not a good idea to stay here for long.

How They Do It In Dubai

	My first impression of this country is that it is a city in the middle of desert. I arrived Dubai at night, as such, I could not view the city from the airplane. I could only see that there are lights every where in the city. In the morning, I found this country does not seem to be in the desert, because I can see greenth everywhere.
	Few days later, until I see this, then only I know how they turn desert into greenth. If you go to the desert, you will not be able to see this kind of flower, because in the desert, it seldom rain. According to some local people, it rains once or twice in a year only. This kind of flower needs water.
	How they do it? First, the worker will lay the black color pipes on the ground, then over lay the grass with soil on top. Every morning, the worker will feed water into the pipe. With water, the grass can growth, and finally it covers the surface of the desert.