Well, so I finally ventured out side of Dubai emirate. (I also briefly drove into the Sultanate of Oman, but got scared, since my car is not insured in Oman, and so I only made it about 500m.) I took Lonely Planet at its word, Allah knows why, and went to Dibba, "the most beautiful part of the emirates." And, guess what: it was. Or, well, I should say it was beautiful. I've only seen now Dubai, Sharjah and Fujairah. But so these are some of the pics. Dhaid is a city in Sharjah emirate and Dibba is in Fujairah. I stopped for a fan in Dhaid, and then spent the afternoon wandering around Dibba, which is a really cool little town on the Arabian Sea. The sand is black, which makes it look filthy, but it's not: it's just black. The water was a bit murky, so I only just jumped in. Too many opportunities for sharks to hide in murky water.

The best thing about Dibba was the doors of the compounds in the old part of town. My God, so beautiful. I took a littl walk, at afternoon prayer, through a beautiful Pakistani neighborhood too. Really beautiful. And I do believe I was the only westerner in town, and you know how special we westerners feel when we are the only ones in town. I saw a Western woman in Oman, but that doesn't count.