May 30: We bid farewell to our family and left Shanghai. On our way to the airport, we chatted with our taxi driver, who was from Anhui province. He mentioned how challenging it was to get passengers from Pudong Airport these days. Often, he had to wait in long queues for hours before getting a customer at the airport due to the lack of international travelers to China. However, today was his lucky day. As we just arrived at the airport departure terminal, and we had not even exited the taxi yet, someone was already standing there and wanted to take our taxi. We were so happy for the driver and wished him good luck.

Perhaps it was late at night, there were few flights, and Pudong Airport was relatively sparse with passengers. Not many people were in line for immigration either, and everyone was busy filling out the exit health declaration forms on their phones. It seemed an arbitrary policy to require travelers to fill out health declaration forms to leave the country. Surprisingly, just a few machines and QR codes were around, and no one seemed to supervise the process closely.

This trip marked our first time flying with Emirates Airlines. Upon boarding, we noticed a wet spot on one of our seats and informed the flight attendant. The attentive flight attendant from the Netherlands immediately replaced the seat cushion. Throughout the nine-hour flight, she took special care of us, sharing her life experiences and providing insights about Dubai. Before disembarking, she wrote down restaurant recommendations and popular attractions for us. Knowing it was our first time flying with Emirates, she took a photo of us using an instant camera and gifted us as a souvenir with good wishes.

The customs efficiency in Dubai was impressive, and their arrival hall was one of the best and most beautiful ones we had seen in any country we visited. It was evident that they put effort into attracting foreign tourists. After collecting our luggage, we hopped into a taxi and headed to our hotel in downtown Dubai. The taxi in Dubai is very credit card friendly, and every cab is equipped with a touch-free credit card reader. We felt like we were back in another world as our phones came back to life, and there was no more cash in our pockets. Everywhere we go, we just use the phone.

Having arrived at the hotel before 7 am (May 31), we were pleasantly surprised by the warm hospitality of the receptionist who allowed us to check in early, and the additional fee was just less than half a day's cost. To our delight, they also provided us with a complimentary breakfast. Once we had freshened up, we indulged in a delightful and hearty breakfast at the hotel restaurant, marking the beginning of our exciting first day in Dubai.

Our first stop was the Grand Bur Dubai Mosque. They allowed the visitors to enter the prayer hall outside prayer time. When we got there, an English tour just started. Ladies were required to wear traditional Muslim attire to cover the head. Fortunately, they provided appropriate clothing for tourists. Inside the men's prayer hall, we were impressed by the grandeur. Sitting on the floor, we listened to a Muslim devotee who shared insights into the Islamic faith and answered our questions, providing a valuable learning experience. The Dubai Museum is temporarily closed because the property is under restoration.

After the mosque visit, we headed to a nearby trendy restaurant, recommended by our daughter, and ordered a breakfast platter which tasted quite good, and the ambiance was delightful.

Next, we explored Dubai's old city, a well-preserved blend of old and new elements. It was nicely built, but we noticed there were fewer tourists. The scorching 40-degree heat made it challenging to walk around, so we hailed a taxi and left the place to visit the world's largest shopping mall, Dubai Mall.

Inside the mall, we experienced the luxurious shopping environment of a wealthy country. The place was packed with people, and almost every major luxury brand had multiple stores. Some top-tier stores had long queues outside. It was a rare sight to see so many customers inside one of the Louis Vuitton stores, and we were among the few casual onlookers. The mall not only had shops and restaurants but also featured attractions like an ice-skating rink, an aquarium, and an incredibly massive waterfall. Initially planning to explore the entire mall, we soon abandoned the idea and focused on finding food. We joined a long queue outside a fried chicken fast-food joint, trying their popular traditional fried chicken, which was quite delicious.

In the evening, we watched the stunning fountain light show with the world's tallest building, the Dubai Tower, in the backdrop. We noticed a Din Tai Fung restaurant nearby and decided to try it. We still remember waiting more than an hour for a seat at Din Tai Fung in Taipei, but there was no line there. Not too much surprise, the menu replaced all pork dishes with chicken options, as pork is not consumed in this Muslim country. Some items tasted quite different with the change of ingredients. Following our late-night snack, we strolled along the artificial lake and enjoyed the fountain show again, concluding our fulfilling first day in Dubai.

June 1: After having breakfast at the hotel, we visited the Dubai Tower, also known as the Burj Khalifa. We still took a taxi while the tower was near our hotel due to the scorching 40-degree Celsius heat. The Burj Khalifa stands as the tallest artificial structure in the world, with 160 floors and a height of 826 meters. The observation deck on the 124th/125th floors, at 450 meters, provided breathtaking views. However, we were disappointed to find that Dubai's air quality was relatively poor, and the visibility from the Burj Khalifa was limited due to the haze. Regrettably, the poor air quality in Dubai made it difficult to fully appreciate the splendor of the seven-star Burj Al Arab Hotel and the mesmerizing artificial islands in the sea.

After descending from the Burj Khalifa, we went to Dubai Marina, the world's largest artificial marina, which has been transformed into a fashionable leisure, dining, and shopping destination. In the scorching Dubai summer, we sought shelter indoors after walking just a few steps along the waterfront.

Our visit to Dubai Marina included a ferry ride around the famous Palm Jumeirah. Unfortunately, we were informed that the ferry couldn't take the regular route due to strong winds, so we had to take the inner bay route. The ferry ride got a bit rocky, and we experienced some seasickness. Nevertheless, we caught a closer glimpse of the iconic Burj Al Arab Hotel.

The ferry had two stops, and we got off at the first one since we visited the second stop area yesterday. To our surprise, we were the only passengers to disembark. The reason quickly became apparent – apart from a small ticket booth, the place was mostly deserted, surrounded by vast empty land, and inaccessible to taxis. The ticket attendant said he regretted working at that booth since it hardly saw any visitors. Fortunately, our experience living in Phoenix had accustomed us to the heat, so we took it in stride. The main road wasn't far away, and we strolled along the Dubai Canal for a while, even crossing the world's most beautiful twisted footbridge, the Dubai Twisted Footbridge, as Dubai seemed to have quite a few "world's bests."

Subsequently, we hailed a taxi to visit another of Dubai's remarkable landmarks - the Dubai Frame, acclaimed as the world's largest picture frame. Standing over 150 meters tall, the frame is a cultural landmark where old and new Dubai meet. Upon reaching the top, we stepped onto the glass floor at a staggering height of 150 meters, an exhilarating experience that was entirely novel to us.

We were off to a new country the following day, concluding our two-day layover in Dubai with a sense of satisfaction.

5/30: 与家人告别离开上海。在去机场路上，与来自安徽的出租车小哥聊了一会儿，他说现在从浦东机场接活不容易，常常要在机场排队等好几个小时才接上客户。可他今天很幸运，我们刚到机场还没下车，正好碰上有人等着要上他的车，我们为他好运降临而高兴。

也许是半夜出发班机不多，浦东机场里乘客稀稀拉拉，排队出关的也不多，大家都在手机上忙着填写出境健康表，没人管就放几个机器和二维码在那里。也不知为什么出境还要健康码，出关还算顺利，就是效率低一点。

第一次乘坐Emirates 航空，上了飞机后，发现我们的一个座位有湿水迹，空姐马上就把那个座椅垫换了。以后的九个小时飞行中，这位来自荷兰的空姐对我们特别照顾。谈谈她的人生经历，向我们介绍迪拜的一些情况。在下机前，还写下了推荐的餐厅名和景点，给了个小礼物。知道我们是第一次乘坐阿联酋航空，用即时相机为我们照相留念。

迪拜海关效率很高，他们的入境大厅是我们去过的国家中最好最漂亮的，看出来他们在吸引外国游客上下了功夫。拿了行李后，坐上出租去旅馆。这里的出租车有规定必须收信用卡。我们的手机也开始“复活＂了，又回到了另一世界。来到酒店已是5/31的早上，才七点不到，热心的前台让我们提早入住，只多付了半天不到的钱，还给我们免费早餐。梳洗完毕后去餐厅吃了个丰盛的早餐，开始了在迪拜的第一天。

我们先去清真寺参观，女士必须穿上穆斯林的服装，清真寺有为游客专门提供的服装。脱了鞋进入他们的男士祷告大厅，里面很壮观。大家席地而坐，一位穆斯林教徒向大家介绍穆斯林教，回答问题，我们学到不少东西。

参观后，来到附近不远的一家网红餐厅，是女儿推荐的。要了个早餐大拼盘，味道还可以，环境更胜－筹。

饭后去了迪拜老城，说是老城实际上是旧地新复古城。修建得很不错，但游客稀少。在40度高温下走一会儿有点撑不住，就叫了出租车去了世界上最大的购物中心 - 迪拜猫。在猫里，亲身体验到了一个富有国家的消费环境。那里人山人海，几乎世界上所有名牌在那里都有专买店，而且不止一个。有几个顶级店外面还排着长队，从来没有见过一个LV店里面有这么多顾客，而且我们这样的看客是极少数。猫里面不光有商店和餐饮，还有滑冰场，水族馆，巨大无比的瀑布等等。原来准备把猫走一遍的，没多久就放弃了这个目标，开始找吃的。看到一家快餐炸鸡店外排着很长的队，我们也去凑个热闹, 要了他们最热门的传统炸鸡，味道还真不错。

晚上在猫的外面，以世界最高的迪拜塔为背景的喷水池灯光秀值得一看。看完灯光秀，见水池边正好有鼎泰丰，进去试试。坐下一看菜单还真有不同，所有猪肉都被鸡肉代替了，我们完全忘记这里是不吃猪肉的。只是有些东西改了原材料后口味就完全不一样了。夜宵后，又在人工湖边走走，再次欣赏一次灯光秀，迪拜第一天就这样圆满结束了。

6/1: 在酒店用完早餐后，就去了迪拜塔，也称哈利法塔。塔虽就在我们住的酒店附近，但在40 C高温下，走过去是不行的，还是叫出租车。哈利法塔是世界上最高的人造建筑，一共160层，826米，观景厅在124/125层，450米。没想到迪拜的空气质量这么差，雾霾很严重，在迪拜塔上看远处的七星级的舨船酒店只是朦朦胧胧的依稀可见，海上那些人工小岛更是什么都看不清了，有点失望。

从哈利法塔下来后就去迪拜码头，世界上最大的人工码头，被打造成时尚，休闲、餐饮和购物场所。在炎热的迪拜夏天，在岸边没走几步就躲进了室内。

来迪拜码头另一目的是要乘坐渡轮围绕着著名的棕榈岛转一圈。可风云不测，晴空万里的城内，买船票时却被告知说海上有大风，船不能从外面绕棕榈岛了，只能走内湾。结果船开没多久还真的就开始左右摇晃的厉害，有点晕船。不过至少这次算是比较近距离亲眼目睹了著名的舨船酒店。渡轮一共有二站，终点站附近我们昨天已去过了，我们就决定在第一站下船，结果发现就只有我们俩。下船后就知道为什么没人从这站上下了，因为除了小售票亭，一眼望去整个一大片荒地，周围什么东西都没有，出租车也进不来。和售票小哥聊了聊，他说早知如此他是不会在这小亭子工作的。幸亏我们来自凤凰城，这点热没把我们打垮，既来之则安之，公路也不远，我们沿着迪拜运河走了一段，还上了被称为世界上最美的扭曲步行桥，反正在迪拜有不少世界之最。

接着叫车去了迪拜另一个之最，世界上最大的＂相框＂，迪拜相框，一百五十多米高的建筑物，成为新老迪拜交汇的一个文化地标建筑。相框一边是新迪拜另一边是老城区。坐电梯来到相框顶上，走在一百五十米高的玻璃地面上也是我们第一次。

明天一早就要去新的国家，做了二天的迪拜过路客还算满意。