United Arab Emirates
Asia · Country #24
Did you know?
United Arab Emirates is home to Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, symbolizing its rapid transformation from desert to global metropolis.
My Experience
My first visit to the United Arab Emirates came during my gap year before college. I stood near the top of the Burj Khalifa and visited many of Dubai’s iconic landmarks. With its futuristic skyline, luxury, and location between Europe, Asia, and Africa, it was easy to understand why Dubai had become one of the world’s great crossroads.
Over the years, I found myself returning to Dubai many times, often visiting friends while transiting between different regions of the world. One of those layovers led to one of the strangest travel experiences of my life. I was on my way from Turkmenistan to Pakistan to apply for an Afghanistan visa when I discovered the consulate would be closed for the upcoming Eid holiday. My only realistic option was to obtain the visa during a one-day layover in Dubai.
Through the travel community, I was put in touch with an Indian man named Rafik, who had connections with the Afghan embassy. He told me to meet him inside Dubai Mall with $300 in cash and my passport. I handed everything over, wandered the mall for a few hours, and hoped for the best. Right on schedule, Rafik returned with my passport, now containing an Afghanistan visa. I flew to Pakistan that night and crossed overland into Afghanistan a week later. That day in Dubai felt like something out of a movie.
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