Wiebe Wakker
December 18, 2016
Day 276 | Thursday December 15
Today was another practical day. Jan Willem insisted that we would need to clean the car. It was dirty, covered with dust but I would have left it like that if it was not that JW kept pushing. So we literally took everything out of the car, this was the first time this trip. At a fuel station they cleaned the car from inside and outside.
Not only needed the car be clean but myself too. Jan Willem is celebrating his birthday tomorrow and arranged a VIP-table at a club. With my sneakers I wouldn’t be allowed so he got me some new ‘decent’ shoes. I’m Dubai proof now.
Day 277 | Friday December 16
Today was all about the birthday off my Dutch host Jan Willem. His official birthday is tomorrow but as one of his favorite DJ’s was playing tonight so he threw a party today. In UAE the weekend is on Friday and Saturday, were it’s Thursday and Friday in Iran. Saturday and Sunday in Europe so it’s getting a bit confusing.
Landmark of Dubai
In the morning I drove to the Burj Al-Arab. It’s that huge hotel on this island in the shape of a sail ship. Probably the most famous hotel in the world. I wanted to get a picture with me and the car to have proof that I’m in the city. When I stopped at the boulevard a lot of interested tourists from different countries approached me to hear my story. An Indian couple even supported me with an ice-cream!
Bidi Bondi
So we started celebrating around noon at Bidi Bondi, a pub below the apartment of Jan Willem. Bidi Bondi is an Ozzie bar, you can watch Rugby or other sports here and they serve Tooheys which is my favorite beer.
First I had a meeting with a journalist from BNN (a Dutch tv & radio channel) he heard about me and wanted to do a short interview for a radio program on Saturday night.
Party Time!
At night we went to the Provocateur, one of the many nightclubs in the city. Sven Vath was playing which is a German techno DJ and legend. I really missed a good party, I didn’t have much this trip and the last time I had a good night out was… I seriously can’t remember anymore so it was definitely party time for me! Of course I needed to dress properly which felt a bit weird when going to a techno party.
So the club was nice decorated and very fancy. We had our own private table which I never had before. Private bartenders were constantly making drinks for us and even at the toilets there were people who opened the tap for you when you wanted to wash hands. A bit too much service and luxury than I’m used to for me but definitely special to experience.
Jan Willem brought some Dutch friends and most of them already heard about me on Facebook or from other people. Good news travels fast ;)
The night was perfect. Sven played a good set and it was great to have a decent party after all those months. This trip is so diverse. Only a few weeks ago I was eating traditional food on the floors of clay-made houses in the Iranian desert and now I am living this luxurious life: eating steaks on rooftop bars and having VIP tables in fancy night clubs, very interesting!
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