The Dubai space port
Between the opening of my exhibition in Guimarães, and the WSA congress in Hyderabad, I had some time to spare. I wanted to add a new country to my list, without the visit being too inconvenient or expensive. Sri Lanka seemed the obvious choice, and I managed to find a reasonably affordable ticket, taking me from Porto to Colombo. Except that this also meant a quite insane 4 flights to get there; Porto to London, London to Bucharest, Bucharest to Dubai, and Dubai to Colombo.
The flight from Dubai to Colombo appeared somewhat dodgy; An airline that really was just a transport carrier, with three official websites.
For his flight, online checkins were not where they were supposed to be, and, when I uncovered what seemed like the right URL, constantly failed. This meant I arrived in Dubai without a boarding pass for my last flight, on a stopover that was less than two hours. A few helpful migrant workers managed to get me my boarding pass, just minutes before the gate closed.
The few big airline hubs in the Middle East are fascinating for who frequents them. They feel a bit like being immersed in a scene from a sci fi movie which features some intergalactic federation with aliens of all kinds interacting with each other. A bit like, say, the port of Mos Eisly; The facilities want to look slick, but can’t quite pull it off, as the staff are underpaid foreign contractors who are, of course, only in it for the money. Meanwhile, cultures, and particularly dress codes, amicably clash. Here, Buddhist robes, Afghan shalwar kamizes, safari suits, business suits, djellabas, and everything in between, rub synthetic shoulders.
It’s a pity the prices at this space port are closer to New York than Porto.