Dubai - terminal 3

This new terminal 3 at Dubai is visually stunning, a forest of pillars reminiscent of the “Dwarrowdelf” scene in the first LOTR film. The pillars are mirror-lined, and sit in a sea of marble and bright lights. To say it is ostentatious is to miss the point of Dubai.

All of the passport officials were surly and bearded young men in formal Arab dress, but interestingly, the rent-a-cop private security people manning the luggage scanners were female and all from the sub-continent or Asia – not an Arab in sight.

There is nothing in this place for people with the wrong coloured skin. No expense is spared, no courtesy neglected, in whisking me in air-conditioned comfort to my final destination – in this case, Abu Dhabi. The driver, despatcher and the desk clerk of the transport company were all from the sub-continent. As we tore along the freeway, we passed several bus-loads of migrant workers from India and Pakistan, being taken to or from their labours. There is no air-conditioning for those guys. It is approaching dusk at 7pm and the temperature is 35° C.

Apalloosa - a film

I'd wanted to watch this film and I was favourably impressed. I always like watching Ed Harris films; the presence of Viggo Mortensen as well was a bonus. It was a simple lawman movie, a buddy movie, but made complex by the rather ambiguous personality played by Ed Harris, and by the complicated needs of the love interest, a woman whose needs, shall we say, could not be met by only one man. 

It was an enjoyable film - I enjoy ambiguity in films. I like Ed Harris; his character here was shy and reserved, yet also a tough and capable gunslinger and lawman. The baddie, played by Jeremy Irons, was straight out of “Unforgiven” – an erudite and well-spoken Englishman. Lots of facial hair, lots of tough loners, some love interest and some interesting exploration of complicated ideas. At the end of the day, though, it was a simple and unsophisticated treatment of a very complex topic, and done well.