Modern as tomorrow

Dubai is an improbable place where it feels a little like falling down the rabbit hole, particularly if you arrive, as I do, during a storm and there's nought to be seen but swirling sand and cowering trees.

But, as the dust settles, a gleaming mirage begins to compose itself, rather like a computer-generated image taking shape: gleaming sky piercers (not scrapers), including the world's tallest building, the 828m Burj Khalifa, immaculately clean souks and immense fountains shooting water 50 storeys into the air.

These dancing fountains fume from a blindingly blue 12ha lake, at the heart of downtown Dubai, home to the Burj Khalifa and the giant Dubai Mall, and centre, it seems, of much of the action these days. It's a pleasant place to stroll in the cool of the evening, as expats and tourists congregate in lakeside restaurants and cafes.

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