999

999 is apparently the UAE equivalent to 911 in the US. Motorists made more than 12,000 calls to Dubai police yesterday. To say the least, I was really confused at how a little rain over the last 3 days could shut down an entire city - a financial hub of the Middle East, for that matter. I realized driving home from work, a trip that should take me 30 minutes but lasted 1 1/2 hours last night, that there are no gutters or drains in the UAE. It simply never rains here, so any water that accumulates creates large ponds on the road. This morning, Al Khawaneej road, which is 4 lanes across, was reduced to 1 lane with flood waters. Schools were closed, people were told to go home early, and cars were being pushed by men waist deep in storm water on the road. We complain about there not being enough salt trucks and plows on the road back home. Here, they employ men to drive huge tankers around with suction hoses attached that suck up storm pools off the road. Unfortunately, there were not enough of them to really dry things up in time for rush hour. The good news: the forecast will be looking a little brighter for the weekend with dry weather in the high 60s, just in time for the Dubai Marathon, which I will most definitely be attending this Friday. Things should get exciting since Sheikh Mo has promised the winner of the marathon a $1 million award. The same prize will go to the winner of the 10k. Setting a world record for either event will merit an additional $1 million. I may need to invest in some good running shoes for next year...