The only element to Beijing's grandeur that bothered me was the grand scale of its pollution. Smog engulfed the skyline and streets to the point where sunlight wasn't visible during my entire week there - even the roof of the Forbidden City and other sites were hidden. A trip to the Olympic area and a closer look at the Bird's Nest revealed traces of rust beginning to cover the stadium bars. If I stayed in Beijing any longer, I would have started using a face mask, like many of the locals already do.
The subway system made it easy and cheap to get around (two yuan [Dh2] for a single journey) but the large station-free areas in the city meant that, occasionally, it was easier to use taxis to get to the areas where the metro couldn't. The sheer size of the crowds also meant that at times I had to wait for one or two trains to go by before squeezing like a sardine into the third one. All good fun at the time, but I wouldn't enjoy it as a commuter.
In a little over two weeks, I had explored many of the great historic and cultural sites China had to offer, with the odd modern spectacle and cultural quirk thrown in. I was ready for the grand finale of my China trip: the Great Wall. As with the other popular tourist sights in China, I resigned myself to the fact that the wall would be swarming with tourists (including myself) and finding a quiet, secluded section of the wall to appreciate would be a challenge. A quick Google search later, I was pleasantly surprised with what I found.
Badaling is the most famous section of the Wall and also rumoured to be painfully busy. There was also the Jinshanling-to-Samatai section that is now very popular with trekkers, but even this had snack vendors along the way. Then I came across a "Secret Wall" tour on offer by Leo Hostel (www.leohostel.com, 00 86 10 6303 1595; 260 yuan [Dh140] including transport to and from the hotel and lunch). It claimed a tour on a part of the wall where you would see "hardly any other visitors", and boasted an area along the wall that had been "untouched" since its completion 2,000 years ago. It sounded promising, so I booked it.
I set off with a group of 14 at 7am. Two hours later we reached the foot of the "Secret Wall". It turned out to be a 10-kilometre trek along a completely unrestored section not far from Badaling. We began our ascent up a flight of stairs to reach the starting tower. Fifteen tough minutes later, I was staring at the undulating semi-broken track ahead, dotted with watchtowers every kilometre or so. I had begun the trek sceptical as to how secret this section would actually be; I wasn't disappointed. There were moments on the trek when I felt completely on my own; the rest of the group may have been a few yards ahead, but with the mist and fog it was too hard to tell. The scale of the wall is remarkable, and not only is it steep, but the eroded section has broken paths, crumbling walls, sprouting hedges and empty towers. It was an afternoon of hard work, with arduous hikes and uneven drops. My appreciation for the builders of the wall and sheer marvel at the ambition of China's ancient dynasties only grew with every step.
I'd sampled Chinatown food in many cities I'd lived in or visited, so when it came to authentic Chinese food, I was looking forward to similar cuisine. Sadly, I've now accepted that I'm one of those people who prefer artificial Chinese food to the rice and dumplings I sampled while in China. Although the food was cheap (20-50 yuan [Dh10-Dh30] per head), I had a few instances where what I ordered wasn't what arrived on my plate. After a fortnight, I began craving the stuff my taste buds had become accustomed to over the years.
I boarded my 10-hour flight to Abu Dhabi and wondered whether Oasis, a not-so-authentic Chinese restaurant in Abu Dhabi, would be open by the time I landed. After almost five months on the road, the thought of a hot shower, a full night's rest in my own bed - and no train, plane or automobile to catch for a few days - made me smile. Next week: Ismat comes home to Abu Dhabi before heading for Africa on the last leg of her round-the-world trip
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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At a glance
Fixtures All matches start at 9.30am, at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free
Thursday UAE v Ireland; Saturday UAE v Ireland; Jan 21 UAE v Scotland; Jan 23 UAE v Scotland
UAE squad Rohan Mustafa (c), Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Shabber, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Shaiman Anwar, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammed Naveed, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan
If you go
Flight connections to Ulaanbaatar are available through a variety of hubs, including Seoul and Beijing, with airlines including Mongolian Airlines and Korean Air. While some nationalities, such as Americans, don’t need a tourist visa for Mongolia, others, including UAE citizens, can obtain a visa on arrival, while others including UK citizens, need to obtain a visa in advance. Contact the Mongolian Embassy in the UAE for more information.
Nomadic Road offers expedition-style trips to Mongolia in January and August, and other destinations during most other months. Its nine-day August 2020 Mongolia trip will cost from $5,250 per person based on two sharing, including airport transfers, two nights’ hotel accommodation in Ulaanbaatar, vehicle rental, fuel, third party vehicle liability insurance, the services of a guide and support team, accommodation, food and entrance fees; nomadicroad.com
A fully guided three-day, two-night itinerary at Three Camel Lodge costs from $2,420 per person based on two sharing, including airport transfers, accommodation, meals and excursions including the Yol Valley and Flaming Cliffs. A return internal flight from Ulaanbaatar to Dalanzadgad costs $300 per person and the flight takes 90 minutes each way; threecamellodge.com
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: BorrowMe (BorrowMe.com)
Date started: August 2021
Founder: Nour Sabri
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce / Marketplace
Size: Two employees
Funding stage: Seed investment
Initial investment: $200,000
Investors: Amr Manaa (director, PwC Middle East)