Dust storms don't hinder progress.

When I first started research for this post, I was in awe-complete amazement of the beauty that I found in the buildings and landmarks that grace the desert we refer to as the United Arab Estates.

In the past 20+ years Dubai has emerged as a state of great wealth due to some very financially savvy sheiks. Revenues from the discovery of oil was used to make the desert boom. A city was built in less than 3 decades that is considered a center of tourism and financial services, hoovering up cash and talent from around the world.

What I'm going to show you here is to what degree Dubai, one of seven emirates in the UAE, has blown up.

Dubai in 1990: Dubai 2007: Crazy, right?

Now take that construction whirlwind (random fact: Dubai is said to have up to 25% of all the world's cranes) and step it up a notch. Dubai is known for it's extreme 'firsts' in the world of architecture.

The world's first underwater hotel, Hydropolis: The world's tallest hotel, Rose Tower. The world's 3rd tallest hotel, The Burj al-Arab. It is considered the only ‘7 star’ hotel-the most luxurious hotel in the world. It stands on an artificial island in the sea. Speaking of islands: The World Islands off the coast of Dubai. 300 artificially created islands in the shape of the world. When finished, each island will have an estimated cost of $25-30 million. Picture shown is an image of what it should look like when completed. Ski Dubai, the world's largest indoor skiing facility...in the middle of a desert. Wow. Dubailand. Currently, the largest amusement park collection in the world is Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando , which is also the largest single-site employer in the United states with 58,000 employees. Dubailand will be twice the size. There are many, many others. Read on for more.

But, remember, with massive efforts to top the world's 'firsts' list, comes great hardship. Tune in next week for more...