Dubai celebrates Montreal GP race

Dubai's Ferrarii theme park is the
biggest indoor park of its kind in the world.

Montreal may be holding a Formula One auto race this weekend on Le Circuit Gilles Villeneuve but auto racing fans will no doubt be thinking of what’s taking place in Dubai at the same time because that’s where the world’s first Ferrari theme park will be holding a Canadian Grand Prix celebration of its own.

In tribute to the Montreal Grand Prix, the people running the Dubai Ferrari theme park will celebrate the race with Canadian Mounties – not the real ones, but ones on stilts – and an appearance by Canadian pop singing sensation Justin Bieber

Dubai F1 fans will be able to catch all the racing action in Montreal live on screens located throughout the Ferrari Park – including the UAE’s biggest High-Definition screen at Cinema Maranello.

Canadians who show up in Dubai will get a discounted entrance fee to the massive tent-like structure that’s painted Ferrari red, of course. The Ferrari park is covered by a 200,000 square metre roof, which makes it the largest indoor theme park in the world – and Dubai wouldn't have it no other way.

The Ferrari theme park was built on Yas Island in the United Arab Emirates kingdom and offers 20 rides, one of which is called Formula Rossa, the fastest roller coaster in the world.

If Dubai couldn’t attract visitors by building the world’s largest skyscraper, the world’s biggest airport and the world’s biggest indoor ski hill, than the Ferrari theme park, which carries the most famous name in the auto world, surely will do it.

I can’t wait to get back to Dubai to see it!

Sky's the limit for Saudi project

While sitting at Pearson International waiting to board my flight to Dallas, I came across this story out of Saudi Arabia.

“The Saudi Royal family has unveiled plans to start construction of the world’s tallest skyscraper. The Kingdom Tower will measure 1.6km high, making it twice the height of the current world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. The mixed-use development will consist of hotels, offices, luxury apartments and a shopping centre. It will take 12 minutes to reach the top in a high-speed elevator."

And we wonder why there are riots in the streets of just about every Middle East country these days?

Just imagine what good in the world the Saudi royal clan could do with the $20 billion U.S. they plan to spend on this needless structure – maybe build a home for every person in Japan who lost theirs in the recent earthquake/tsunami disaster or build schools, hospitals and factories for the people in their own region that so desperately need jobs and education.

Instead, the oil-rich kingdom would rather get into a bragging war with Dubai.

I don’t think I’ll plan a trip to Saudi Arabia just to see another high rise!