I drew back the curtains from the comfort of my bed, wondering what would await me. Clear blue skies, the sun dazzling, typical Dubai weather. It was nothing like the day before where the clouds were of dust, sandstorms swirled the city and it all looked quite ominous. The Burj Dubai had resembled a sand-swept Tower of Babel more than the sleek, sky-ascendant landmark many residents now use to orientate themselves in the city with.
Why the preoccupation with the weather? I was meant to be taking a helicopter trip over Dubai business hotels and The World islands which had been just been completed. It was to be my first-ever helicopter flight, and my hosts, the real estate developer Nakheel, explained it would be a unique VIP experience. My initial concerns lay more with whether we would actually be able to fly, and if we did, would we be able to see anything from Dubai business hotels?
Permission to fly was given over an hour before take-off and I soon arrived at the helipad near Dubai's World Trade Centre. Accompanying me on the trip would be Amy, the cinematographer, Victor, the photographer and Adnan, our host from Nakheel who would be directing our flight.
The helicopter we were about to board was in front of us - a white five-seater Agusta 109 operated by Heli Dubai, the Government of Dubai's dedicated VIP helicopter service. This was the helicopter used by royalty and visiting heads of states, businessmen and celebrities.
Billionaire Virgin entrepreneur Richard Branson had dressed up in a Union Jack suit and jumped onto The World Islands from this chopper. Famous Hollywood actors have used it to sky-navigate the city and Dubai business hotels. Unlike all other helicopter services in Dubai, the VIP flight had unrestricted access over the skies of Dubai, which meant we could go anywhere and everywhere.
We met our pilot, Andrew, and soon boarded the helicopter, which with its luxurious leather-interior and ice-box compartment, certainly lived-up to its preferential status. I would sit in the left-seat at the back of the plane, with Victor opposite me, Amy to my right, and Adnan diagonal from me. The rotor -blades started to move.
I looked around the chopper. Andrew in the front was about to take-off and fly the helicopter. Adnan would be directing the flight via headphones with Andrew. Victor would be taking photos of Dubai business hotels. Amy would be filming. That, I fear, left me as the designated VIP who'd have marvel at the sights in luxury and start frequented the ice-box.
I then did something that many people of my generation, older and younger, frequently do, which is to reach into their pocket - and pull out their camera-phone. If it's worth documenting, then it must be documented. As the plane was lifting off, I took out my PDA which has video-capacity to last for six hours.
Why had I decided in a split second to film these Dubai business hotels, particularly if Amy was doing it on high-definition video? Two words - YouTube and Cloverfield. With YouTube, the famous video-sharing site, my footage would give viewers the chance to experience a VIP helicopter ride over Dubai business hotels which the privileged few get to enjoy - jolts, jerks and all.
The reference to Cloverfield could also not be more timely. Released in the same month, Cloverfield is a new Hollywood blockbuster with the premise that a monster of unknown origin attacks Manhattan, and a group of friends capture the carnage through the use of a hand-held camera. With all the shaky camerawork that entails, some moviegoers have experienced vertigo, nausea and a temporary loss of balance whilst watching the film. At least the camera in Cloverfield was on the ground.
The official video and my own video can both be accessed on The World special report site on ArabianBusiness.com and YouTube. With the official video, it's spectacular and unique cinematography taken over Dubai business hotels presented as a mini-movie. I invite you to watch the official version first, and then using the transcript below, the version I document now.
The film
The first frame shows we have taken off from the City Heliport which is emblazoned on the ground. I then do a quick swipe of everyone inside the helicopter, serving a number of purposes including letting the viewers know that firstly, we are in a helicopter; secondly, that the other crew members will get you the sanitised photo-fantastic images and footage; and thirdly, that my footage will be one take, just over 20 minutes.
0:00: We're up in the air. Andrew takes a turn and the plane turns onto an angle of around 30%. The rotor-blades come into view. The rotor-blades! I'm literarily tilted on the window filming and the overhead shot of Dubai business hotels reflects that. With media-specific helicopter trips, the plane will sometimes angle to around 70% - and one door always has to be removed before take off for better photos. Thank God for small graces. We are now going through the centre of Sheikh Zayed Road, the famous road in the centre of Dubai business hotels adorned on each side by shimmering glitzy skyscrapers.
1:00: I'm moving the camera around the plane and all over the place, having second thoughts about my self-designated role. This includes moving the angle of the camera horizontal to vertical, adding to the unintended disorienting effect. We're in the Business Bay area of Dubai business hotels. Half-way through, Andrew lets us know that Burj Dubai, the world's tallest building, is coming on the right. We're standing toe-to-toe with the man-made equivalent of Mount Everest.
2:00: We're at a particularly sharp angle on Business Bay, getting some fantastic and spectacular views of what will be Dubai's premier financial district. I'm getting a Google Earth type view of these buildings - except I'm no longer at my laptop.
3.00 Burj Dubai is centre screen once again as we navigate around it from right to left. It's a privilege as this airspace is restricted.
4.00. We're literally metres away from the peak of Burj Dubai, mere metres. We can see the cranes at the summit pin-pricking the clouds that surround them. We forge towards the coastline and over the Jumeirah beach area.
5.00. Lest it be forgotten, I take us back inside the helicopter to re-introduce us to our fellow passengers. We're then back heading towards the Gulf. Clear blue skies, emerald green waters lapping the beach, beautiful day. I lower the camera, but its still rolling.
6.00. We can see them approaching now - The World islands. 300 man-made islands in the shape of the world map, The World islands are located 4 kilometres from Dubai and deemed the most exclusive luxury island development in the world. Nakheel, the project's developers, have given us unrestricted and exclusive access to view the completed islands from the helicopter whilst they lie in a complete state of stasis.
7.00. You can see the sun shimmering on the sea. The water appears to be dyed emerald green because of how deep the colour is. We approach what is the South American continent of The World. I can now see the 27 kilometre-breakwater around the project, made from over 34 million tones of rock.
8.00. My camera goes back in the lap as a result of a sharp turn to the right before I face it out the other window as we head over the Russian/Asian part of The World. As the plane becomes a bit more vertical, the breakwater appears far more defined the closer we are, and I can the water lapping against its side. It's as if The World is an island project located in the middle of a pool in a lake.
9.00. After another sharp turn, turbulence hits the camera. The scene is similar of the American singer Frank Sinatra's lyrics, 'There's the sky, where that sea should be.' It's apt as well - we're heading towards North America. Anytime the rotor-blades come into view it means the chopper is tilting. Stomachs turn as the helicopter turn giving a feeling akin to being in a roller-coaster - except you really are in the air.
10.00. We can see a model island house development on the Greenland part of The World. It gives a very clear indication of what the islands will look like once the development of buildings on them begins. If you lived on that island, titled G19, the only way anyone you could get to another island would be via boat, seaplane or helicopter.
11.00. Islands on The World look like puddles of sand from this high, though they average around 300,000 square feet. Terraforming even allows them to vary in size. If you took all the sand used to create The World, you could build over 200 pyramids the size of Khufu the giant pyramids. The clouds are literally above our heads.
12.00. We've descended to 500 feet above the islands, as Andrew tells us. I can't see any footsteps on the island as we pass Asia and Russia. You can see the shadow of the helicopter reflected on the islands as we fly at top-speed over them.
13.00. We're leaving The World, having been given privileged access to it before the development of the buildings starts. To do so on my first helicopter trip makes it entirely memorable. Andrew is turning to the right, and so my view is of the big blue sky for the moment. We also manage to see the sun at this angle.
14.00-16.00. We're parallel to the Dubai coastline line and the Dubai skyline, punctuated by Burj Dubai, as we now race over The World islands towards our new destination.
17.00. As we pass over The World's breakwater, the faint image of the Burj al-Arab, the world's seven-star dhow-shaped hotel, can be seen in the distance. We're heading towards another island project from Nakheel which is just about to come into view.
18.00. With the rotor-blade hovering above us and in sight, the Palm Jumeirah islands start to come into view. In the unique shape of a palm tree, these islands consist of a trunk, a crown with 17 fronds, and surrounding crescent islands that forms an 11-kilometre-long breakwater. Residents have been living on the islands since 2006, and as soon as the circular breakwater comes into view, we gain a glimpse of what The World might look like when it too starts to be inhabited. At the tip of the island's crown, we see the resort of Atlantis, with its distinctive fairytale castle-like appearance of two towers linked by a high bridge.
19.00 The trunk of Palm Jumeirah comes into view, each of its fronds lined with greenery which must be defined as lush, and its rows of villas appearing like doll-houses from the safety of the sky. Cars can even be seen going up and down the centre of the trunk. The further down the base we see inhabited apartment buildings on the Palm, surrounded on either side by azure waters.
20.00. We've now reached the coastline of Dubai at the base of the Palm and are heading back to the helipad. With us firmly back under land rather than sea, I catch a final glimpse of the Palm before turning the camera off. On the way back, I thought I'd just sit back and have the last ten minutes of the VIP experience.
What can I say? It's was my first-ever helicopter trip. To conduct it on a VIP flight was a privilege; to do it in Dubai was both simultaneously expected and unexpected; to have unrestricted airspace was amazing; to be able to see historical feats, like the completion of The World or view the top of the Burj Dubai when it's already the world's tallest building, that's something worth telling the grandchildren about.
I'd like to convey my thanks to those who allowed The World Exclusive to happen: His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Makotum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, the Government of Dubai, Nakheel and Heli Dubai. A special thanks to my fellow passengers on the flight: Amy, who filmed the official version, Victor, whose photos are nothing short of the spectacular; Andrew for piloting us and Adnan Dawood, Brand Manager for The World at Nakheel for arranging our flight.
