Sleepless in Dubai Marina

Monday 3:00 a.m.

Here I am in one of the most luxurious hotels on earth called "THE ADDRESS" in Dubai Marina..but such is the irony of life that in the very place that they claim is "designed for my comfort", I can't sleep... You can provide all the comforts of life..the best quality of srevice..but you can't beat the damn jet lag.

After 22 hours in flight from Mexico via Amsterdam, 9 of which were spent sleeping..there was no chance I was going to have a normal first day in Dubai. I reached around 6 in the morning had a hearty breakfast (although my stomach had no clue whether it was meant as breakfast, lunch or dinner) ...came back to the room ..switched on the TV and promptly went off to sleep..

The next I knew anything was when the incessant ringing of the phone woke me up and the clock showed 5:00. To realise whether it was a.m. or p.m. took me five minutes..and consequently at 5:05 p.m., I was completely if regrettably aware that I would not be sleeping tonight..

Well you could not bame me for lack of effort...I tried hard to tire myself up in the gym..had a huge indian dinner (chicken tikka :))...tried to bore myself by watching some arabic song and dance channel...but to no avail. I still feel like Poppeye the sailor with spinach in me.

Well sometime after Germany beat the hell out of Australia (world cup soccer)...I picked up a book recommended to me by a colleague. Its called "The Broker" by author John Grisham ..whom by the way I had written off somewhere on 123rd page of "The Summons" a few years back. But boy can he tell a story.

The book was an eye opener. Well, I did enjoy some of his old books... like "The Firm", "The Pelican Brief" and especially "The Runaway Jury" but I used to think that all he can write is legal dramas. But no sir..he grabbed me on the fourth page of the book and never let go till I turned the last page. The story has everything..drama, espionage, love, intrigue...its practically a hollywood movie. But the Author's note right at the end beats everything. It is one of the most honest and endearing confessions by an author.

Well, as you can see my last ploy ..talking to no one in particular through this newfound medium..has also failed to put me to sleep, I have no choice but to start the new day.

Have a great day.