Dubai has long been held up as the byword for Arab cool, a prosperous oasis, literally, for both expats and tourists. The United Arab Emirates’ largest and most glamorous city Dubai has truly been the stuff that dreams are made of.

However, the recession has hit the Gulf city hard and for every 6-star hotel and high-rise corporate office there is now a vacant steel shell as the construction industry has come to a shuddering halt. The dreams of many have turned into living nightmares.

Dubai is currently wearing the scars of any economically affected urban centre leaving residents to ponder if the downturn is just a pause in progress or an outright end to expansion. More than $300 billion worth of construction projects lie suspended across the city while the Dubai Marina, one of the world’s greatest waterfront developments, is littered with ‘For Sale’ signs on unmoving vessels. The world’s tallest skyscraper is on hold with enforced lay-offs along with the further staffing cuts across government-owned real estate companies. Many debtors have fled in the face of the falling economy, badly exposing an increasingly raw underbelly in the bankrupt Babylon.

Property prices have fallen by as much as 70% since October 2008, prompting a $10 billion bailout from neighbouring Abu Dhabi. Land cleared of the poor to make way for the rich lies dormant.

With little natural resources Dubai has always relied on foreign investment and the population, around 85% expat, is forecasted to drop by 17% this year. Local journalists have been forbidden to report on the recession or face $100,000 fines. With an $80 billion debt, more than the entire GDP, It appears that the Dubai is collapsing under the weight of its own greatness.

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