Ever Seen a Sandy Sky Like This??

Sand storms are pretty common in the Middle East where much of the land is arid desert. Strong gales blow sand / dust away.

These are the photos I took when I recently visited a friend who lives in Sharjah two days in a row.

Look at the sandy sky. You may think the temperature may be somewhat 'cooler' because it looks sort of 'cloudy'. Nah! It's deceptive, it's just as hot as it is with or without the sand in the air.

Notice the difference in visibility!

You definitely feel the blowing winds whist driving on the motorway so you'd better watch out. On a day like this, you see a lot of people on the streets covering their mouth and nose with a scarf.

Once you shift away from the central, commercial areas of the UAE, you'll notice many of residential areas are not paved just as in these photos. I wonder if it's because this is after all a country of desert, or the UAE is still being 'under construction'..?