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Sila, United Arab Emirates
The only visitors’ guide book available for Al Gharbia, the coastal area from Abu Dhabi to Saudi Arabia in the UAE, claims that within a five-hour drive from Dubai, in a town called Sila, are the last “unspoiled” and “undiscovered” beaches in the country. With white powdery sandy beaches, a turquoise color sea, and if lucky, one can watch the pink flamingos bob by. To fully appreciate all there is on offer, it is recommended to camp and spend the night on the beach.
The reality is significantly different from this picture painted in the guide book. It actually looks more like a ghost town, with abandoned looking shacks near the sea and no sign of life anywhere. Most of the beach areas are inaccessible by rugged terrain, or sectioned off by signposts, marking privately owned properties. This only leaves visitors with a short strip of public-use beach with gray-brownish sand and rocks covered with rotting green algae. This uninviting and bruised landscape is further humiliated with broken bottles, tissue paper and food remnants, which invading swarms of flies and beetles treat as an open buffet.
The 2010 guide book represents a time that either never existed or represents a time long past, because these “unspoiled” beaches were definitely spoiled in 2011.
That Estonian Girl 