Category Archives: Tourism

April 26, 2026 · 21:15

Delaying the matter

That is what I see, but it does not mean that this is the real setting. It might be a simple setting that resides between my two ears, but the story given is making me wonder what is going on. The story started 15 hours ago in Inside the Magic where (at https://insidethemagic.net/2026/04/conflicting-reports-about-a-possible-delay-at-disneys-disneyland-abu-dhabi-project-over-iran-tensions-rl1/) I was given ‘Disneyland Abu Dhabi Delayed? Conflicting Reports Swirl as Middle East Tensions Cloud Disney’s $10 Billion Dream’ Inside that article we see

“Due to the continuing situation in the region it’s likely that #AbuDhabi and #Disneyland will be delayed for several years.  Doesn’t mean the idea is abandoned, just delayed.  Following this story on http://YouTube.com/jimhshull”

I never met Jim Shull, he is a Former Walt Disney Imagineer with 33 years of experience under his belt, who worked on projects like Shanghai Disneyland and Disneyland Paris. I have an issue with this ‘timed’ delay. It sounds like the next average Disney setting to bring forth delay so the only they are allowed there (besides all who are there already) and throwing amounts across like that $10,000,000,000 is the piece of cheese to let the others bite the dust. I do not favour this setting and as I see it, America has a lot of problems coming up in 2026 and 2027, their tourism numbers are highly likely to drop further. As such anyone (serious parties) should be allowed to get to Abu Dhabi and if Disney is about to drop delay after delay, their place in the best stream of tourism on the planet will be set to forfeit. But this is only my view on the matter and there is likely enough opposition to my idea. Don’t get me wrong, there is likely a delay, but as I see it 6 months to a year. Nothing more and if Iran will resume its attacks on the UAE and other gulf states. I handed my Military IP to the UAE free of charge, as such I have done my duty to the UAE (to Saudi Arabia too). Whilst the crypto-bitches are heralding the downfall of the UAE, I gave the UAE optional settings of defence, to destroy the infrastructure of Iran, without bombing it to the stone age (that is too America a solution) and whilst they are alleged to have used up to of April 2026, the U.S. military has severely depleted its missile stockpiles, expending roughly $24 billion in major munitions during the first seven weeks of the Iran war. Over 45% of Precision Strike Missiles, 50% of THAAD interceptors, and 1,100 long-range cruise missiles were used, leading to critical shortages that could take 4 years to replenish. Funny, because the weapons I designed would cost no more that one billion max (for all three solutions) and would also be ready for sale increasing the coffers of the UAE. So, it is fun to see my optional solutions outperform DARPA by a lot (or so I say).

But this is not about me, it is about Disney. So as we are shown “In a tweet from late April 2026, Shull highlighted the conflicting reports” about the park’s progress. Shull, who often emphasizes the reality of “lines on paper” vs. “boots on the ground,” suggested that the current regional instability makes the ambitious construction timeline virtually unattainable.” It is hard for me to comment on that, it would be his word against Disney, but a delay of years is seemingly out of the question (my personal view) and I also think that the executive council – government t of Abu Dhabi should talk to the Dutch player ‘the Efteling’ and this is not some random place. I saw it several times in my youth, it has been a contender for the big prices for a long time and they were able to capture 2026 IAAPA Brass Ring Excellence Award (Best Sustainability Program), 2025 Golden Ticket Award (Best New Family Attraction), 2025 Thea Award (Outstanding Achievement), 2018 Thea Award & Park World Excellence Awards, 2017 & 2018 Best Theme Park in the World, ANWB Best Day Out in the Netherlands, the last one is a Dutch award and they won that several times, including 2024, 2021, 2019, 2017.  I think it would be a good idea to introduce the UAE to other solutions (beyond WB and Disney) and the alleged delays might be a good reason to look to additional sources. The UAE will need every option to be used if there is to be traction to gain tourists, that is clear. 

Inside the Magic shows one side that is missing almost everywhere else. “Shull’s commentary points to a fundamental reality: theme parks are not just creative endeavors; they are massive infrastructure projects that require stable supply chains, thousands of international workers, and a secure environment for future tourists. With missile strikes recently reported in nearby Dubai and the temporary “darkness” of several parks at Dubai Parks and Resorts, Shull’s skepticism carries weight. Many industry watchers interpreted his tweet as a sign that internal discussions at Disney may be far more focused on “risk mitigation” than “exchange of ideas.”” There is a good side to risk mitigation, any business needs to do this and Iran is throwing sand in every cog they can. I personally see this as an act of desperation. The Iranians are allegedly tired of their republic, the people are tired of the Iranian republic and that includes the Gulf states the people in charge are scared of their options outside of that republic, as such their desperation. But the Inside the Magic article illuminated that there are people who are scared of risk, they have had their cushy jobs for too long and consider the wheeling and dealing of a nation where they are gaining wealth whilst sleeping. Disney is allegedly looking at what is real and that is fine, but the delay of years is about something else. They fear the competition and they fear their infrastructure in the United States collapsing. So they want some form of exclusivity, which is a big no-no in my view. Exclusivity is fine if you are building and participating, not so much as you are delaying. The UAE must do what is best for the UAE and its citizens and the word ‘delay’ does not hold water in that equation. It seems like these business analysts are all about maximizing profits at zero risk, when did that happen? Because any endeavour comes with risks, it always has. 

The article also has two views and they sound good. 

  1. The Optimists (Reid/Sylt/Miral): This group argues that theme parks are 50-year investments. They view the current conflict as a “small blip” in a 15- to 20-year master plan. To them, Disney’s “exchange of ideas” is proof that the gears are still turning behind the scenes, and the domain registration is evidence of long-term ambition.
  2. The Realists (Shull/Niles): This group believes that “external factors show no respect for developers’ plans.” They argue that the longer the conflict continues, the more likely it is to face a “silent delay,” which means construction is quietly pushed back. At the same time, the company waits for a more favorable global climate.

The views are good, but I have a personal issue with “the company waits for a more favorable global climate” it is a realistic view, but lets remember that their own President started this. And the conflict is in a state where we have no idea where anything is going and that is not good for the UAE, but until Iran is resolved (optionally deleted from existence) that is what it is. I cannot change this or make it better, only to do what might be of use to the UAE, it is all I can do.

Have a great day.

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April 21, 2026 · 23:55

This is not centerfield

You might think that doesn’t make sense, but for me it does. I have been all over the field, mainly because a few things are hitting me at the same time. First there is the setting that I feel for, the Attacks on the UAE and a few other matters made me want to shout out towards the UAE. I ‘handed’ them the IP to hurt Iran, as well as a few other matters. So as I saw today ‘Disney (DIS) Increases Peak Ticket Prices to Record Highs’ source: Gurufocus news) I realized that the UAE has a larger recovery plan in place, as long as we deal with Iran and their missiles, the Trump setting does not help and a solution needs to be found, but the UN is useless as I see it, as such there is no expected help from that side. Then we get the false information (usually from people wishing they would become influencers) so that is a side that needs attending to (by the proper authorities) and I have little solution there. I can illuminate these losers, but it is like mopping the floor whilst the tap is still running. So whilst that Disney news is out there, there is a clear side for the UAE to increase the settings in that field But there is one side that could be dealt with, gaining traction through free options. My issue with this is that it is nice, but why should the Emirati government have to pay for it all. It then hit me that one thing that WaterWorld Abu Dhabi has is the Al Raha River. It seems like such fun and especially in Summer. It then hit me that this is one entertainment version that could be implemented near hotels. It seems like a low cost setting that beside the initial building, could offer entertainment, without the high cost. So consider places like Capital Park (Abu Dhabi) it has several hotels around the corner, people visit that place, what could be more inviting than something like the Al Raha River (with a different name of course) where people could relax, without paying a large amount (optionally the tubes have to be bought, or people bring their own). And this is merely one location, you could have a few of these in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, preferably in a place where several hotels are found. There is also the ‘need’ for webcams, or publicly accessible form of CCTV in public places, so that people can see that these wannabe influencers are full of idiocy. So that the world sees that the UAE is open for business and that people are there to have fun. It is a small step to increase the tourist settings as Gurufocus gave me is that Disney (at peak times) of $219 per person, this is nuts, because that amounts to 805 Dirham per person. I reckon that will feed a person for a week (an assumption from my side) the first thing that people who price themselves out of a market need to realise that their audience goes somewhere else. 

Places like Al Baik can feed two people for a meal for AED 55, so that amounts to 15 meals, so my assumption of feeding someone for a week can be achieved, you need even less if you go to a place like Carrefour. But it is not about food, it is about the UAE getting new and more visitors to their location. So whilst the UAE is hit with all kinds of nonsense not unlike “As of April 2026, Smartraveller advises Australians “Do Not Travel” to the UAE due to volatile security, high regional tensions, and risk of military conflict”, we can all agree that there is a risk of military conflict, but what exactly is “volatile security”? The UAE has been one of the safest places on the planet for years. We can agree that there are regional tensions, but this is what Iran threw at them, not in any form what the locals (read: Emirati’s) do. As I see it, it is still one of the most safe places, even with the military tension that exists to some degree. 

As I see it, there is always a need for free entertainment, the USA has it on TV and it is called C-SPAN (or was that C-SPAM)? There is a lot more in focus and places like Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI) should get global views, you see when that happens the bulk of the streaming solutions we are given (at a price), gets competition from Dubai TV, which is generally free-to-air, and now consider that the new Dubai+ streaming app offers free, ad-supported access to 30,000+ hours of content. This was the setting I was considering whilst I was working on ‘Just a Game’ for its part two. It is still a short film, but I tend to be a man of my word and I promised the Director of the NSA (now Army Lieutenant General Joshua Rudd) and the Director of GCHQ (still Anne Keast-Butler) a heart attack, don’t get me wrong. I have nothing against the institutions or the directors in charge, I just needed a hobby and this was the best I could come up with my lacking resources. 

Sometimes I walk through the park (to think things through) and I am watching what is in the park and I wonder, do they have this in the UAE? Totally irrelevant to my setting, but a nation, innocent of anything other then the welfare of its citizens is currently under attack from Iran, it made me consider what else I could do. Even as we are given (13 minutes ago) ‘Trump tells CNBC he expects U.S. to make ‘great deal’ with Iran’, it seems folly as the Islam Times gives us 40 minutes ago ‘Trump Turning Negotiating Table into “Table of Surrender”’ and in all this, the UAE is caught in the middle. So what to do?

I ‘handed’ them my military IP (free of charge) and I have one optional adjustment for the road solution, but that is a little matter. The real deal is what will help the UAE (or Saudi Arabia for that matter). I currently have absolutely no faith in any solution the United States administration brings. 

And there is no need for my actions, but when you see the world burning I want to do something and I tend to go in creative mode, it is just the person I am. It is clear that that this solution is not coming in a day, but there is the need to adjust what there is to improve the pull of tourism and also the joy of the Emirati’s, who serve to let of steam in the meantime. And I believe that tourism will improve if people know what is possible and what is expected and the idea that DMI goes global might be a first step towards getting there and this could be done before the dust settles and as these solutions come forward it would also improve the offer of scripts and talent towards the UAE, but it requires the global audiences to realise that the UAE is more than the Dubai Mall and zero taxation. As more options are shown, more solutions will become available to the UAE and optionally even solutions I never realized, I don’t know everything, so that makes sense. Then there is the setting that places like ADNOC requires staff, only yesterday places were advertising for 929 Marine ADNOC job opportunities, in this world where people don’t have a job because AWS, Microsoft, Oracle and IBM (optionally others too) have shedded over 55,000 employees, they might consider the UAE as a worthy place for their skillset, one can only hope. 

So as you can see, my brain is all over the place and not always in the best of state, but that is me, always skating in his little square like a goalie watching for the puck to come his way, so that he can slam it in the other direction.

So, I am not a centerfielder, I am a goalie (a wannabe goalie for the Toronto Maple Leafs at best) and I am doing the best I can as such I am relying on my creativity (at almost 64 I have to) and I am doing the best I seemingly know. So answer for yourself. Who thought of visibility of the UAE by giving the Dubai Media Incorporated a global stage? Who thought of seeing what parks have and considering the concrete table tennis in Burwood (near Sydney) how many of these tables do the parks in the UAE (Dubai, Sharjah or Abu Dhabi) have? All thought of consideration and there are more sports that could be promoted in this way. The first step in doing something is to have the thought and instilling this in others. Only then will any action make sense. But that is merely me having a thought and optionally a useless one, but that is merely on me.

Have a great day.

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April 20, 2026 · 07:11

The bare numbers

Politico gave us less than I day ago that Iran fired over 90% of its missiles and drones on civilian infrastructure targets. With ‘UAE official: More than 90% of Iran’s targets were civilian infrastructure’ (at https://www.politico.com/news/2026/04/19/united-arab-emirates-iran-civilian-infrastructure-00880064) we see a few facts. The first is the absolute worthlessness of António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations and from me there is no reason to call him ‘His Excellency’, his silence on this matter is deafening. We are given “Reem Al Hashimy, the UAE’s minister of state for international cooperation, said during a Sunday morning appearance on ABC’s “This Week” that Iran was seeking to destroy the UAE’s “model of prosperity and tolerance.” With the additional ““We used our oil wealth to build an economic powerhouse. They used their wealth for nuclear programs that are nefarious, for missiles, drones, proxies, etc.,” she told host Jonathan Karl. “So whereas we tried to become and have become an international, global, responsible player, they are a pariah state. And they wanted to break that model, but they underestimated our resolve.” The UAE has faced a barrage of attacks from Iran since the U.S. and Israel launched joint attacks on Iran in late February. While the Gulf state, like many of its neighbors, initially opposed the war, it has since shifted its tone as it considers how to avoid the breakout of a larger regional war.”

It seems to me that the United Nations is failing is plenty of ways, but perhaps they are busy playing host to another mission at present.  He ends with “Asked if she harbored concerns about Trump’s threats, Al Hashimy said the UAE believes that “maximum pressure” is necessary to move forward, while cautioning against civilian attacks. “Ultimately, we don’t want to hurt the Iranian people. That’s very important to mention. But at the same time, it’s the Revolutionary Guard that have taken forward a military stance and a posture not against the U.S. and Israel alone, but against the very neighborhood that they operate in through the Gulf states.”” I hope that the UAE optionally is willing to test the solutions I handed them (and the KSA as well) to destroy the infrastructures of Iran as well (I published them over the last month, one for shipping, one for trains and optionally one for trucking). It was my personal believe that Iran options come to a stand still when all three are hit. 

The fact that it seemingly is Politico illuminating that side of the nastiness of the Iranian war will find its way to the mainstream media soon enough. 

On the other side, the BS setting of influencers who give us that the Dubai mall is empty, usually with a picture of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum on the starting page is making me angry, as such an image of the entrance to the mall of Dubai less than 24 hours ago.

I think that Google needs to do something about the use of misinformation on its YouTube pages. I am all for freedom of speech, but that comes with a healthy dose of accountability.

It seems that the UAE is under attack from several parties, not just Iran, it is easy to hide behind the bare numbers in the middle of Ramadan, but Ramadan is now over so whilst over a million people are attending the Hajj, an event that Saudi Arabia just officially opened the doors to, we need to see what is real and what is not. Perhaps the idea of a web view outside of the Dubai mall and perhaps some other places, so that the world can see the BS that these wannabe influencers are handing you.

Just a thought to entertain, I remain a decent ally of the UAE and the prosperity and goodwill they advertise. And even as Iran is still attacking Abu Dhabi, visiting Yas Island remains a firm number one on my bucket list for now, so it is my wish that the Harry Potter addition to Warner Brothers Theme parks, especially as the ones in the United States are basically no longer a good idea.

Have a great day

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April 6, 2026 · 22:10

Where we go next

That is an important question, because the next stage is any setting can be set in two switches. The one that affects you directly and the the one that does not affect you. We then get the affected switch that has a direct consequence and merely a derived one. So when we get Al Jazeera who gives us ‘Tehran rejects Trump’s Hormuz deadline’ mere hours ago, these switches go into overdrive. Because now we get BBC telling us 5 hours ago ‘Trump issues expletive-laden threat to Iran over Hormuz Strait blockage’ where we learn “US President Donald Trump has published an expletive-laden post on social media in which he threatened to destroy Iran’s power plants and bridges if it failed to meet his Tuesday deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to all shipping. He repeated an earlier threat to unleash “hell” but told US media there was a “good chance” of a deal being reached with Tehran. Iran mocked his ultimatum, dismissing it as “helpless, nervous and stupid”.” And we then get ABC giving us 13 hours ago ‘Iran briefing with Matthew Doran: Threats tell us more about Trump’s frustration than anything else’ where we see “Donald Trump has issued a new deadline of Tuesday for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to all shipping traffic, without restriction. In an expletive-laden post on social media, he said bridges and power plants would be destroyed if the regime in Tehran didn’t comply”, in this we have “issued a new deadline”, which is what people do who cannot follow through on threats are a separate issue. I cannot say what issue, because I am still on that horse named bankrupt and the only setting that makes sense would have been bombing near immediately. The fact that we get timeline stretching is another setting that influences it all. But 3 minutes ago Al Jazeera gives us ‘Pakistan says it is engaged in diplomacy amidst ‘egos’ and ‘distrust’’, I personally believe that Pakistan needs to get involved to safe face with both the UAE and Saudi Arabia, but they are right in one part. Whatever the United States gives us is flawed if not, an outright ‘miscommunication’. ‘So whilst we all see the ‘tirades’ President Trump gives us all we deny, looking in the corner where nobody wants us too look. Add to that all the generals who got fired (apparently 8 in total) a setting that shifts a few lines and the derived consequence to the switches I mentioned at the start by them.

Whatever is taken from a convoluted timeline that we see now seems to be the flimflam orchestration which only reaffirms my thoughts that the United States is on its last energy and when that runs out, the hostilities begin. Do you really believe that President Trump will admit to being out of funds? I reckon that we better reenforce the defence of Canada, because as I see it, the United States is likely to get 65,000 troops as reenforcement. So suddenly I sound a little less crazy don’t I? And it comes at a time when CUSMA is under review, the Hill gives us “Canada and Mexico have suffered the ire of Trump, ranging from blanket tariffs to threats of annexation and invasion. As a result, economic policy uncertainty is at historical highs in Canada, while in Mexico, the devaluation of the peso and a 10-25 per cent U.S. tariff on many Mexican goods has hit the economy hard. Beneath the headlines are more muted negotiations over policy choices on matters of tariff exemption and content requirements for a range of sectors. While automobile manufacturing and steel steal the headlines, the critical minerals and energy sector is now at centre stage in the CUSMA review.” The setting is ‘pre-arranged’ as it is the United States that is in a crunch, not Canada or Mexico and it is the United States that requires critical minerals. And in that setting both Mexico and Canada are the strong players, even whilst we are given “economic policy uncertainty is at historical highs in Canada” all whilst Canada is making new headways in the world with the Middle East, Europe and Asia the new stages of economic strength. Not policy uncertainty. As I see it, there are more settings in play. 

There is a setting under the surface that screams misalignment. I personally think that the United States is playing bluff poker with a “dead man’s hand” all whilst his opponents Iran, Europe and Canada knows what he is holding. I think this is the best analogy I can come up with. So when the shouting and bully tactics end, the United States is holding the cards they have and they are not good. So they either bluff their way into everyone not playing, or they will win. Even at this setting Canada needs a mere three two’s to win the hand and that might be the weakest setting it needs. No one has a clue what Mexico has, but its catering to the shortages of Cuba gives them a few short term advantages. So whatever the United States is proposing in this setting will have a few set backs. The first what the Venezuelan failure brought and the second is the 6 week failure that Iran is bringing to the table. I reckon that they might have a claim of a few hundred billion to the table of the International courts of The Hague. No matter how you slice this, it will be seen as an illegal war. No matter whatever the US administration calls it (they called it not a war) and in that setting it is the courts that will have a field day (and those lawyers making the good cash) and all of this comes out of the near empty coffers of the United States. So whilst we see all this, a mere two days ago we are given “Fox News’ Bill Hemmer cut off President Donald Trump’s top economic adviser when he tried to blame former President Joe Biden for high gas prices amid the Iran war. Oil prices have surged as Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway in the Middle East that carries about a fifth of the world’s oil. The national average cost of gas has exceeded $4 a gallon in the U.S. as Americans bear the brunt of Trump’s war against Iran.” So is this the path of this US administration? Blame the previous administration? 

And I apologise in advance of jumping over these hurdles (articles) like a horse on steroids. But it gives us a larger setting that is over all the images. The media are pretty good of merely looking at one part, hoping the people doesn’t see the larger image. It reminds me of the person showing is the image of a worm and we think ‘Oh, goody’ but the image becomes a little weird when we zoom out, only to realise that we were looking at the tail of a rat and the ones manipulating the images are all about misdirecting our interest whilst we should be focusing on rat extermination. 

So whilst I might be wrong to focus on a broke United States of America, it is where the exposed data leads me. And whilst the United States tells the world it is doing great, we need to realise that things are bad. Consider that last week we were given “According to March 2026 data, the US labor market showed remarkable strength with 178,000 jobs added” and whilst we see a few days later “Oracle has laid off approximately 30,000 employees, representing about 19% of its global workforce”  all whilst we are also given “Since the start of 2026, Meta, Autodesk, Salesforce, Workday, Google, Pinterest, Block and other firms have announced layoffs” so how great is the employment setting of the United States? In all this it is merely another element towards the broke setting of the United States, all whilst the media is no help in giving us what we would need to give ourselves a neutral view on the matter. A setting that this US Administration is using (read: abusing) to get the populist vote, but things really are not that rosy at present for the current administration. I reckon that the expected filtering on the speculated ‘deleting of bad news’ in California will aid the economic downturn that the United States is currently facing. 

The ice is slippery and not enough to bare anyones weight (especially mine) but as the media is not doing its jobs, I have no choice but to speculate with the (incomplete) data I have and this is the conclusion I come to. The United States is broke, I have said so before, but the evidence is now becoming malleable, which it should not, I agree with people opposing that thought. Yet the images of President Trump going all out like the proverbial mad dog with his threats

All whilst people focus on the threat and not on the stage surrounding that threat and it goes way beyond Iran. 

So have a great day and consider the thoughts I am leaving you with.

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March 28, 2026 · 02:56

Facting a check

I find myself in this setting. A few days ago, I remember that President Trump said that the Iranian missiles were taken care of and in light of the 2000 drones and missiles fired at the UAE it sounded plausible. So the Deutsche Welle gave us “Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu say that Iran’s missile capacity is “destroyed” and “degraded,” yet Iran still strikes. How many missiles and drones remain, and how quickly can Iran rebuild its arsenal?” Which came with ‘How well armed is Iran, and can it replenish missiles?’ I was ahead of that by designing a new IP to take care of the roads, I started with crazy glue, but I changed this to small pellets with a 10 seconds delay. Based on the original setting it was a small pellet about 5mm in size with crazy glue around the core in the outer shell and whilst trucks drove over them the 10 seconds delay would enable the solution to be ‘grabbed’ by several trucks and in the Iranian ‘wilderness’ a truck without tires gets stopped right quick and no help is expected to come for hours. So whilst these trucks are out in the open and no help is coming, you get missiles without a clue, trucks without tracks and you can fill in the rest. So I was feeling pretty happy that my 2.0 solution seemed to be on a roll so to say.

But now, only an hour ago we are given by Reuters ‘Exclusive: U.S. can only confirm about a third of Iran’s missile arsenal destroyed, sources say’ (article behind paywall) this means that Iran can keep on firing its missiles into the UAE and Saudi Arabia. As such I am happy that I gave them the IP to take care of their harbours and railways, and now of course my 2.0 solution to trucking. So, this gives us the light wondering if President Trump has the ability to speak the truth, because we get exaggeration after exaggeration and there is no stopping this man as he is might be seen as the first president that has a failed fact check list that humbles a New York Phonebook for its amount of pages.

And whilst the Wall Street Journal gives us ‘Trump Tells Aides He Wants Speedy End to Iran War’ where we are given “President Trump has told associates in recent days that he wants to avoid a protracted war in Iran and that he hopes to bring the conflict to an end in the coming weeks.” So, what is his idea of a speedy end? The United States is now in week 4 of the Iranian clambake, it is ‘halting’ 10 days with CNN giving us “US President Donald Trump has for a second time extended his deadline for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz – or face its power plants being “obliterated.” The status of the talks remains unclear, with both sides giving mixed signals. Iran has expressed deep distrust toward Washington, while Trump is growing frustrated with the pace of progress. And on the ground, the war, which has killed thousands across the Middle East since it began nearly four weeks ago, shows no signs of diminishing.” All whilst CNBC gives us “The U.S. is preparing to send thousands more troops to the Middle East, prompting speculation about a ground attack on Iran amid conflicting accounts of peace talks. The Pentagon is reportedly preparing to send about 3,000 troops from the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East, alongside two Marine Expeditionary Units, to assist military operations in Iran.” All whist BBC News gives us that “Pentagon denies report that US considering sending 10,000 troops to Middle East” Now, I get that armies ‘wallow’ in misinformation, so that is fair as they do not want their enemy to know which way is up. As such I am all for that level of misinformation and it is according to the writings of Sun Tzu (the art of war), but there is a massive missing level of fact checks on a few levels and I reckon we should know what was not destroyed, especially when the enemy knows what was not destroyed. But I could be grasping at straws here. 

The larger setting is that there is too much out of bounds and that also goes into the failing credibility of the US administration, and as I see it, they cannot deal with too much loss there. Especially as they are losing more allies they ever had and at present it only has Israel as an ally left. At present the ‘calculus’ setting as the United States as an ally is giving Israel as 71%, and in that list, the lowest is Japan at 63%, after that it goes down fast, at the top is Canada claiming the United States as an ally with 46%, Australia at 38% and more below, with the United States calling the United States an ally for 1%. (Source: PEW Research), now, this is not the most recent research, but the setting of this should scare the United States government into springing into action, because before 2025 Canada was its top ally and now Canada is resentful of the United States and its tourism numbers are in the basement. Forbes gave us that “As of early 2026, Canadian travel to the U.S. has seen 13 consecutive months of declines.” And in this economy as it stands, this is really bad. 

So what do these two have to do with one another?

Fair question. There is a setting that the armies can only continue when the money comes rolling in and that is not happening, the US economy is largely losing on tourism, all whilst the Financial Times gives us (at https://www.ft.com/content/15117219-c1e1-4da8-866b-817b75643c18) “The costs of Trump’s war are staggering. The most consequential is the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which has caused global oil prices to rise at the fastest rate since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The average gasoline price in the US is now $3.98 — nearly $1 higher than just a month ago. For the average household, the pain at the pump could add up to nearly $750 in extra costs this year.” Take that number, add to that the amount of people that are hurt though tourism, manufacturing and services and take into consideration the number offers that JP Morgan gave us last October and the cost of warfare is rearing its ugly head. Add to that the amount of fact checks that are getting a failing grade and this mess is near complete.

So whilst the Financial Times also gives us “Higher prices on everything from groceries to furniture to clothes will tear a hole in family budgets at a time when more Americans already report skipping meals, delaying medical care, or dipping into their retirement savings to make ends meet. The response from Trump’s top economic adviser, Kevin Hassett, was that consumer pain caused by the Iran war is “the last of our concerns right now”.” I personally think that Kevin Hassett is seemingly on the wrong medication at present, consumer pain goes through everything and Sun Tzu’s The Art of War actually advises avoiding harm to civilians and promoting their goodwill. This is not happening now (as far as I can see) and this has been a truth for over 2500 years. So as I see it, Kevin Hassett better take a renewed look at what is happening at present, because he gets to eat his own words when this so called war is still in effect in 3 weeks, because at that point the breaking point of the people will have been surpassed by a lot and that (speculative) rating of United States calling the United States an ally decreases to 0% and as I see it, no nation ever faced that setting before. There is a new setting coming up (and I don’t like it) there is now a chance that the United States might face another civil war, because when the people lose whatever they have and face more and more hardship the bulk of its population (now assessed at 342,000,000) cannot be controlled by 1,300,000 troops and there is every chance that many will walk out of their units to stand by their family. This is what this administration seemingly achieved and that is the harsh view they need to face. 

So, am I wrong? 
This is also a fair question, because no one is looking at this, but I believe that this speculative view I have will gain traction in the next two weeks and I would be happy to be wrong, but the checks and balances that need to be in place aren’t there and the larger group of the media is no longer credible, so you have to figure it out. Have a great day today.

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February 15, 2026 · 22:37

Who are they kidding?

That was what I was thinking when I got the following news articles. First there was ‘Rubio says US and Europe ‘belong together’ despite tensions’ (at https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2lrdq47149o), which is astounding as Rubio’s administration wanted to court someones else’s partner, fuck that partner and take whatever they could get (which is my version of the state of affairs) and I am pretty certain all Danes see it in the same way. So when we get “The US secretary of state told the Munich Security Conference: “We do not seek to separate, but to revitalise an old friendship and renew the greatest civilisation in human history.”

He criticised European immigration, trade and climate policies, but the overall tenor of the closely-watched speech was markedly different to Vice-President JD Vance’s at the same event last year, during which he scolded continental leaders.” I personally see the setting of “the overall tenor of the closely-watched speech was markedly different to Vice-President JD Vance” is (as I personally see it) set in two ways. The first way is that America is now ‘scared’ that like Canada, the EU will tighten trade settings with China and that ends a few things right there and right quick. The second one is that they are also worried that cash will run out before this administration leaves the White House, something that is becoming a real fear for them. They make claims on the ‘massive’ wins their economy is making, but the American people aren’t seeing that. Moreover, big tech just shed 165,000 people and at least 127,000 were let go in 2025. All these people need jobs and these jobs aren’t coming (back) and that is before you take into account what damage the hospitality is showing. The larger settings here are numerous ways that certain people aren’t being made aware of. Al Jazeera gives us ‘The US economy seems strong after a year of Trump, but is it really?’ (at https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2026/1/19/the-us-economy-seems-strong-after-a-year-of-trump-but-is-it-really#) where we see “experts say, is that the stock market boom has helped to mask deeper underlying problems in the economy.” As well as “despite the impressive GDP numbers, that growth is not being accompanied by an increase in hiring. While hospitality and healthcare added workers last year, retail, manufacturing and construction – sectors that rely heavily on migrants – all shed jobs.” So basically these tech companies are doing decently well because they shed 127,000 jobs. Costs down, profits up. That is how I see it. And that is the preamble of a brain-drain, because the people need jobs and they will work for whomever pays them. And these so called ‘high potential workers’ will accept a job at ADNOC (or Aramco) to provide for their families, as such the brain-drain begins and they are nervous, because the Europeans are in pretty much the same setting and it is an employers market now. They will take the best for the jobs (as well as a few other reasons) and at that point the people will go where they are needed. And this is merely an example using two corporations. 

The second article was also from the BBC (at https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjrq2r9y278o) where we see ‘‘Trump will be gone in three years’: Top Democrats try to reassure Europe’ and as I see it, it is too late for that. They elected a president that made a mess of things, he is accused of appeasing Russia and has tried to take their lands and threaten them. There is something seriously wrong in the areas of the Unites States of America. So whilst they hear ““If there’s nothing else I can communicate today,” California Governor Gavin Newsom said at a conference event on Friday, “Donald Trump is temporary. He’ll be gone in three years.”” 

And there is the realisation that in three years there might not be a United States of America left. The mess is too intense, the chaos is unabating and the American administration mess with their ICE and other settings like the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issues, the VISA integrity issues, the alleged data phishing settings and that is merely the first setting. It will take the best part of a decade to optionally win back Europe and the Commonwealth and they don’t have that kind of time. They too have their issues and together it might have worked out. With this administration the Commonwealth and the EU are seeing a non-option in play and that is the setting China has been waiting for. When China has the ear of the EU and the Commonwealth there is every chance that it will dump whatever bonds of the US treasury it has left and push the USA over the edge. That is an actual real fear that Wall Street has and the sugar coated messages does not alleviate that fear (like the Disney Credit Card). So these two settings are in the back of the minds of the shakers of the EU and the Commonwealth. So whilst we get ““The reason we’re here is to provide reassurance that we understand how important our European allies are,” Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire said.” Their nation has elected a president who does not feel that way and that is the reality for the EU and the Commonwealth for at least three more years. A setting that seems to be lost on these people, or they might not be able to fix that problem. So after the first failed attempt to impeach him, he was convicted of 34 felony counts, he was reelected and makes a bigger mess of things and there is nothing the other side can seemingly do. As such the EU and the Commonwealth have had enough of that and they are looking for other options and in the back there is China looking at what is in it for them. And as I personally see it, China is merely one slam-dunk away from total victory. If the setting of “The EU faces a significant trade deficit, which exceeded €300 billion in 2024, prompting calls for more balanced trade.” I reckon that if China finds a solution when that deficit is lessened by at least €250 billion, the EU will consider that move and it will not be too costly for China either. Because the open door will give rather large opportunities and should their solutions be brought to the Middle East and the EU, China will be getting the better part of the deal, whilst diminishing the current footprint the USA has on these two regions. A setting that most fear, or they are in dubio because of what the USA ‘spouts’ (as the term goes) but the larger setting is out in the open and the actions of this President aren’t helping anyone, least of all the people of the United States and as I see it, should PM Mark Carney take the lead and set the trades in a prosperous setting towards the EU (and Canada of course) The Republicans and the United Stated are truly done for. Consider this nightmare, Microsoft out, LibreOffice and Tencent technology in. That could be a 20-40 billion a year hit to Microsoft and connected services. Then we get American Tower Corporation out and Huawei in. That is not a given, but the likelihood of that happening becomes more and more realistic, the actions of this America Administration is making this so and the American Tower Corporation is set to 149,000 communications sites and nearly 107,000 properties internationally. Now this will not go in a day, or even a year, but when these two, merely these two corporations shed 10%-20% revenue. It is my believe that the US Debt will strangle America within 2-3 years. That is the one setting no one is looking at and now that China has a dialogue with PM Mark Carney and Ursula von der Leyen that setting becomes as real as it can be. The question is how ready is China to take that lead, or perhaps they want to wait a year for the setting of the USA to become almost desperate, because there is only so much the USA can hide in papers and they are running out of space. 

Am I a doom speaker? I am speculating to a larger extent, but who knew that these two companies could throttle the USA? Who saw the Microsoft v OpenAI break up coming? Just simple questions that should be on the forefront of many minds and the problem is that the media is no longer to be trusted, it goes against their need for the digital dollar. The clickbait hype that too many media are focussing on. So where is the real news? Who had heard of the American Tower Corporation? Simple questions really. 

So have a great day and consider that Coffee with cream and sugar is written as “加奶油和糖的咖啡” till next time.

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February 5, 2026 · 17:40

Cut through the presentations

Yup, I have had enough of the presented media on how Canadians are not that much of a bother to America’s tourism setting. And for this I put attention on Now Toronto as we take a look at their side (at https://nowtoronto.com/news/are-toronto-residents-skipping-u-s-travel-heres-what-theyre-saying/) where we see ‘Are Toronto residents skipping U.S. travel? Here’s what they’re saying’ we are being told the first direct bullet points (a nice way of summary to the setting).

  • A new Abacus Data poll found nearly one in four Canadians have opted out of traveling to the U.S. due to feelings about the Trump administration, a trend reflected in Statistics Canada data showing sharp drops in both vehicle and air return trips from the U.S. in late 2025.
  • StatCan reported Canadian resident return trips by vehicle from the U.S. fell 28 per cent year-over-year in November 2025, while air travel dropped 12.1 per cent, even as overseas travel by Canadians increased 14 per cent during the same period.
  • Some Toronto residents told Now Toronto they are intentionally avoiding travel to the U.S. for political, ethical, and economic reasons, choosing alternative destinations instead, with younger Canadians more likely to scrutinize peers who continue to vacation there.

Three points that make sense and that accounts for a lot more damage than anyone would have guessed at any point in time. I particularly like the ‘peer pressure’ point. It’s like a parent gets to hear ‘Really? There?’ by their 5 year old. A nice figment of my imaginary pressure seen on the inside of my eyelids. 
And with the setting given at “Some Torontonians have told Now Toronto they’ve been boycotting travel to the U.S. in the time being. “I just feel like my dollar can be spent better elsewhere,” Olivia, a resident, said. “With all of the situation going on down there, I don’t feel like going.” Olivia said the decision to avoid the U.S. solidified in early 2025 as government policies and climate shifted. Instead, Olivia said she’s opting to travel to other regions.”

And it is this side that amounts to the bulk of other Commonwealthian’s who seem to decide on Abu Dhabi in the UAE over anywhere in the US where the vacation seems genuine and is also one of the safest places on the planet and whilst those are mere cost dressings, the food prices in America are getting out of hand and they are really fitting the budget aware traveller in Abu Dhabi, that is beside the other entertainment they have on one island and some hotels add entrance to one of these places every day for those staying in their hotels, as such we see benefit on benefit. So whilst the pressure seems to be adding to European places (like Euro Disney, Efteling and other locations) It seems that the pristine settings for Abu Dhabi is getting an amazing appeal and that is merely the first glance for a tourist. There is so much more to see and do in the UAE and now that Abu Dhabi is a mere 95 minutes from Dubai by train, that is a vacation that starlet tourist will wow for.

And whilst we still see “Olivia said she’s also more conscious of her spending choices, focusing on buying Canadian products to ensure she isn’t supporting the U.S. economy. Joel, a dual-citizen of both the U.S. and Canada says traveling there can be morally complicated. “Any political differences we have is outweighed by the fact that I have family there,” he said. “I have kids who want to see their aunts and uncles and cousins. Joel has noticed quite a difference in airport traffic in the last year or so when it comes to traveling south. “It’s faster at the border,” he said. “Because there’s no line-ups, there’s not a lot of people going.”” And as I see it, we are off to the races and as the UAE (Abu Dhabi) is erecting a massive Harry Potter addition to their Warner Brothers park, we see that also Disney is being added to Yas Island. As it is supposed to open in 2028, so there is time and there is already a lot to do, but these two players will undoubtedly become the death of American theme parks for many Canadians and now that they have an alternative, I reckon American tourism will get rightfully ignored by its northern neighbors and whilst the Winter-geese might be forced to keep their places for now. It seems that Florida will have a cruel awakening in the period 2025-2029. As as another source gave us a few hours ago that ‘Florida wants to win back its Canadian tourists’ and as we are given (at https://www.orlandoweekly.com/news/florida-wants-to-win-back-its-canadian-tourists/) “Tourism leaders in Florida are reaching out to their Canadian counterparts as the U.S. has seen a travel backlash over the words and actions of President Donald Trump. As Visit Florida compiles 2025 tourism figures, the agency’s President and CEO Bryan Griffin and Carol Dover, the president and CEO of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, are setting up a meeting with Canadian officials.” I’m certain that us useless as the settings of hardship were pushed through by Washington DC. So we might consider whatever we want but a vagrant in Orlando called Bumble Dora (I swear that was his name) waved a twig and whispered ‘Canadia Phohibitus’ as such Florida might wish for whatever they want, but foreign policy was dictated to all by Washington and everyone decided they have hd enough of America in that setting and when you consider what the UAE offers and what America doesn’t (or no longer) offers that reality is setting in for global tourism. So when we get the ‘presented’ “In December, Visit Florida estimated 34.339 million people traveled into the state between the start of July and end of September, up from 34.239 million during the same third quarter period in 2024. The numbers showed slight year-to-year growth in overseas visitors and domestic travelers.” You know that you are being presented a gamble with loaded dice and I reckon that not merely the Canadians have had enough of that. Consider the video that we are given (at https://youtu.be/hkr0WfTufJo?si=4gSmVZ9riFvUobmz) and the empty corridors and plane. As such a mere 100,000 less tourist is a BS setting that we are given, all whilst several sources are giving the world that the United States is getting hit by $12.5 Billion lower revenue. I think that they are off by well over $30 billion more than that (for settings that suddenly no longer matter), all whilst they were used to pump up their views when it dod matter. So whilst we understand that Florida is trying to save what it can, but to give it that swing whilst we see videos all over YouTube and TikTok appear of an empty Orlando International Airport (MCO) is not the way to go about it, but that might merely be my dubious view on the matter.

But now we get to the data that I didn’t know about. We are given “Abacus Data also reported that 33 per cent of Canadians would think less of peers who continued to travel to the U.S.

The data suggested the likelihood of those polled who would scrutinize anyone traveling increased the younger the person was. “Nearly half of those aged 18 to 29 say they would think less of someone close to them for vacationing in the United States,” Abacus Data stated. “That drops among those aged 30 to 44, falls further among those 45 to 59, and remains lower among those 60 and over.”” So consider this setting with University students, as I see it, that will stop people from traveling towards the United States in plenty of ways and whilst Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton and Montreal all have their own Universities, I reckon that they will stop a lot more than currently seen. Consider that any shop would have to admit that they went to the United States for a vacation. They would lose so many customers in the blink of an eye. I reckon the hardship of Florida is merely just beginning. And with every event where President Trump opens his mouth, that hardship merely increases. Don’t take my word for it, but it seems that someone named Elisabeth Booth will do something about that really soon. No idea what she is inferring but I reckon she knows best (or at least I hope so).

And this setting is not merely apt for Canadians. I have heard similar settings in Sydney, we tend to support our Canadian brothers (sisters too). So we are also looking at places like Abu Dhabi and Europe. And whilst we are given “Australians can travel for short trips, without a visa, to the Schengen area for up to 90 days in any 180-day period” and as I see it, I don’t know any vacation that ever goes beyond 30 days and set against that “U.S. nonimmigrant visa fees for 2026 generally cost US$185–$315 for tourist/student visas and A new $250 “Visa Integrity Fee” is expected for many nonimmigrant visas in 2026”, so free or a VISA well over $565 dollars? Yes, I’ll take the non-US option too. For the record a tourist visa for the UAE costs $150, a simple setting where the USA priced themselves out of a market who needs to stop costs in this hard driven economy. A setting that is now hurting the settings of the United States to well over 2029 air present. I reckon that vacation in the United States are done for until long after 2029, because when the first stories come into the many destination on how their vacation to Abu Dhabi was ‘magical’ the hesitaters will come running and that will bring serious money from every other place towards the UAE and not towards the United States. Seems simple, doesn’t it?

Have a great day today.

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February 3, 2026 · 06:05

There is a problem

These are words you are unlikely to hear from tourist boards and they don’t like to give out that kind of information, because when you go on vacation, the numbers are always good. That has been the setting for almost 2 months, but today the Financial Times (at https://www.ft.com/content/5230100f-dfbd-428a-a554-f671e46ba3db) gives its readers ‘Disney warns of hit to US theme parks as foreign tourist numbers fall’, I saw the writing on that wall the moment we saw YouTube videos on how deserted the Epic Universe was. We saw the ‘negative’ views on rides and many other settings, the kind which puzzled me because that should have been addressed at the staging times and the makers of Epic Universe should have known better, but now we see “Disney said there would only be modest growth in its experiences business in the current quarter. The guidance comes after a 6 per cent drop in foreign visitors to the US last year, according to industry body the World Travel & Tourism Council, amid tensions between the Trump administration and other countries, including Mexico and Canada.” I personally believe that the damage is greater, but that might be a pure subjective thought process. There are a few thoughts that “Some investors, analysts and former company executives see D’Amaro, who is expanding the cruise fleet to 13 and overseeing the construction of a new theme park in Abu Dhabi, as the likeliest internal candidate to succeed Iger. “Investors are expecting it to be Josh D’Amaro,” said Rich Greenfield, veteran media analyst at LightShed Partners. “I don’t think anyone owns Disney [stock] for any reason other than the theme parks now.” Revenue from Disney’s streaming business, led by Walden, rose 11 per cent in the quarter. The company’s film studios had a number of hits in the holiday season, including Avatar: Fire and Ash and Zootopia 2. But marketing costs for the new releases offset the higher theatrical revenue in the quarter” evoke, but that too is subjective. As I see it, Disney lucked out by setting the Abu Dhabi stage, but there is seemingly more. We see this from “marketing costs for the new releases offset the higher theatrical revenue in the quarter” it hands the setting that I have been seeing over the last two years. It isn’t the marketing cost, it has been the turnaround from awareness to booking the outing (or vacation) and it is based on numbers and thoughts that are the foundations of a relic. You see, it comes back to the old Direct Marketing setting of the 90’s. People thought that throwing more money at it gets you the numbers, but in this instance there are two hindrances. The first is the Trump administration and the negativity that ‘America’ now brings. Add to that issues with rides and costs. A new kind of marketing is required and tourism isn’t ready for that, just like the Direct Marketeers had in the 90’s. In the marketing industry is was the step that augmented ‘engagement’, that is now the number one setting, not blatant advertising. And it comes with a hindsight issue. The numbers they are collecting now no longer suffices, but that is a lesson they will learn soon enough. So even if the negativity is dealt with, there is still the catering to engagement. I gave a few ideas in the past (in my blog) and there are further needs. As places like Disney is catering to children, that needs to come across as essential. Weirdly enough Supermarkets are doing it to engage with the children thought Disney and Harry Potter collections, I saw that as key to engagement, by catering to that side and one example I had given was to create placemats that could be used as ‘stages’ in this with the characters in this. Like Disney or Harry Potter characters that were handed out. The stage was to set the background of the event you catered to and as younger ones now had access to mobiles to create their own movies, these elements could be used to create an imaginary repartee. Get influencers to create settings that these younger targets could use to boost creativity because that is pure engagement. The job for Disney and like minded places need to create optional software (a mere example) that gives these people that creativity, and the nice part is that these solutions have no ‘use by’ data and they could be expanded through every event a year has. By tapping into that creativity you will be creating yearning and desire to be part of that story. And you know when a younger player wants it bad enough, it tends to happen, no matter that it costs the parents $209-$229 per person (less for kids 3-9 years old) and that is merely the beginning. You see food and snacks will set you back around $100 per adult per day for a mix of snacks and meals. So at $700 you are out of pocket for two adults and additional cost for the child and in this economy you need a more than mere awareness. That is the setting that Abu Dhabi seems to be avoiding, but it comes at other prices. And engagement can solve a lot of these issues right of the bat. As such operators like Miral have a steep path to go, but the fun pat is that they can use the approach of all their parks and that implies to some degree that one solution serves all, a pretty nice setting to have. But that is merely the first step, to get the younger players on board, get the right influencers to head the engagement setting all using the nearly same solution to cater to all.

Is this a figment?

That is the right question, but when we consider player like Cristiano Ronaldo (with 670,000,000 followers) we get ‘smaller’ influencers like Selena Gomez, Lionel Messi, MrBeast, but we aren’t vying to them, you see getting the people behind Bluey, PAW Patrol, Gabby’s Dollhouse, Numberblocks, and Sesame Street, can be much more effective and they can be found in any country and seeing where your people are coming from is a first to set up that requirement and other countries have other favourite but the same solution applies. Get these people to drive engagement and you get a new engine of engagement, because the TV is already vying for engagement, as such why invent the wheel two times over? Use that solution to create engagement. 

And as we see the stage of engagement, we can wonder what solutions will be invoked by Disney, Universal and Warner Brothers and as such places like Miral can head them all off by heading that way before the others have figured out what they need to do. A seemingly simple setting, but it comes with the hidden traps that need to be avoided, a stage all trendsetters face.

Have a great day.

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January 18, 2026 · 19:21

In the land of Saud

That is where is am ‘obliged’ to look. Not because of them, but because of touristy reasons. You see, I got some compelling news a few hours ago. A nice chance of the news that is hitting the United States. Some might have seen some YouTube video on a flight from London to JFK with merely one passenger. I don’t think it is real, but there you have it. The idea that someone makes a flight with only one person is utterly ridiculous. Although I have seen several video’s of airports devoid of life and passengers, so it is not out of the realm of possibilities. 

No this is a different story and it gets two sources. The first one is Cairo Scene that gives us (at https://cairoscene.com/buzz/saudi-tourism-created-over-one-million-jobs-by-august-2025) the over populous idea that ‘Saudi Tourism Created Over One Million Jobs by August 2025’ which is part of the story, but the larger bang is seen with “Saudi Arabia welcomed about 116 million visitors in 2024, surpassing its 2030 target of 100 million seven years early.” I saw the push, I anticipated that it would be made, but to make this marker seven years ahead of schedule is a rather large achievement. Where we see “Tourism contributed around 5% of gross domestic product in 2024, with plans to increase this to 10% by 2030. Saudi Arabia recorded about 116 million domestic and international visitors in 2024, exceeding its Vision 2030 target of 100 million tourists seven years ahead of schedule. Tourism’s share of national exports rose from 6% in 2019 to 11% in 2024, alongside an increased contribution to the trade surplus over the same period.” I reckon that they will go above and beyond a little more this year as many millions are no longer considering going to the United States of America and whilst we see ‘news’ of a different nature in the upcoming two years, the reality will hit the people soon enough. In this setting it might mean for the current Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that “Saudi Arabia’s unemployment rate is undergoing a transformative, yet challenging period, with overall unemployment rising to 3.4% in the third quarter of 2025 from 3.2% in the second quarter, marking two consecutive quarterly increases.”There is every thoughts to consider that it will get a fair bit lower in 2026. With all the mining Saudi Arabia has planned and now the stretch towards Tourism and that is before all the people they will need in Trojena, and Sindalah. As such there are good times ahead of Saudi Arabia. Then we get more news that is seen in https://propnewstime.com/getdetailsStories/MjUxNDM=/marriott-and-al-qimmah-plan-over-2-700-new-hotel-rooms-in-saudi-arabia, although I don’t know what exactly they are (from people making claim on the digital express), they do give us ‘Marriott and Al Qimmah plan over 2,700 new hotel rooms in Saudi Arabia’, the site doesn’t really feel comfortable, and I don’t like some of the output it creates, but with the Trojena, Sindalah and Oxagon settings, the news makes sense. Even though these three are never mentioned. As such I get from Yahoo Finance (the news in Prop News Time was too dodgy) “The agreement includes JW Marriott Jeddah, The Apartments, which will be located on Jeddah Corniche Road. The property is expected to offer 356 studios and one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments with separate living areas and kitchens. Facilities will include an executive boardroom, dining venues, a children’s club, a swimming pool, and a fitness centre. It will sit adjacent to the previously announced JW Marriott Hotel Jeddah. Four Points by Sheraton Shesha, Makkah will provide 1,030 rooms near Masjid Al Haram. Four Points by Sheraton Madinah King Fahd Road will offer 800 rooms close to Masjid Al Nabawi.” As such all eyes should be looking towards Saudi Arabia for the 2026 summer season, there won’t be too much reporting in the United States unless you want to read bad news. 

As such I want to congratulate Saudi Arabia, its kingdom and its citizens on making the 2030 markers seven years early, a feat seldom seen before and I reckon that 2026 cortina and 2030 Nice will mark the way of more increased tourism in Saudi Arabia (especially Trojena) as there might not be too many people willing to visit Utah 2034 at this time. I get that the players and their family will attend, but at present the American Administration will have to show about their rudders 180 degrees with show results before many people will be daft enough to see this happen. If it were up to me, Trojena might make the cut for the 2034 olympics, at present Utah does not (no blame on the people in Utah for this). And that will up the visit ramp for Saudi Arabia even more. 

Will it hold? I doubt it, but I reckon when 2028 hits and people are confronted with the ‘real’ numbers, important people might start asking questions and whilst the media and fake news will get blamed, the setting will show that the United States of America will have become the global pariah to a much larger degree and that is a heavy look to throw and many will at that time no longer care about what is real and what is not, because there will have been increasing voices that America is no longer hospitable, safe and a few more negative items. 

This is what I expect to see and with that Saudi Arabia and UAE’s Abu Dhabi too will have gobbled up many of the visitors that might have considered United States as a destination, just in time to see the Disney Park in Abu Dhabi open its gates. And with that I have to leave you. I get that a lot is speculative, but feel free to ignore my views. Saudi Arabia made its markers and is welcome to them. For now everyone wants to see Riyadh and other places in Saudi Arabia and none of those are interested in the United States as a destination. So there is that.

Have a great day and I now have to consider that my working week starts again in 7 hours. It sucks to be caught on a Sunday (with Chocolate and Strawberries).

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January 12, 2026 · 20:05

Your Faithful travel

That sounds like quite the statement, but it applies to this. We all have faith and some are more convinced then others and as I saw the news of registering for the Hajj 2026 (which is not until May 2026) I took a little gander. I found it essential as I wrote last year ‘About the setting of prayers’ (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2025/06/04/about-the-setting-of-prayers/) which I wrote on June 5th 2025. I covered (a little) “Last year, 1,301 pilgrims, most of them unregistered and lacking access to air-conditioned tents and buses, died as temperatures soared to 51.8 degrees Celsius (125.2 degrees Fahrenheit)” but the setting that some were unregistered didn’t sit well with me. So I wanted to know what was going on. As such I saw today a sight I never expected to see. I saw this mention in Al Arabiya and I took a small gander through the Nusuk Hajj screen and I was blown away, so I reveal a little to you all now. To be honest this is so much better then any travel agent ever gave me (my normal holidays as I am not Muslim) 

We are welcomed and you can register or just browse and I was not afraid to browse. As said this is so much better than any travel agent. You have got to be insane not to register here. And we start with 

I didn’t browse deeper, but the 10 steps as I see them show me much more than I have ever seen for any travel setting. And the Hajj pilgrims is taken trough these 10 steps The first 4 are shown and you can enter any setting at any times, having a clear required setting bestowed upon you. So as we start we get the option to create your account, uploading your document, fill the application and application verification. 

We then get select your preferred category, top up your wallet (I guess that family could top it up too from wherever they are), browse service providers and select your preferred package.

We then get the option to book your package and review your itinerary (I guess your could email that to yourself and family members. 

In a simple setting I see the most complete booking system ever viewed by me and there is reason for this. Over a million Hajj attendees from all over the world will come and this is be far the most complete setting I have ever seen. So I am amiss to see why anyone would want to go with some dodgy tour operator (I honestly do see that, and I’ll get to that) There are options to ask someone questions, there are frequently asked question and a whole range of other setting all in the right order as I see it, but the start ’10 steps closer to 1447 Hajj’ blew me away, this is a serious achievement and I get that was needed but I saw it with my own eyes. This is a serious achievement. In travel and it will help over a million get to the Hajj smoothly and I saw perhaps one thing that could be added:

I have this sling bag, which was from the video game ‘AC Shadows’, now imagine this bag in white with the green flag of Saudi Arabia and embroiled on this ‘Hajj 1447’ and perhaps a phrase from the Quran what might be the motto of the 1447 Hajj (if they have this), it has space for your Quran, a space for your mobile and space for perhaps a small bottle of water. Perhaps they have something like that, but I never saw this, so it came to me.

From what I can see Saudi Arabia is taking good care of the people coming to their Hajj or perhaps even Umrah. And let there be no doubt, those who attend unregistered did so for the clear reason to avoid registration and there should be nob doubt that this is done in a time where survival is unlikely to happen to those who are unregistered. 

But there is a second side and that is not on the organizers or on the government of Saudi Arabia. It was given to me by the Jakarta Globe (at https://jakartaglobe.id/news/indonesian-muslims-face-40year-hajj-wait-nu-chairman-tells-saudi-forum) where we see ‘Indonesian Muslims Face 40-Year Hajj Wait, NU Chairman Tells Saudi Forum’ and I get that, the solution I created a few years was for pilgrims and doesn’t include Mecca, as a non-Muslim I thought it was not my place to offer this and as a non-Muslim, I don’t really get that part. As a christian I saw Lourdes, but not as a faithful pilgrim, and I never got that part either. I understand the of the faithful, but I was never one of them. So I left Mecca in the open and perhaps that could solve this, I saw the equations that 900 million people will never see Macca, most of them cannot afford that trip and they are given that the act of seeing Mecca in one’s lifetime is a central tenet fulfilled by performing the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage. It is one of the Five Pillars of Islam and is a mandatory religious duty for all adult Muslims who are physically and financially able to undertake the journey at least once in their lives. It is the ‘and financially able’ even in those days they understood that not everyone could afford such a trip. Even as it seems now more and more affordable, over 20% of the world population is now Muslim, a setting never considered 1447 years ago, I don’t think they ever considered that the worlds population would grow to 8 billion people.

But there is a worry for Saudi Arabia as Indonesian muslims have up to 40 years to wait. I don’t think there is ever an easy solution for this, at least not that I can see. And when we consider that the act of Hajj needs to be performed from 8th to 12th of Dhul Hijjah, which gives us starting with the Day of Tarwiyah (8th) in Mina, the Day of Arafah (9th) for standing at Arafat, Eid al-Adha (10th) with animal sacrifice (Qurbani), and concluding with further rites in Mina and circling the Ka’bah until the 12th or 13th, marking a period of intense spiritual devotion, prayer, and unity, concluding the Hajj rituals and celebrating Eid. This is the opening that is available for Muslims, as such some will miss out. 

So have a great day today and rejoice, some people will consider a proper digital experience to give rise to your Hajj 1447. At least the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah are doing their best on making the even smooth, all covering and as I personally see it, the best travel platform ever offered to anyone. 

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