A Lobby of Dreams
We entered a gigantic, beautiful hotel lobby that felt like its own street corner. We found ourselves in Dubai. The space had warm tones—reddish brown, deep red, ivory, amber, and black. It was golden hour, which added to the grandeur even more.
The first architecture that caught my eye was a curvy, almost circular tower about four storey high. Calling it a tower felt like an understatement. Mostly ivory, it featured warm red accents lining the parapets and a single logo at the top that I couldn't quite make out.
I was with my husband, Adam. But in my dream, Adam had mid-length curly hair tied into a messy ponytail. I remember telling him, "Wow, this is a beautiful sight. I must sketch it, but I don't have my tools with me. It's okay, I'll take a photo and sketch from the reference later."
We wandered through the huge lobby. Two other sections stood out. One was a sitting area built of tall steps, so tall, you'd have to lift your legs higher to climb them. The steps were muted grey, almost industrial in appearance. I noticed two off-duty stewardesses resting. They did not maintain their professionalism and slouched into their seats. One had her legs up on a stool.
Adam turned to me and showed me a used Fujica toy film camera he’d bought for the trip. It was a panorama camera—wider than the standard size—black with red trimmings. I was delighted; now he could take photos too, and of me.
As I turned around, I caught sight of a higher viewpoint where several photographers were gathered, taking wefies with their analogue cameras. They were all couples, and I decided to capture that lovely moment. The viewpoint had a narrow, single-lane road running beside it. As I made my way up, cars kept zooming past, only inches away. It felt dangerous. Adam asked me to bail, but I insisted. When would I get to travel again and make that shot?
I pressed on but got stuck in the trenches.
Suddenly, a kind young girl appeared. She reached out and pulled me to safety. She handed me a pastel pink lanyard and said drivers would be more careful if I put it on. It'll mark me as a VIP of some sort.
After I got my shot, we sat at a table and chatted. We exchanged contact information. I remember writing my handphone number twice, one over the other, so she could make out what the numbers were exactly. I told her I was only spending four days in Japan.
We parted ways. Adam and I walked until we happened to chance upon what looked like a café—except there was no barista counter. Maybe it was a reading area. We fell asleep there. A couple of hours later, I woke up to the sound of someone nearby. I woke Adam and said we should leave at once, as we may have trespassed on private premises.
Looking for an exit, we passed huge dining halls and stairways. We were on the second floor of what looked like a white mansion. Down below, I spotted more people entering the living area. As I turned a corner, I bumped into the same young girl again. We were both thrilled to see each other.
She was staying in that mansion, which doubled as a hostel. I was told it’s more commonly known as a "community". The place was called SILO¹. She introduced us to the others downstairs. Everyone was warm and welcoming. She invited us to stay, and we agreed.
Soon, everyone started leaving the mansion to do whatever they had planned for the day. Adam and I headed out too, this time with our children—who seemed to appear from nowhere. As we stepped out of the entrance, we waved at the CCTV camera pointed at us.
Note:
- Pronounced as [sigh-low].
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