We all know about the environmental follies of creating a space where you can ski in the middle of the desert where temperatures sometimes reach 50 degrees celsius in summer... but I had to see and experience Ski Dubai for myself... Prominently placed in a shopping mall (Mall of the Emirates), it offers the complete (faux) skiing or snowboarding experience, including a fake St. Moritz style ski hut where traditional Swiss fare is served next to an artificial open fire.
I cannot begin to imagine how much energy is being consumed to cool this space down below zero degrees, so that it can sustain enough of snow for the skiing experience to be worthwhile... But maybe - as Thomas pointed out - the carbon footprint is less than if all these people were to hop on a plane and go to Switzerland or Austria to ski... But it remains the very hubris of man against nature to install a giant fridge in the desert.
But probably I am the fool here, escaping a relatively harsh winter to a sunnier climate, just to find myself the very next moment in a freezing environment, getting frost bites on my hands and face... Well, I left the space speedily after a mere hour...
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