Palm Jumeirah is expected to the complete by early 2006 and is built as a serene and luxurious place for living and relaxation, a leisurely retreat wi

First Residents of Dubai's Palm-Shaped Manmade Island Like Their Pricey New Digs




In this photo released by the Nakheel Development, a few villas are seen at the Jumeira Palm Island in Dubai, United Arab Emirates July 10, 2006. The Palm Jumeirah, a 12-square-mile (30-square-kilometer) island group that took five years to raise from millions of tons of Persian Gulf sand and quarried rock, will open to some 4,000 residents by Nov. 30, said Issam Kazim, a spokesman for Dubai's state-owned developer Nakheel. (AP Photo/Nakheel Development, HO)

Four years ago there was nothing here but unbroken sea. Now there's Andrew Dukes and his luxury mansion sitting on a palm-shaped, manmade island the first of about 100 houses to open here.

"I got exactly what I paid for and I'm very happy with it," said Dukes, 43, a tanned Englishman who just moved into his colossal home on Palm Jumeirah, Dubai's greatest-yet construction project.