Situated close to the center of the Expo, the pavilion of the United Arab Emirates opens towards the decumanus, one of the two main axes of the grounds. Visitors enter from here into a space shaped like a canyon, delimited as it is by two undulating walls rising 12 meters and stretching 140. This composition makes reference to Bedouin traditions and landscapes. In this way, while the sinuous and narrow exhibition route – which suddenly decompresses into small courtyards – evokes the scheme of nomadic settlements in the desert, the walls built with reusable GRC panels imitate the geometry of dunes in their textures and crests. As visitors approach the center of the pavilion, the floor and the walls begin to show glints that remind one of patterns produced in sand, reflections produced by the metal plates that wrap the central building in a golden tone. Inside this large drum is the auditorium and a digital route of augmented reality that immerses the visitors in a simulation of life in the Emirates. Such a technological feature, which strikes a contrast with the atmosphere created by the colors and forms of the primitive desert, is actually there from the very start, appearing gradually through modern gadgets dotting the courtyards. The visit culminates in a small green oasis, graced by palm trees, where the pavilion café is and one can have a break...[+][+]