About palaces, bunkers and hangars

During the GIBTM fair (the first edition of Gulf Incentive, Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition in Abu Dabhi) I told a few visitors that I was inspired by ADNEC, the new exhibition and convention centre, or should I say exhibition and convention city, because there really is a meetings city shooting up from the ground. The space, the light, the statues, the beauty, the materials used, the architecture… in short, there's more than we can get through. You feel more human there. If I look at what people generally build in Europe, I must say I start to blush. Most exhibition centres - and a lot of convention centres as well - in Europe and elsewhere look like bunkers, I feel. To underpin this bold statement, I've asked Johan De Deygere, director of Brussels Fairs & Exhibitions, if he agrees. 'I would call them hangars', was his response…