It's interesting how Western and non-Western countries treat visitors.

To get my US visa took weeks. My UK visa too. My Schengen visa also took weeks and was, by far, the most red tape-laden.

Meanwhile, I didn't need a visa for Hong Kong. A Chinese visa takes about 5 days (and, depending on length of stay, doesn't require a visa at all). To get my UAE visa took less than 90 minutes.

Why?