Can you elaborate what you find ugly in xaml? I am using right now winJs but, in my opinion, xaml allow to be really fast in ui design and binding data. Used in combo with Blend (and I know too many people who totally ignore even the existence of that sw) is a win-win
After building UI's for the two major platforms, I love using the layout and binding engine that MS brought to devices. I have background with ASP.net which is only so far removed from XAML, but it was a very small step to get up to speed and helps me be more productive than the model Android uses and, definitely, less annoying than the tooling available for iOS.
