In that this will be my last day on the trip…I thought I would start talking about the basics so as not to forget what folks in the months to come will ask….so here goes, and this will be random as I think of these:
UAE: United Arab Emirates….Emirates from the word Emirs, or rulers….today in the form of a Monarchy….and is made up of 7 Emirates…the largest being Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the capital of the country. Like the states, each Emirate has its own leadership, although most of the country leadership is now related…and the leader is referred to as a Sheikh. The leaders are very highly thought of, for the one characteristic that seems to stand out above all of the other countries in the Middle East is their concern to give back to the people the wealth from oil that has come their way.
GCC: This is the Gulf Cooperation Council, and is made up of most of the countries that surround the Persian Gulf. Is referred to here a lot, although I had not heard of it previously.
What about their water? Both Dubai and Abu Dhabi have developed very sophisticated sea water desalinization methods, and Dubai gets over 90% of its water from the ocean. No doubt Abu Dhabi is the same.
What about their electricity? Water and the oceans also play a part here….and I have not seen any big electrical generating plants other than along the coast….but no doubt they have them. Both cities use a huge amount of electricity, and I have not seen any nuclear generating plants, and since I have traveled between both cities, and had a good look at Dubai, I think I would have seen or heard of them.
What do they eat, will be a question? Well, I felt like I was in downtown San Francisco or LA or Chicago when it comes to restaurants. From pizza to Burger King…to Lebanese to Chinese and Indonesian food…it is all here and no different from any other international city. Take your choice.Their local and native foods are “arabian”…..and almost every meal has a small plate of dates to eat to finish the meal….and being Muslim, pork does not seem to be on the menu…or at least I didn’t see it. Keep in mind that I am not much of a gourmet eater….so food and restaurants are not my priority….but they are plentiful and huge choices are available.
How is the life here different from in California, or the States? (1) Very European and Very Asian, all together. (2) The 2 cities are quite different, in that Dubai is spread out all over a large area like LA, and Abu Dhabi is much more contained, like SF. And, like these two cities, people will live in the suburbs of Dubai and commute…..and it seems as if more people live more close in in Abu Dhabi. Like SF, both cities are much more vertical in their living arrangements than in our western cities…and more like Chicago and NYC in this respect. Even in Abu Dhabi, I have not seen garages in any of the living areas, but have noticed that parking, again like SF, is at an absolute premium. (3) Very much oriented towards mass transit…with buses and taxis everyplace, and the metro in Dubai, which is expanding to a new line any month now. Public transport is very inexpensive and works well. (4) The huge number of nationalities….probably among the largest in the world. A lot of this has to do with the language, in that English is their second language, after Arabic….and English is, for the most part, the world language. So, any country that historically had English, or British, roots that had English in the schools will have expatriates, which is what all non “Emiraties” are called, and they will be able to communicate here. The tricky part for me, and most Americans, is understanding the dialects. It seems as if the big majority of taxi drivers are from Pakistan, or the Indian sub-continent….all had English in school…but some are really difficult to understand….but they do well here for they know English and communicate very well within the community. (5) What about their workweek?, will be asked, and it is like ours…5 days a week the offices are open….similar holidays to ours, except for their religious holiday month, Ramadan, which is ending today….and from sun-up to sunset…no food or drink. Offices pretty much open by 9 and close by 5…and some in the summer with the extreme heat, seem to close during the afternoon and then open in the evening, especially in the retail areas, like the Malls. During Ramadan, the Malls stay open until midnight…and it seems as if the general population is more oriented towards the evening and night-time, than early morning. Right now it is 6:30 AM and the streets are pretty much empty…and last night at 10 PM traffic was very heavy, which I got on camera. This is both characteristic of Europe and Asia…in that dinner is always later than what we are accustomed to in the states. (6) What about the computer, internet, cell phones, etc…is it like the US? In my opinion, much more advanced than we are. It is a rare site to see a person without a cell phone, and using it all of the time. They have very limited land line service, so cell phones are it. On a typical Metro ride with 30-40 people in that particular car, I would estimate that 20 would either be on the phone and another 10 have an earpiece connected and listening to something. Ipads are all over the place….and every office seems to have a computer on every desk….and every part of the day is computer connected. Wi-fi is about like the states, when it comes to internet cafes, etc….and I have not seen the number of these places like I saw in Asia, or even London. Every taxi driver has his own phone, and is often talking while driving…although seat belts are mandatory. In the taxis, which are mainly Toyota’s and Nissan’s, there is a meter built-in on the dashboard, and many have a female recorded voice that comes on in English and says “welcome and please put on your seatbelt”…and then at the end of the ride will say thank you and please check to be sure you have all of your belongings…and pay the amount on the meter…and that is exactly what you pay. I have only been taken advantage of 2 times…both my fault, in that I did not ask before getting into the cab as to what the fare was…one driver charged me the equivalent of $6 and it should have been $3…and another told me he was a cab and he was really a limo and wanted to charge the minimum of $8…for a $3 ride. I paid him $5, and the doorman at the hotel told him to “beat it”. (7) ….and this brings up another characteristic….the Emirates are extremely friendly and helpful and seem to be a very happy people, and this is a huge generalization, but I have found this in all areas…from the ticket folks on the Metro to the doormen at the hotel. (8)….another big generalization, and this may take another paragraph…very respectful of women…and really more so than in the states, in my opinion. There is virtually no “immodest dress”, except for the western women, and men, who at times look so “sloppy”, versus the Emiraties in their white jackets, for they are full length.These are not really coats, but are beautiful full length silk and cotton long shirts, if you will. The men wear them over shorts of some fashion, and the shirts have pockets on the side for keys, phones, etc. The black covers that the women wear just make the women look so striking, in my opinion, which I never expected. And, the women wear these over their regular clothes….in that this is the attire that is expected to fulfill their religious convictions of the woman should be covered. This is another whole story that I would like to look into…but not now. Last night at the Food Court where I had pizza, the adjoining table had 3 young 20-year-old women in complete black attire, except their faces were completely uncovered. All 3 took time to get the headpiece property done to cover their hair….and all three were stunning as they left the Food Court….moving so elegantly, which comes with the black attire. This I did not expect, based on what I had heard. Women, especially in the black, on Metro and on buses, get priority attention, seats, and locations….this was a surprise. (9) I know I will be asked, “was I concerned about being in a Muslim-Arab country with all of the terrorism, etc”. And, the thought crossed my mind back in the planning stage but what I have found is an extremely safe and friendly environment without exception. The country is almost crime free, it seems, and the policeman, when you can see one and they are almost hard to find….are not armed, except that some of them will have a club on a belt along with their telephone…and that is it. They dress in a fatigue uniform with a stylish berret…and for the most part are very good looking young men. I wondered if they had any “old policemen”, for I have not seen one over 35. For the most part, they are on thin builds, and many of them are in the 6 foot height range. It is a rarity to hear a siren….or see a traffic accident, which in itself in view of the speed that they drive, is amazing. Part of the reason for the safety, and there is more to this….is that everyone in the country must have a passport of be registered with the government. You cannot be in the country, and 80% of the country are expats, without a passport and without a place to work, and the employer, in essence, sponsors the expats. I was told that part of this “registration”, of sorts, includes an eye scan….and the result is …the government knows who you are, where you are, and if you get in any trouble at all…you are punished or gone immediately. I know the human rights folks will have an issue with some of this, but it is really working. No unemployed, unless it is temporary and under the control of the employer…no homeless, and I have not seen one homeless or beggar on the streets or at an intersection…and no pickpocket warnings, as you see in many big US cities. The Metro is very safe, the car is quite with folks talking and joking among themselves, and even when it was tightly packed in, everyone was very respectful of the others in the car. The general nature seems to be one of courtesy and respect for each other, which is pretty impressive.
Well, I am going to go out and get some photos of the new hotel being built next to this Hilton….so all for now.
