Sunday, December 2, 2012

A proud moment for us




Many years ago, as I set off to take up my new position in Dubai, little did I realise the magnitude of the change that was about to take place in my life. There were mixed reactions from my family and friends when I broke the news about having taken up the  job offer. Some of them feared for my safety as I was moving to a war torn region of the world. Many of my friends warned me of the perils of moving to an Islamic state. Some of them even recommended a few books that I should read so that I could understand the country a little more. Every job change is a difficult one. But this one was turning out to be a lot more difficult than I had initially anticipated. 

I remember stepping out of the airport at Sharjah where a burly khandura clad local man waited to pick me up. It must have been a little past midnight when we left the airport en route to Dubai. The very old Chevrolet Caprice was not the idea of a taxi I had imagined.  It was dirty and the seats seemed to have weathered many summers. The man did not speak English and I never understood anything of what he said to me. In fact he spoke very little since we shook hands at the airport. The drive to Dubai must have taken what seemed like an hour. I remember imaging all the terrible things that could possibly have happened to me during the drive.

That night I cried a little as I lay in bed, anxiously waiting for my new life in Dubai to begin.

Today I feel proud and in some ways lucky that I chose to make the change. Since moving to UAE, I have grown as much as I have seen this beautiful country transform itself. What UAE has achieved in the last few decades is some thing many countries have taken over a century to accomplish. 


Today UAE is a shining example of how enormous change and growth can be achieved in such a short time. From the tallest building in the world to the largest and glitziest malls, it is all happening right here. I am sure UAE will score high across most measures of success. I am amazed at the stories of success I see everywhere. UAE is an international tourist and business centre as well as a modern, safe and stable country for its residents. It boasts of one of the highest per capita income in the world. UAE is home to over 100 nationalities who make a wonderful mosaic. 

Today everybody wants to be here! 

Many of the fears I felt as I set out for Dubai have been laid to rest. I feel safe here. My family feels safe here. I feel I live in a relatively fair system where I am not treated in any way differently. Contrary to perception, I find that the system here is relatively fairer to expats as compared to other countries. I can practice my religion freely. Not many of my friends back home believe I attend weekly church service without hindrance. 


So is it too good to be true? Like every country, UAE too has its own share of challenges. In many places, the pace of growth has far out striped the pace of changes in its legal system. I can see many things that need to be changed. And quickly. But what makes that big difference is that many of these challenges are being addressed as I write this. Head on. 

Never for a moment can I doubt the transformation that the leadership has brought about in the last 41 years. Success is all about how much better we are as compared to yesterday. Its about how much further we move every day. 

Today as UAE celebrates its 41st National Day, I wish its citizens and residents on this happy occasion. We all need to contribute to the success of UAE as much as we expect the  government to play its role. 

Happy Birthday UAE!




Sunday, October 21, 2012

The Twister



This building will surely figure in the list of amazing buildings in the world. Located at Dubai Marina, the building is a few months away from completion and already draws a lot of attention from visitors. 

I am not sure what the actual name of the building is. So I have gone ahead and named it The Twister. Yet another amazing building being added to Dubai's collection.

Friday, October 19, 2012

Friday, July 20, 2012

Ramadan Kareem


Tuesday, April 17, 2012

So what are my rights?




I picked up these pictures from a recent visit to the Dubai 7s stadium. I am sure many of us have experienced some awesome sporting moments at the 7s.


But many of us may be surprised by this unsporting condition that is displayed prominently outside the 7s stadium. 


One of the conditions reads "The organiser reserves the right to cancel the tournament in whole or in part without notice, for any reason. In such cases a refund or partial refund may be given at the organiser's discretion, but is not guaranteed".


This brings to mind many questions. 

  • What if the tournament is cancelled and I have paid a pretty sum for the ticket? Do I as a customer have any rights in this case? 
  • As a customer, I would have paid the money to the organisers who in return are required to provide a particular service. Would the organisation in this case have any obligation to me?
  • If I had purchased a television from an electronics store, would the above case be equivalent to the the outlet refusing to hand over my money after having failed to deliver a television? 
  • Do similar conditions exist at other events, tournaments or concerts?
  • And if these conditions are commonly used, is there any law to define the validity of these conditions?
  • If such a law does not exist in Dubai, do we need to have one?



If you have an opinion on the subject, please leave a comment. Better still, please share this page within your social circles to get opinion from other residents of Dubai.

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Run? Walk?


The KFC Bucket 'Run' will start at "The Walk'!!!!!!!  :-)


Get ready. The KFC Bucket Run is coming up at the weekend and its got a charity objective attached to it. So if you want run..... or walk? or whatever! Turn up at the Walk and get ready to run!

Friday, February 3, 2012

Dubai Pet Show 2012

It was a carnival like atmosphere. There were thousands of people in the most colourful outfits. There were musicians and there were face painters. And there were dogs.


Dogs wearing designer T-Shirts, bandanas, ribbons, scarves or skirts! And some with a little bit of attitude. It was a fun day for the entire family! 




Just got back this evening from the Dubai Pet Show. I am not really sure why its called a Pet show (yes there was an enclosure with cats) as almost all the activity at the venue is all about dogs. 








I love dogs and really happy that I took time of from my other work to head down to Dubai Sevens. Yes. This is the new venue since last year. Dubai Pet Show has moved to a new location down at Dubai Sevens down Al Ain road.




As usual, the police squad put up its show. Police dogs demonstrated their skills sniffing out stuff from drugs to revolvers.


Here is my collection of my favourite dogs from the show.










For details of Dubai Pet Show in 2009, please click here



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