Today I live in Ajman. This is a small Emirate, North & East of Dubai and Sharjah and one of seven that makes up the UAE.
It’s a liberal place. Of course it’s a Muslim country and that’s more visibly true here than in Dubai but nonetheless alcohol is available legally to non-Muslims and there’s no conservative dress code. You see expats and tourists sunbathing on the beach in mixed sex groups without either embarrassment or harassment.
Mosques are visible, abundant and well used. The only problem is an escalation war with PA systems used when calling the faithful to prayer. Not every muezzin has the voice he thinks he has.
But how refreshing to see them full to overflowing on a Friday – despite the inconvenience caused by the rather selfish parking of those arriving by car.
Ajman doesn’t drip conspicuous wealth like Dubai but neither is it visibly poor. It has more than it’s share of flashy new high-rise developments and its own set of vanity development projects that have failed or gone on indefinite hold since the meltdown in 2009.
We have a pleasant corniche where development is still most certainly under way and this looks onto a nice if slightly run own public beach. White sands, clean and clean waters and no crowds make it a pleasant place to while away a few hours.
If I have a day of phoning or thinking I will spend it at the beach where I can catch a few rays and be productive without the need for an office.
I am still hoping that one the major developments along the corniche and beachside are finished there will be an improvement scheme for the beach itself, which is what the tourists will want. It’s short on facilities – changing rooms, showers, loos, concessions for refreshments, entertainment – and the physical environs do not match the quality of the new buildings nearby.
Away from the corniche and the main drag through the city the high-rises peter out very quickly. But you still find many homes in the city areas proper.
These are single storey flat roofed buildings built around a courtyard and with few windows. Dark and cool but often surprisingly spacious and much more comfortable on the inside than the drear and dilapidated outsides generally suggest, these are not typical traditional houses but a more modern reworking of the style. Most noticeable is the absence of the traditional wind tower and the presence of air conditioning units cheaply added and myriad satellite dishes targeted on programmes from home.
Many, perhaps most these days, are inhabited by groups of expat workers from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka and in Ajman, more so than I’ve seen elsewhere, young Africans. Of course, it’s mostly single men though you do find occasional groups of Filipinas banding together to share expenses and find some company. Few are paid enough to bring their families over and much of their income is sent home every month. It’s a hard life though given the numbers here it is obviously worth the sacrifice.
These cheap low rise buildings have gone from most of Dubai now. Replaced by more lucrative tower blocks or high rent villas, Dubai looks and feels totally different. In Ajman you know you are firmly in the Middle East but in Dubai you could be anywhere.
It is Dubai’s loss. I hope fervently that Ajman makes some different choices going forward. Now the economic bubble in Dubai has burst that may be an easier decision.
I would not want Ajman to become some kind of quaint theme park of the past. It deserves a full share of the benefits of the present and future the same as anyone else. But it could do that and hold on to its culture and charm in the process.
The Emirates are not democracies. Nor do they masquerade as such. Neither, though, are they authoritarian dictatorships as we have seen in Iraq or theocracies as we see in KSA or Iran. What we have in general are enlightened benevolent despots. As was Singapore under Lee Kwan Yu.
Dubai used that approach to make a different kind of city-state. In the process it made mistakes. But there’s no denying the fact that for a country that is mostly sand dune with little natural resource it has become a civilised and comfortable modern state with an incredibly high standard of living for some and a decent one for the rest. It has earned its place in the modern world in a stunningly short time.
Ajman can learn from Dubai. It can learn that it is ok to dream and create from nothing. It can learn that you don’t actually need vast oil reserves to become rich. It can learn that it doesn’t actually take very long to develop a small country with few people.
But it can also learn that you can go too far. It can learn that debts need to be serviced and that bubbles always burst. It can learn that to be totally dependent on cheap imported labour disenfranchises your own people and holds back full participation in the future. It can learn that holding on to your own culture has not just social but also economic value. It can learn that oftentimes it is better to pay more and have quality than just to buy the cheapest. It can learn that some resources are better used and developed than simply consumed. It can learn that people work harder and give more commitment if they have some emotional investment in the future.
Ajman in 10 years could be as comfortable as Dubai without the soullessness and culture loss and without the dependence on cheap foreign labour and without the unsupportable debt. It takes vision will and salesmanship. Sheikh Rashid had it in spades for Dubai and passed it on to his successors. I hope the younger generation of al Nuaimis in Ajman have it too. This could be special. I hope I can stay long enough to see it happen.
21 April 2010
Ramblings on Dubai life
It is easy to stay only among your own kind – especially in Dubai. You don’t have to worry about language or funny food or strange music or exotic customs. Living in Dubai can be like living in London or LA if you want it to. Almost as expensive too. But if you do that you miss so much.
I’ve never lived in such a diverse society. For example in short order last year we celebrated Dewali, Eid and Xmas, 2 New Years and an Orthodox Xmas. You can be a beach bum one day and a desert explorer the next or ride a camel or trek the mountains. You can wallow in Islamic culture and live like an Indian Prince. You can talk to Iraqi and Palestinian refugees or chat to a LA Jewish film executive here to raise money.
You can work in a Western style International company like Cisco or Microsoft or a local like al Habtoor or al Futtaim or you can work for the semi government organisations like Nakheel or Dubai World. And they are all different experiences.
This is a harsh climate. Many of the wealthy locals and lots of Expats disappear for July & August. Business pretty much operates on minimum input.
Ditto during the holy month of Ramadan where because of the fasting people work 6 hour days and much more slowly.
In western terms you need to build for a nine month business plan.
Also our weekends do no co-incide. Across the region we are tending towards Friday and Saturday but it’s not universal. Thursday & Friday is still common. Remember this if you work in an international business. It can be frustrating.
People wonder about personal safety. Well…I rarely lock my car, often leave my computer on the back seat. I’ve never been mugged or burgled or accosted by faux beggars. Sometimes I don’t bother to lock my apartment before going out if it’s only for a short while. I daily entrust my car to valet parking whose drivers often hadn’t seen the inside of a car before they got here. We walk city central streets at night feeling unthreatened.
Iran is 100km away. Iraq is just up the coast. We border KSA. India and Pakistan are no distance. It’s a political hotbed. Since I’ve been here we’ve had no bombs or terrorist scares – well a couple of well publicized assassinations. When George Bush came to visit a while back we had an extra public holiday – because his security people wanted roads closed so the motorcade could go through easily.
So…changes. When I first came here 30 years ago the main road from Dubai to Abu Dhabi was 2 lanes and not paved all the way. Now it’s 14 lanes in many places and 10 in the rest!
Dubai ended pretty much at the Trade Centre and then it was desert all the way to Abu Dhabi. Now we have two and a bit Palms, the World, Dubai Waterfront, Jebel Ali FreeZone & Port and all the desert developments. We now have an outer and inner ring road/bypass as well as SZR.
Our metro is well on its way to completion and last year we bought 2000 busses – the biggest ever single order for busses anywhere.
Our population is currently around 1.3m and heading for 4m. Lord knows what they are all going to do though there’s be no shortage of places to live.
My early visits were to a charming but remote undeveloped country with huge potential. New Dubai is a World City – in the same league on the surface as NYC, London or Tokyo. But not far under the surface is still the third world desert country that I still love but is fading into memory rapidly.
My four years here have been like 10 in Europe – some good some bad but all un-missable.
I’ve never lived in such a diverse society. For example in short order last year we celebrated Dewali, Eid and Xmas, 2 New Years and an Orthodox Xmas. You can be a beach bum one day and a desert explorer the next or ride a camel or trek the mountains. You can wallow in Islamic culture and live like an Indian Prince. You can talk to Iraqi and Palestinian refugees or chat to a LA Jewish film executive here to raise money.
You can work in a Western style International company like Cisco or Microsoft or a local like al Habtoor or al Futtaim or you can work for the semi government organisations like Nakheel or Dubai World. And they are all different experiences.
This is a harsh climate. Many of the wealthy locals and lots of Expats disappear for July & August. Business pretty much operates on minimum input.
Ditto during the holy month of Ramadan where because of the fasting people work 6 hour days and much more slowly.
In western terms you need to build for a nine month business plan.
Also our weekends do no co-incide. Across the region we are tending towards Friday and Saturday but it’s not universal. Thursday & Friday is still common. Remember this if you work in an international business. It can be frustrating.
People wonder about personal safety. Well…I rarely lock my car, often leave my computer on the back seat. I’ve never been mugged or burgled or accosted by faux beggars. Sometimes I don’t bother to lock my apartment before going out if it’s only for a short while. I daily entrust my car to valet parking whose drivers often hadn’t seen the inside of a car before they got here. We walk city central streets at night feeling unthreatened.
Iran is 100km away. Iraq is just up the coast. We border KSA. India and Pakistan are no distance. It’s a political hotbed. Since I’ve been here we’ve had no bombs or terrorist scares – well a couple of well publicized assassinations. When George Bush came to visit a while back we had an extra public holiday – because his security people wanted roads closed so the motorcade could go through easily.
So…changes. When I first came here 30 years ago the main road from Dubai to Abu Dhabi was 2 lanes and not paved all the way. Now it’s 14 lanes in many places and 10 in the rest!
Dubai ended pretty much at the Trade Centre and then it was desert all the way to Abu Dhabi. Now we have two and a bit Palms, the World, Dubai Waterfront, Jebel Ali FreeZone & Port and all the desert developments. We now have an outer and inner ring road/bypass as well as SZR.
Our metro is well on its way to completion and last year we bought 2000 busses – the biggest ever single order for busses anywhere.
Our population is currently around 1.3m and heading for 4m. Lord knows what they are all going to do though there’s be no shortage of places to live.
My early visits were to a charming but remote undeveloped country with huge potential. New Dubai is a World City – in the same league on the surface as NYC, London or Tokyo. But not far under the surface is still the third world desert country that I still love but is fading into memory rapidly.
My four years here have been like 10 in Europe – some good some bad but all un-missable.
20 April 2010
Dealing with change
Been looking at a discussion group of change and project managers and the bit that has taken my interest has been on the management of a Turnaround compared to a Planned Change scenario.
There was some unpleasantness for a while especially as the Turnaround specialists got heavy and the Change Management professionals got protective of the people but it settled down in the end.
What got through to me though was how when it comes down to it the 'people' really are the core whatever the situation. A company is just an agglomeration of people working a bunch of processes as best they can. Ideally it will be a self-organising agglomeration but often it isn't. And in a turnaround less so than ever.
Let's face it - it will often be the self-organising that got us in the mess in the first place. Eye off the ball, no shared view of the outcome, too much focus on the current processes etc.
The thing is, with a company is there's entropy to deal with. And entropy increases. Without the addition of energy often from the change management experts or turnaround manager if more fierceness is needed the system's entropy continues to increase. Till it grinds to a halt.
People are in many ways just intelligent machines. And they will continued doing what they do till the 'control' makes them do something else. Now we're dealing with inertia.
And while people may hate the idea of being like a machine - well... examine your soul and tell me about the last time you changed the way you do something without some kind of stimulus from outside...
There was some unpleasantness for a while especially as the Turnaround specialists got heavy and the Change Management professionals got protective of the people but it settled down in the end.
What got through to me though was how when it comes down to it the 'people' really are the core whatever the situation. A company is just an agglomeration of people working a bunch of processes as best they can. Ideally it will be a self-organising agglomeration but often it isn't. And in a turnaround less so than ever.
Let's face it - it will often be the self-organising that got us in the mess in the first place. Eye off the ball, no shared view of the outcome, too much focus on the current processes etc.
The thing is, with a company is there's entropy to deal with. And entropy increases. Without the addition of energy often from the change management experts or turnaround manager if more fierceness is needed the system's entropy continues to increase. Till it grinds to a halt.
People are in many ways just intelligent machines. And they will continued doing what they do till the 'control' makes them do something else. Now we're dealing with inertia.
And while people may hate the idea of being like a machine - well... examine your soul and tell me about the last time you changed the way you do something without some kind of stimulus from outside...
I wish I'd thought more about...
Advice for people following us? Ok the big thing is despite the surface glamour and glitz never forget that this is still a third world country and stuff does not work quite like it does in the UK. Workmanship is shoddy and everything – and I mean everything - is done to the lowest price. Quality is not valued. Businesses will rather save AED100 cost than spend 1,000 to make 1,000,000.
Most of the people you are in contact with every day are paid peanuts and managed harshly. Do not be surprised if you don’t get a lot of co-operation.
Everyone speaks English but very few as their native language. This means you have to learn to speak slowly and clearly and be prepared to repeat yourself often and to live with daily mis-communication. What also hurts us English is the fact that our accents are hard to understand. English is mostly heard and taught as Indian English. Even Emiratis often speak an English that is heavily Indian tinged. Get used to it and don’t be rude about what to us are quaint foreign mannerisms. You try communicating in Arabic! Not many foreigners can. Indeed some local children are so used to speaking English that they continue to do so among themselves and occasionally need remedial Arabic lessons to take up government jobs.
Contracts and paperwork are valued. You can never have enough copies of you passport, visa and photograph.
Emiratis don’t do trivial jobs. Even the lowliest Emirati fresh graduate is a Manager of some kind. Expect work to be passed over to someone else. Expect to have to chase everything.
Our approach to time here is different. Things take as long as they take. This doesn’t mean people don’t hustle – it’s just that no one rushes to respond.
Learn the 40 different meanings of the word “Yes” – ½ of which mean some form of ‘No”. Neither Arabs nor Indians like to give bad news or say no to you. So they will find a thousand ways to avoid negative response or bad news. Learn to read the clues.
Arabs in particular value politeness and hospitality, which is very pleasant socially. But it drives Western business people crazy. Countless sales people from Europe have been stunned at how easy it is to get to see the Chairman of very big companies and then wondered for months why business never went anywhere. It’s because they didn’t separate social hospitality from real business need.
Most of the people you are in contact with every day are paid peanuts and managed harshly. Do not be surprised if you don’t get a lot of co-operation.
Everyone speaks English but very few as their native language. This means you have to learn to speak slowly and clearly and be prepared to repeat yourself often and to live with daily mis-communication. What also hurts us English is the fact that our accents are hard to understand. English is mostly heard and taught as Indian English. Even Emiratis often speak an English that is heavily Indian tinged. Get used to it and don’t be rude about what to us are quaint foreign mannerisms. You try communicating in Arabic! Not many foreigners can. Indeed some local children are so used to speaking English that they continue to do so among themselves and occasionally need remedial Arabic lessons to take up government jobs.
Contracts and paperwork are valued. You can never have enough copies of you passport, visa and photograph.
Emiratis don’t do trivial jobs. Even the lowliest Emirati fresh graduate is a Manager of some kind. Expect work to be passed over to someone else. Expect to have to chase everything.
Our approach to time here is different. Things take as long as they take. This doesn’t mean people don’t hustle – it’s just that no one rushes to respond.
Learn the 40 different meanings of the word “Yes” – ½ of which mean some form of ‘No”. Neither Arabs nor Indians like to give bad news or say no to you. So they will find a thousand ways to avoid negative response or bad news. Learn to read the clues.
Arabs in particular value politeness and hospitality, which is very pleasant socially. But it drives Western business people crazy. Countless sales people from Europe have been stunned at how easy it is to get to see the Chairman of very big companies and then wondered for months why business never went anywhere. It’s because they didn’t separate social hospitality from real business need.
Volcanic ash = free vacation
I have several friends and at least one relative stuck in exotic places and currently unable to return by plane to the UK.
I have to say that after a 10 day business trip to Shanghai, Taipei and Hong Kong I would NOT find it hard to chill for a few days on the company's dime in a 5* hotel in HK. A short unexpected extra vacation albeit without the family does not strike me as a major hardship. I could be a tourist.
I have more sympathy with my self-employed friends stuck in alRiyadh and Jeddah in KSA though. Not only are they losing fees but they're not even able to go down to the bar and get thoroughly sloshed. Bugger! But at least I assume the insurance will cover any additional costs though it won't replace the fees. But again, if the clients back home are reasonable they'll understand and reschedule. After all they've probably got people of their own in the same boat.
Some years ago I went to a company conference in Silicon Valley. It finished on Thursday and the following Tuesday I was, with a coupe of my staff, scheduled to attend a meeting in SF. We were offered a choice of going home and flying out again on Monday or staying over. My colleagues all went home. I stayed over. Company was paying for a hotel and a rental car. And I got me a free 4 day vacation in Death Valley and a side trip to Vegas. Made me realise there are SOME benefits to being an employee, sometimes.
And no I am not insensitive to the needs of the less fortunate travellers. I know some tour groups are stuck in airports and that some individuals can't really afford to chill out in a 5* hotel at company expense.
But surely all the more reason for those who can to enjoy their good fortune.
I have to say that after a 10 day business trip to Shanghai, Taipei and Hong Kong I would NOT find it hard to chill for a few days on the company's dime in a 5* hotel in HK. A short unexpected extra vacation albeit without the family does not strike me as a major hardship. I could be a tourist.
I have more sympathy with my self-employed friends stuck in alRiyadh and Jeddah in KSA though. Not only are they losing fees but they're not even able to go down to the bar and get thoroughly sloshed. Bugger! But at least I assume the insurance will cover any additional costs though it won't replace the fees. But again, if the clients back home are reasonable they'll understand and reschedule. After all they've probably got people of their own in the same boat.
Some years ago I went to a company conference in Silicon Valley. It finished on Thursday and the following Tuesday I was, with a coupe of my staff, scheduled to attend a meeting in SF. We were offered a choice of going home and flying out again on Monday or staying over. My colleagues all went home. I stayed over. Company was paying for a hotel and a rental car. And I got me a free 4 day vacation in Death Valley and a side trip to Vegas. Made me realise there are SOME benefits to being an employee, sometimes.
And no I am not insensitive to the needs of the less fortunate travellers. I know some tour groups are stuck in airports and that some individuals can't really afford to chill out in a 5* hotel at company expense.
But surely all the more reason for those who can to enjoy their good fortune.
I am...
...a professional consultant; and a damned good one at that. I've also had a lot of executive experience, mostly as an interim and almost always in difficult situations where existing Executives could not or, often, would not cut it.
And yet sometimes I hesitate to tell people what I do. I know many have a mind view of a consultant that is sleazy, grasping and of someone who won't take responsibility or do anything useful. So I bluster and discuss my 'other' career as an interim manager.
But they do go together.
As a consultant I am clear on my role. I give advice based on experience and research; general research and client specific research. This research will be based on desk- and book- work, examination of financials, interviews with stakeholders of all stripes and possibly things like polls, surveys and focus groups depending on the situation. There will be analysis of the financial results as well as scenarios run. There will be competitors and other consultants consulted. And so on.
What pops out the other end of all this is advice. Not implementation, though part of the advice may be on how to do the implementation.
That advice may include options or it may be a definitive statement. “Do X, Y & Z because…”
And I’ll write one of those widely derided reports. It will be thick; it will contain an Executive Summary; it will contain appendices. Why do I do this when we all know no one ever reads them?
Well to start with it’s not true that they are never read. In general they are read widely among the target audience and digested. I almost always give a live presentation to a group and often several groups, of my findings in which the audience can grill me to their hearts’ content over my findings and recommendations. My sponsors spend time mulling it all over among themselves and away from me.
Also it is often the only visible record of my presence and a necessary part of the process of getting paid because I’m doing this for money. Frequently lots of money and I’m keen to get paid. Nothing to be ashamed of.
And why then is there no implementation? Simply, because that’s not where I add value as a consultant. Very capable managers exist in my client companies perfectly capable as a rule of implementing a plan and recommendations. My skill is in looking at things both dispassionately and creatively, in analysis and synthesis. It is in seeing through the crap to what makes a difference and then persuading others to make it happen. It is a rare and valuable skill and I’m pleased to have it.
I am not ashamed to be a consultant. I am not going to make excuses for not implementing stuff. I don’t need to!
And yet sometimes I hesitate to tell people what I do. I know many have a mind view of a consultant that is sleazy, grasping and of someone who won't take responsibility or do anything useful. So I bluster and discuss my 'other' career as an interim manager.
But they do go together.
As a consultant I am clear on my role. I give advice based on experience and research; general research and client specific research. This research will be based on desk- and book- work, examination of financials, interviews with stakeholders of all stripes and possibly things like polls, surveys and focus groups depending on the situation. There will be analysis of the financial results as well as scenarios run. There will be competitors and other consultants consulted. And so on.
What pops out the other end of all this is advice. Not implementation, though part of the advice may be on how to do the implementation.
That advice may include options or it may be a definitive statement. “Do X, Y & Z because…”
And I’ll write one of those widely derided reports. It will be thick; it will contain an Executive Summary; it will contain appendices. Why do I do this when we all know no one ever reads them?
Well to start with it’s not true that they are never read. In general they are read widely among the target audience and digested. I almost always give a live presentation to a group and often several groups, of my findings in which the audience can grill me to their hearts’ content over my findings and recommendations. My sponsors spend time mulling it all over among themselves and away from me.
Also it is often the only visible record of my presence and a necessary part of the process of getting paid because I’m doing this for money. Frequently lots of money and I’m keen to get paid. Nothing to be ashamed of.
And why then is there no implementation? Simply, because that’s not where I add value as a consultant. Very capable managers exist in my client companies perfectly capable as a rule of implementing a plan and recommendations. My skill is in looking at things both dispassionately and creatively, in analysis and synthesis. It is in seeing through the crap to what makes a difference and then persuading others to make it happen. It is a rare and valuable skill and I’m pleased to have it.
I am not ashamed to be a consultant. I am not going to make excuses for not implementing stuff. I don’t need to!
19 April 2010
Sharjah Again
I met a friend and colleague today at the Qanat al Qasbah in Sharjah. That in itself was only the second time I've had that happen in over 4 years living here. Every other time I've had to go to Dubai. People are just scared of it or bemused by it. Many Euro-Expats have never even been there as tourists. And it's only 20km centre to centre.
And ohhh it was nice to go back. It feels like home. And it's been a while since I felt that. Staff in the cafe and in the ice cream shop came out and asked after us - asked after Yvonne really since they rarely ask after me ;-)
It's a bad rap really. Sharjah is a civilised place. Modern city, malls, beaches, motorways, traffic jams, tower blocks and all the rest. But it's also got history. More museums than Dubai for everything from Islamic Art to vintage cars. There's an aquarium every bit as good as the one in Dubai Mall but cheaper and quieter.
The corniche is broad and lets out onto the very white sands - coral I imagine - of a clean and large and uncrowded beach. Tropical fish to nibble on your toes abound.
The dhow wharf is very active with new and old boats. Trade goods coming in and out all the time. Not a pallet in sight though there are no donkeys or camels as there were when I first came here over 30 years ago. And so different from the big modern port up the road with its gas and oil rigs under repair.
The mountains are dramatic, awe inspiring and peaceful and they drop you out over by the Indian Ocean. Stunning coastline and a level of peace you don't get on the Gulf Coast. Only Sharjah hits both sides of the peninsula.
So back to the Qanat. An artificial canal joining an artificial lagoon to the natural creek and the Buhairah Corniche. Last year we spent a great day on that Corniche watching the Power Boat racing - for free. The buildings along the canal include terrific restaurants including my favourite Lebanese in the whole of the UAE - Shababeek. And cafes - where else would I work? No need for an office. The big wheel (smaller than London Eye but you get the principle) has a dancing fountain at its foot. But unlike it's bigger brother in Dubai this fountain is full of kids playing among the jets and dancing to the music. And at night it's buzzing like the walk in JBR in Dubai but with NO TRAFFIC!
I live in Ajman now - for financial reasons. I may have to consider a move to Ras al Khaimah for work reasons. But if not I think a move back to the Qanat is in sight soon. Home...you can't beat it.
And ohhh it was nice to go back. It feels like home. And it's been a while since I felt that. Staff in the cafe and in the ice cream shop came out and asked after us - asked after Yvonne really since they rarely ask after me ;-)
It's a bad rap really. Sharjah is a civilised place. Modern city, malls, beaches, motorways, traffic jams, tower blocks and all the rest. But it's also got history. More museums than Dubai for everything from Islamic Art to vintage cars. There's an aquarium every bit as good as the one in Dubai Mall but cheaper and quieter.
The corniche is broad and lets out onto the very white sands - coral I imagine - of a clean and large and uncrowded beach. Tropical fish to nibble on your toes abound.
The dhow wharf is very active with new and old boats. Trade goods coming in and out all the time. Not a pallet in sight though there are no donkeys or camels as there were when I first came here over 30 years ago. And so different from the big modern port up the road with its gas and oil rigs under repair.
The mountains are dramatic, awe inspiring and peaceful and they drop you out over by the Indian Ocean. Stunning coastline and a level of peace you don't get on the Gulf Coast. Only Sharjah hits both sides of the peninsula.
So back to the Qanat. An artificial canal joining an artificial lagoon to the natural creek and the Buhairah Corniche. Last year we spent a great day on that Corniche watching the Power Boat racing - for free. The buildings along the canal include terrific restaurants including my favourite Lebanese in the whole of the UAE - Shababeek. And cafes - where else would I work? No need for an office. The big wheel (smaller than London Eye but you get the principle) has a dancing fountain at its foot. But unlike it's bigger brother in Dubai this fountain is full of kids playing among the jets and dancing to the music. And at night it's buzzing like the walk in JBR in Dubai but with NO TRAFFIC!
I live in Ajman now - for financial reasons. I may have to consider a move to Ras al Khaimah for work reasons. But if not I think a move back to the Qanat is in sight soon. Home...you can't beat it.
Moving on; going to Sharjah
Although Dubai in particular is only Muslim in the same rather secular way UK is Christian, Islam has shaped the culture over the centuries. Fatalism is ever present and a vague background reverence to God is always there. There are fervent Muslims here of course, just as there are fervent Christian in UK. But it does not dominate every aspect of daily life as in say KSA or Sharjah where I lived for some time.
After a couple of years I left Habtoor – you can only sit on your arse doing nothing for so long. And I have attempted to become self employed again. I moved out of the company apartment to the neighbouring Emirate of Sharjah.
This is less well known in Europe and has a terrible reputation here. Dubai traffic is horrible but it’s a walk in the park compared to Sharjah where the roads are smaller and the drivers even more badly behaved. But that aside it is in reality a modern developing city and economy more similar to Dubai than most locals will admit.
It’s a fairly strict Muslim country though. This is most obvious in the conservative dress code, no alcohol and the many more mosques, which are well attended. But it doesn’t hurt the quality of life in any way whatever people in Dubai believe.
None of my friends have visited here – we always go to them. It’s like a barrier. Yet we live in an equally multi-cultural friendly society. I have a 22nd floor modern two bed apartment – fully serviced – on the Buhairah Corniche and the Qanat al Qasba which costs me less than an unfurnished, unserviced one bed apartment in a very ordinary location in Dubai – and if it were in the Marina or Business Bay…well I’d have to get a mortage to pay the rent! I have a pool and a gym and unlike Dubai I am a two minute drive (well maybe an hour in the busy periods) from a vast public beach and the bath warm of the Arabian Gulf. For free – which you can’t really do in Dubai any more. On the Qanat are cafés and restaurants galore with free or cheap internet connections. I can spend ½ a day there working with coffee and baklava to hand and then go back in the evening for dinner.
There is no self employed culture here in UAE because labour is so cheap and the laws protecting it are lax. It’s generally cheaper and easier to hire someone for a job and simply get rid of them when it’s over. But this is changing as are the laws governing how a foreigner like me can work. Now I can very cheaply incorporate a Free Zone Company which will give me both a residents visa and a work permit. Having left my employer I had no visa so for the last 2 years I’ve been working round the region for British companies who pay me from UK. And as a British passport holder I can have an endlessly renewable 30- day visit visa.
This has produced some restrictions – I lost my local credit cards for example and I’ve not been able to rent a long term apartment. On the plus side I’ve been paid in sterling and the rates have been very favourable of late (the local currency is pegged to the dollar and that of course has been in the toilet).
We plan to stay for the long haul. Under UAE rules you have to leave the country on retirement. You can’t have a residence visa unless you are working or own a property. So we’ll be buying a property which will allow us to stay indefinitely – albeit renewing our visa every so often.
That’s why earlier I said that 80% of the population is expats. There are no real immigrants because you can’t stay and you can’t get citizenship. I don’t think this is sustainable permanently. There is no commitment to the country from 80% of the populace and it is damaging both society and the economy.
So in the end we are a different kind of expat than most. We would be immigrants if we could. And we’ll stay as long as we can. But one day they may force us to decamp and that will be sad. But it will be to somewhere like Lebanon or Syria or Iraq which by then insha’allah will be more peaceful
After a couple of years I left Habtoor – you can only sit on your arse doing nothing for so long. And I have attempted to become self employed again. I moved out of the company apartment to the neighbouring Emirate of Sharjah.
This is less well known in Europe and has a terrible reputation here. Dubai traffic is horrible but it’s a walk in the park compared to Sharjah where the roads are smaller and the drivers even more badly behaved. But that aside it is in reality a modern developing city and economy more similar to Dubai than most locals will admit.
It’s a fairly strict Muslim country though. This is most obvious in the conservative dress code, no alcohol and the many more mosques, which are well attended. But it doesn’t hurt the quality of life in any way whatever people in Dubai believe.
None of my friends have visited here – we always go to them. It’s like a barrier. Yet we live in an equally multi-cultural friendly society. I have a 22nd floor modern two bed apartment – fully serviced – on the Buhairah Corniche and the Qanat al Qasba which costs me less than an unfurnished, unserviced one bed apartment in a very ordinary location in Dubai – and if it were in the Marina or Business Bay…well I’d have to get a mortage to pay the rent! I have a pool and a gym and unlike Dubai I am a two minute drive (well maybe an hour in the busy periods) from a vast public beach and the bath warm of the Arabian Gulf. For free – which you can’t really do in Dubai any more. On the Qanat are cafés and restaurants galore with free or cheap internet connections. I can spend ½ a day there working with coffee and baklava to hand and then go back in the evening for dinner.
There is no self employed culture here in UAE because labour is so cheap and the laws protecting it are lax. It’s generally cheaper and easier to hire someone for a job and simply get rid of them when it’s over. But this is changing as are the laws governing how a foreigner like me can work. Now I can very cheaply incorporate a Free Zone Company which will give me both a residents visa and a work permit. Having left my employer I had no visa so for the last 2 years I’ve been working round the region for British companies who pay me from UK. And as a British passport holder I can have an endlessly renewable 30- day visit visa.
This has produced some restrictions – I lost my local credit cards for example and I’ve not been able to rent a long term apartment. On the plus side I’ve been paid in sterling and the rates have been very favourable of late (the local currency is pegged to the dollar and that of course has been in the toilet).
We plan to stay for the long haul. Under UAE rules you have to leave the country on retirement. You can’t have a residence visa unless you are working or own a property. So we’ll be buying a property which will allow us to stay indefinitely – albeit renewing our visa every so often.
That’s why earlier I said that 80% of the population is expats. There are no real immigrants because you can’t stay and you can’t get citizenship. I don’t think this is sustainable permanently. There is no commitment to the country from 80% of the populace and it is damaging both society and the economy.
So in the end we are a different kind of expat than most. We would be immigrants if we could. And we’ll stay as long as we can. But one day they may force us to decamp and that will be sad. But it will be to somewhere like Lebanon or Syria or Iraq which by then insha’allah will be more peaceful
Post Crash
The posts up till now are extracted from an article I wrote for a magazine but too long to put here in one piece. But they've set me thinking about how things have changed here in the last 18 months and especially since the more visible crash towards the end of 2009.
Traffic for one. The roadbuilding programme has continued apace. Perhaps somewhat slowed from the mad dash of the bubble years but nonetheless...
Yet at the same time the number of vehicles has noticeably decreased. This is very visible in Dubai where even the rush hour is bearable. Compared to Sharjah for instance it is a positive pleasure to drive in Dubai - free flowing traffic and wide roads. Most of the worst bottlenecks have gone.
The dangerously stupid, selfish, arrogant, unskilled driving hasn't gone though so it remains a frustrating and dangerous experience albeit a much quicker one.
There's a partially open Metro now in Dubai too. It's a boon if you live and work close enough to be able to use it and once the rest is open sometime this year it's usefulness will go up exponentially. Pity about the busses though.
There's plenty of them and they run frequently. But they have typical UAE drivers. Too focussed on speed and no thought for their passengers or other road users. The experience fills you with terror AND makes you feel sick from the weaving and too fast cornering. No fun at all and I know many who've chosen not to use them again - me included. That's a great waste and I'm a big fan of bus travel in cities elsewhere.
Dubai housing is still ridiculously expensive though it has plunged dramatically. It's merely excessive now rather that outrageous. But it is still USD1300/month for a small one bed flat in an outlying area!
There's life in the business world too. At the end of '09 my pipeline was empty. Even of prospects. Now there are prospects, including a really sweet deal that I want to talk about at length if it comes off. But economic activity has returned and you feel it in the atmosphere. One of my Anglo friends is even having to hand off work as he's overloaded. I remember those days. They'll be back more widely soon - though the bubble has burst and Abu Dhabi will see we don't try to recreate it any time soon.
Traffic for one. The roadbuilding programme has continued apace. Perhaps somewhat slowed from the mad dash of the bubble years but nonetheless...
Yet at the same time the number of vehicles has noticeably decreased. This is very visible in Dubai where even the rush hour is bearable. Compared to Sharjah for instance it is a positive pleasure to drive in Dubai - free flowing traffic and wide roads. Most of the worst bottlenecks have gone.
The dangerously stupid, selfish, arrogant, unskilled driving hasn't gone though so it remains a frustrating and dangerous experience albeit a much quicker one.
There's a partially open Metro now in Dubai too. It's a boon if you live and work close enough to be able to use it and once the rest is open sometime this year it's usefulness will go up exponentially. Pity about the busses though.
There's plenty of them and they run frequently. But they have typical UAE drivers. Too focussed on speed and no thought for their passengers or other road users. The experience fills you with terror AND makes you feel sick from the weaving and too fast cornering. No fun at all and I know many who've chosen not to use them again - me included. That's a great waste and I'm a big fan of bus travel in cities elsewhere.
Dubai housing is still ridiculously expensive though it has plunged dramatically. It's merely excessive now rather that outrageous. But it is still USD1300/month for a small one bed flat in an outlying area!
There's life in the business world too. At the end of '09 my pipeline was empty. Even of prospects. Now there are prospects, including a really sweet deal that I want to talk about at length if it comes off. But economic activity has returned and you feel it in the atmosphere. One of my Anglo friends is even having to hand off work as he's overloaded. I remember those days. They'll be back more widely soon - though the bubble has burst and Abu Dhabi will see we don't try to recreate it any time soon.
18 April 2010
Impressions...Three, Society & Clothes
Yvonne, my wife was a little nervous to begin with. Arab countries do not have a great reputation in the West for their acceptance of women in society. Well that may be true in some places – KSA for example – but not here. Although customs vary she can pretty much be herself. Indian and Arab women spend little time with their husbands in public. But that doesn’t mean that a Western woman who wants to sit in a café alone gets bothered or ignored or treated badly. In fact people love to talk – non threatening and very interested. A smile and an invitation to chat always produce great results. And no hassle. And she’ll often go and sit and talk to a group of Emirati women all in Black and be made very welcome.
Emirati Society has changed in the last 35 years since independence. They are much less approachable and friendly than before. It’s much harder to make acquaintance deeply – get beyond the basic social niceties. Consequently I only have a couple of local friends – though that’s a couple more than many Westerners. Perhaps that’s a consequence of being a minority in your own country. Whatever, it’s a change and a sadness. The old style is till there in some of the other Emirates as well as Oman and Bahrain and to some extent in Qatar but it’s gone from Dubai.
But Arabs from elsewhere remain unbelievably inviting. Endlessly curious to learn more about our world- its good bits and its bad bits and endlessly willing to share the same about their world.
A word about the clothes. Emirati men – and some others – wear the Kandoura (dishdasha as it’s called elsewhere) – that’s the white robe we associate with Gulf Arabs in particular. Women wear the black Abaya. This is actually a light coat and underneath is a variety of clothes from jeans and Tshirt to very glamourous long flowing Arabic dresses. The Gutra – the headdress of generally white or checkered cloth – is part of the men’s costume. The ladies wear a Hijab almost invariably though a minority are totally covered.
And a head covering is vital in this climate and even poor labourers on building sites will use a towel or cloth over the head to keep off the sun.
The traditional men’s clothing (I can’t speak for the ladies’) is generally comfortable and cool because it keeps the air flowing and the sun off your head. But it’s hard to drive in and going to the men’s room can be a little daunting. It also helps explain why squat toilets were the norm here.
Oh…and the puddles on the floors in toilets are not unhygienic messes – on the contrary it where people wash down the whole thing for the next user. Honest.
Emirati Society has changed in the last 35 years since independence. They are much less approachable and friendly than before. It’s much harder to make acquaintance deeply – get beyond the basic social niceties. Consequently I only have a couple of local friends – though that’s a couple more than many Westerners. Perhaps that’s a consequence of being a minority in your own country. Whatever, it’s a change and a sadness. The old style is till there in some of the other Emirates as well as Oman and Bahrain and to some extent in Qatar but it’s gone from Dubai.
But Arabs from elsewhere remain unbelievably inviting. Endlessly curious to learn more about our world- its good bits and its bad bits and endlessly willing to share the same about their world.
A word about the clothes. Emirati men – and some others – wear the Kandoura (dishdasha as it’s called elsewhere) – that’s the white robe we associate with Gulf Arabs in particular. Women wear the black Abaya. This is actually a light coat and underneath is a variety of clothes from jeans and Tshirt to very glamourous long flowing Arabic dresses. The Gutra – the headdress of generally white or checkered cloth – is part of the men’s costume. The ladies wear a Hijab almost invariably though a minority are totally covered.
And a head covering is vital in this climate and even poor labourers on building sites will use a towel or cloth over the head to keep off the sun.
The traditional men’s clothing (I can’t speak for the ladies’) is generally comfortable and cool because it keeps the air flowing and the sun off your head. But it’s hard to drive in and going to the men’s room can be a little daunting. It also helps explain why squat toilets were the norm here.
Oh…and the puddles on the floors in toilets are not unhygienic messes – on the contrary it where people wash down the whole thing for the next user. Honest.
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