My Neighbors

I have been locked in my apartment during Eid working on a paper. While unexpected, living in a construction site like International City reveals really interesting living patterns of the workers here. It's almost eerie the way you rarely see any workers during the day (they are all disguised by buildings in progress like the one featured here). Then at night, the round-abouts and public areas are totally jammed with workers socializing and possibly sleeping. Seeing these nighttime gatherings has become one of the nicest parts of living here. I guess it is International City's version of "street life."

Dubai Replicated?

One of the questions I grapple with is whether the model of Dubai's development can be replicated in other cities in the region. Here is an interview with Andrew Jeffries, the Editor in Chief of Oxford Business Group, examining this very question.

Data Needed

I am trying to get data on the number of US civilians (ie. not affiliated with the US government/miltary) living in different countries in the Middle East. Does anyone know of sources for data like this? Ideally, I would love to know the ratio of US civilians to miltary personnel in different regions of the world (ie. Latin America, Middle East, Europe, Southeast Asia, Korean Peninsula etc.) Any tips would be most appreciated.

DXB International

Just had a long wait for a friend at the arrivals hall at Dubai Airport. While this observation surely isn't unique to Dubai, this section of the airport is a microcosm of sorts for the city. Families separated, then reunited. Friends from the West visiting friends living here for the first time. Large numbers of Indians and Pakistanis coming and going. Young, dressed-up Lebanese hailing a taxi and heading straight to town for a night out. Emiratis returning from a jaunt to another Gulf state. British girls in tank tops imagining their first day on the beach. Of course, all of these ideas are merely my imagination based on loose stereotypes I have developed being here. But having these thoughts in the first place made me realize I was starting to get a feel for the population here.

Iranian Social Club

We got word today that our visas to Iran have been approved. It was a really exciting moment to realize that we were going to be in Tehran at this time next week and that we had passed the various hurdles to getting these visas. It is feeling like the type of trip where my level of anticipation is just so great and I am starting to imagine what the country will look like, how the streets will feel, what my interactions with people will be like. And of course, how the flight from Dubai to Tehran on Iran Air will be. Lots of speculation on that one. To celebrate, we stopped by the Iranian Social Club for shisha and the girls were immediately asked to cover just to enter the club.

Dubai Ramadan

I was a bit nervous when Ramadan started. Not knowing many people in Dubai, I thought that the month would be slow and lacking in social activities. Not at all the case. As this Washington Post article discusses, Ramadan in Dubai is filled with Iftar buffets, various Ramadan "tents" around the city and a huge array of social options after the sun sets.

Blogging

I went to a lecture today with Jeffrey Cole and Duy Linh Tu. They are digital media experts, the former as director of the USC Center for a Digital Future and the latter as a consultant and professor at the Columbia School of Journalism. As a "blogger" in the UAE, the lecture made me think deeply about the frequently cited "limits to journalism" in the UAE and how such limits might relate to the content I decide to feature on the Pearl of Dubai. Am I intimidated to criticize aspects of the UAE? Is there something subconscious at work steering me away from more controversial content or opinions? Perhaps. The UAE is an imperfect work in progress, abeit a wildly successful one as compared to many of its developing cohorts. But the way I see the big picture of this, the larger problem rests with Americans, not Emiratis. For starters, you just don't see Americans here. If Dubai is such a tourist destination and if people are really so intrigued by Vanity Fair's musing about this "capitalist skyline on steroids," then where are the Americans? And if they aren't here, you can be sure they aren't in Amman, Cairo or Saudi. We are at this point where our president speaks in grand terms about the future of the Middle East, yet there aren't civilians here to engage with local customs and people and establish the kind of cross-cultural understanding that will ultimately alleviate some of the tensions we face today. So come on people. Instead of the Caribbean this winter, give the Middle East a try (or maybe start with Dubai to get your feet wet). And that applies to all you liberal New Yorkers as well who sit around and complain about the Bush administration's policies towards the Middle East. Anyone?

Tourist Info.

I came across this site preparing to meet with the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing. It is a good resource for tourists considering a visit to Dubai.

Dubai Inc.

Many people refer to this city as Dubai Inc. due to the way it is governed a lot like a corporation is run. Reading various strategic growth plans for the city, I have learned the influence of academics like Michael Porter on the development principles of the city's rulers. In particular, Porter's work "The Competitive Advantage of Nations" has been interpreted quite creatively here.

Traffic Accidents

I am starting to think that the frequent traffic accidents in Dubai are part of a program to deter reckless driving through instilling fear of the possible consequences. At first, I was simply bewildered by the high number of single car wrecks you see where the cause for the accident remains unclear. Today, I realized I was downright scared of the roads here when I passed a group of Pakistanis hovering over a smoking car and climbing in the broken glass windows to search for bloody survivors. Not to sound dramatic, but people who live here will understand this is a fairly frequent occurence. Here is the academic take on the situation from a Transportation Studies Journal.

Sunset

The late afternoon light over my desert construction site. Gives you a sense of the view out my window of the incomplete Italian (or is it French?) neighborhood of Dubai International City. We are still trying to figure out which parts of the construction represent which regions of the world. A key clue emerged last night when one section was illuminated in Irish green. Unfortunately the Indian workers don't speak English well enough to provide me any answers (or are they just keeping it a secret from me)?

Dubai and Astana

I was surprised to read this NYT article about the growth and success of Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan in Central Asia. There are many parallels between Dubai and Astana, both being cities developed in seemingly remote locations by dedicated visionary rulers. While Astana's growth plans and construction may not be quite as extreme as here in Dubai, the comparison is interesting as another example of the developing world using branding to communicate its relevance to the larger global community.

Young Arab Leaders

For anyone who doesn't know about Young Arab Leaders (YAL), here it is. This is the type of initiative that individuals and organizations from the USA should be lining up to support.

Jumeirah Essex House

Many of my New Yorker readers may not be aware of the fact that after the purchase of the historic Essex House Hotel in Manhattan by the Dubai Holding member Jumeirah, the hotel has been renamed and branded the Jumeirah Essex House. This purchase, in addition to other real estate transactions in Manhattan including the recent deal for the W Union Square, highlights the way in which Dubai's rulers are extending the emirate's brand in the USA through creative real estate transactions.

GCC Branding Summit

Hoping to attend the 2nd Annual GCC National Branding Strategies Summit, taking place at the Burj Al Arab Hotel from December 18-19. The Summit will deal with issues relating to marketing and branding practices in the GCC and opportunities for growth among GCC brands and agencies. Anyone planning on going, please leave me a note here.

Sheikh Zayed Book Award

Announcement yesterday of the new Sheikh Zayed Book Award. Considered the "biggest scientific award" of its kind, the total award of 7 million dihrams is divided among seven sub-awards for books written in the arts and literature to ones about development and state building. Visit UAE Interact for more details.

Mirage or Reality?

I wonder if someone manages the images released of the various buildings and projects under development in Dubai? I think about this because the images one sees in the USA tend to convey a much more completed city skyline than is actually the case. For example, one sees images of buildings like the Burj Dubai (featured above) constantly in their completed form when anyone who lives here can tell you the reality is far from complete.

Dubai Challenges

Article from Gulf News about challenges to "brand Dubai" development.

Creativearab

Another art-related feature in Time Out Dubai this week, this time about a multimedia web site called Creativearab. The site aims to raise the profile of Arab artists and foster an online community among the artists themselves. The most notable part of the article is a stab by Hussein Hallak, the director of the project, at the Gulf Art Fair and its lack of inclusion of local members of the Dubai art community.

Academic Resources

For readers pursuing research in the UAE, I wanted to pass along the link to the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies & Research. I spent the day there today and the center has a great collection of books and articles related to UAE political, social and economic development in addition to books covering similar themes in the broader Middle East region.

Ramadan Enforcement

One of the many unusual aspects of my Dubai living situation is the Dragon Mart, a massive structure on the periphery of International City containing many Chinese-owned and operated knick-knack stores, none of which sell anything remotely useful to me. To add to the general confusion of this structure, I witnessed yesterday a blond British woman in a miniskirt at the Dragon Mart aggressively chastising a group of Chinese workers for drinking water during the fasting hours of Ramadan. It seems that Dragon Mart is the place to be for multicultural drama in Dubai.

Friday is Beach Day

Just starting to discover the various public and hotel beaches in Dubai. The beach is a great way to start the weekend. The pic here is of the public beach in Jumeirah which entertains a great cross-section of Dubai's population.

ATM Gangs

You don't hear of much crime in the UAE, so it was surprising to read today about a gang of thieves robbing ATM users. Click here for the Gulf News report.

More Dubai Architecture

Exciting UAE architecture on the horizon from Zaha Hadid. Hadid will design a Dubai Opera House and the Sheikh Zayed bridge in Abu Dhabi. My personal favorite is Hadid's plans for 'Dancing Towers' at the Dubai Business Bay. These towers will occupy the same general space as the Burj Dubai and seem to well represent the spirit of the city.

UAE Student Fulbright

On Monday I took part in a ceremony marking the establishment of a UAE Student Fulbright for graduate study in the United States. The agreement, signed by UAE Minister of Higher Education Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan and US Ambassador to the UAE Michele Sison, will provide funding for graduate study in the US to UAE nationals who demonstrate leadership potential, strong English skills and a desire to improve cross-cultural understanding between the two nations. Click here for more details on this new opportunity.