Dubai Reading List 2

To add to my first reading list, just thought I would post an update with the latest books I have read:

Istanbul by Orhan Pamuk
Al-Jazeera by Hugh Miles
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
A Century in Thirty Years: Shaykh Zayed and the UAE Edited by Joseph A. Kechichian
What is the What by Dave Eggers
Oil Monarchies by E. Gregory Gause
The Wink of the Mona Lisa by Mohammad Al Murr
Brand New Justice by Simon Anholt
Marketing Places by Philip Kotler, Donald Haider, Irving Rein
Father of Dubai by Graeme Wilson
The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad
Gandhi, His Life and Message for the World by Louis Fischer

Shopping Festival

The New York Times published an interesting recap of the recent Idex military trade fair this past week in Abu Dhabi. Unlike the Shopping Festival in Dubai, this fair had a more serious tone as many Gulf leaders have openly advertised their "shopping spree for new weapons." This openness of course is part of the larger conflict between the West and Iran, which places the Gulf states in a delicate spot diplomatically and from a security point of view.

Pearla of The World

In an unrelated plug, my wonderful sister has justed started a trip around the world. For news of her travels, she has a blog as well called Un Mundo Entero. Have fun Vanessa!

Pulled over...

I had my first encounter with the Dubai traffic police tonight. They flagged me down after I made a fairly abrupt lane change without indicating. There were two officers, and the first one approached my car, uttered some things in Arabic, and I handed him my license and registration. Then, he summoned me to the police car where I met the second officer, a very friendly guy who shook my hand and smiled. He asked if I knew what "mistake" I made, and I explained my suspicion about the rapid lane change. Interestingly, he didn't agree or disagree with this, but rather seemed concerned that I knew how to get home and offered directions on how I should best proceed. We then smiled, shook hands again, and parted ways.

Hotel Star Systems

The Burj al Arab does a good job at marketing itself as a 'Seven star' hotel. However fabulous this may sound, one begins to doubt the meaning of this designation when noting the number of stars other hotels in the city have. Maybe it's just me, but oftentimes I find myself leaving a hotel restaurant and looking at a 5-star ranking on the front plaque of the entrance. This often occurs at hotels that would never get such a rank in other countries. My good friend Wikipedia chimes in on the topic, describing the system for ranking hotels and pointing out that in some countries an official body exists with presumably independent ranking criteria.

Island Update

My friend Chad alerted me to recent photos from Nasa of the various offshore islands being constructed here in Dubai. I was surprised by how far along The World is. It seems that only the South Pacific Australia region is yet to be filled in by sand.

Creative Majlis

Based in Dubai, Creative Majlis is an organization of creative professionals pooling their talents towards community projects around the world. This Saturday February 17th, the group will host an event in Dubai.

Gulf Marketing Review

An article I wrote appears in the February 2007 edition of Gulf Marketing Review. The subject is the challenges facing the brand Dubai and strategies for confronting them. I am not sure if the article will be posted online but the print version is for sale this month all around the Gulf. The article is titled "In National Defence" by Jeremy Tamanini.

Quoted in Qatar

Some thoughts and quotes from Qatar:

'The difference between Qatar and Kuwait is that in Kuwait, the government is conservative but the population is liberal while in Qatar, the opposite is true'

Don't be fooled by guidebook descriptions of Palm Island. The sandbar you see with one tree on it really is Palm Island.

Look carefully at the racial composition of the working class in Doha. It differs quite a bit from Dubai.

Qatari guys take fashion to the next level, forming unique shapes and patterns with their head scarves.

Don't miss a 4WD trip to the Inland Sea.

Take the AlJazeera roundabout a few times and note how such a small news building manages to make such a splash around the world.

Dubai Strategic Plan

Sheikh Mohammad announces the Dubai Strategic Plan, setting forth general development goals and guidelines through the year 2015. While the release contains some specific numbers related to GDP growth and job creation, it contains mostly broad statements related to economic and social development.

Gulf Cup

I read an article somewhere that a correlation exists between local stock market movement and soccer victories and defeats of local teams. The victory parade in Dubai on Friday celebrating the UAE victory in the Gulf Cup may have confirmed a theory along these lines. Somehow my car ended up at the beginning of the parade formed by four cars hoisting a UAE flag from their car roofs. It was exciting to see Sheikh Zayed Road transformed into a huge local celebration of Emiratis making us all realize for a moment the native nationalism in the UAE.

Dubai Metro

Dubai drivers anxiously await the Dubai Metro, due to launch in September 2009. The main red line will connect Deira with Jebel Ali and feature Japanese-made train cars with a "water and air theme." Three classes of service will exist including a luxury Golden Class fitted with leather seats and advanced audiovisual devices.

Making Moves: Abu Dhabi

Speaking of intra-emirate competition, news of proposed designs for an Abu Dhabi cultural district sends shockwaves through the press. Architects including Zaha Hadid, Frank Gehry, Jean Nouvel and Tadao Ando have submitted plans for museums and cultural centers. I believe you can see the models on display at the Emirates Palace Hotel. Another example of how exciting the risk-taking can be here with development projects.