70 days in Dubai !
The time has flown and guess what, I am starting to feel at home in this city of fun, glass and glitz. I can make my way around the city (most the time now without the GPS), have made some great friends, attend Arabic classes and I am getting into a routine again, keeping myself busy and out of trouble, for now. Most important, I have found myself a women's salon.
I am getting used to a lot of the things that first caught my attention when I arrived, but everyday I discover something new that totally intrigues me all over again.
Getting to know the city and culture has been fun and I feel like my eyes have been opened to the world around me. I love the people I have been able to meet and associate with. They are from all over the world. It certainly puts your life and how the world views Americans into perspective.
There are a few things I could write about, but unless you see or experience it for yourself you would never believe it. When I ask, "why is it that way?", I always get the same answer, " because they can". There is no truer statement for Dubai - because they can.
Below are a few more fun and interesting facts I would like to pass along....
1. Status is everything in Dubai. It is easy to identify the important people of the city on the road. Their cars and license plates tell you all you need to know.
Cars are driven around proudly, showing off their social status or place in Dubai's society via their license plate. A one digit number license plate is the Shaikh, the ruler of Dubai, himself. A two digit number is the royal family. A three or four digit number license plate signifies that you are friend or close relation to the Shaikh. A five digit license plate is what all the other people of the city or expatriates have on their cars, including yours truly. I proudly drive around my five digit license plated SUV.
If you really have the need to have a lower digit license plate, an auction is held yearly and plates with lower numbers are put up for bid. At last years auction, over a million dollars was spent on one of the low digit license plates. All in the name of status. Who would have ever thought.
2. Dubai is the luxury car Capitol of the world. Mercedes and Porsche's are mundane here, common place. Everyone has one and they are not that unique or special in Dubai. You see Ferrari's, Jaguar's,Maserati's, Roll Royce's, Bentley's, Mercedes G class with V 12 engines and even Maybachs all the time.
Luxury cars are everywhere you look. People that could not ever afford to buy a luxury car in their home country can now afford to buy one in the UAE. Chevrolet Tahoe's and trucks are also held with high regard and the Emirate Nationals love them. When I first arrived in Dubai, I was in awe and it was fun to see all the luxury, high end cars that I would rarely see in Utah, just being driven around the city, but now I barely notice them. Many of the car companies build spec's sepcific for cars driven in the UAE only. Who really needs a V12 engine for driving around the city? The V12 engines are so powerful you can hear them coming up behind you blocks away.
The cars that still astound me the most are the 24 K gold plated vehicles and SUV's. You can see them parked or being driven around the city. Even more surprising, no one would even think of stealing them - it is unheard of in Dubai.
3. There are non Muslim Pork rooms in some of the grocery stores. We cannot live without our bacon, pork chops, pork and beans, ham, and other pork related items. The Shaikh has allowed non Muslim pork rooms to be placed in the back of some grocery stores in Dubai. Some of the other Emirates do not allow pork to be sold in their city, but Dubai does allow it. Only non Muslims are allowed to enter the pork room and purchase pork items. The rooms remind me of the old porn video rooms that used to be in video stores years ago. The room you only looked into but never walked in. I proudly walk in the pork room weekly, picking up ham and other items we would like to purchase. Guess what else you can find in the pork rooms occasionally ? Oreo's, cinnamon bears, Pop Tarts, Marshmallows, etc. Yes, all those items are made with some sort of pork by product.
4. The Call to Prayer five times a day. The call to prayer is broadcast throughout the city five times a day. Besides the call to prayer, sometimes, 25 minutes later, the actual prayer is also broadcast. On Fridays, prayer day, the sermons are broadcast for all to hear. I don't know Arabic yet, but can get the jest of what is being said based on the emotion behind the broadcast.
Mosque's seem to be within a mile of each other and sometimes even closer. The call to prayer are not perfectly timed so you can have three or four being broadcast at the same time all around you - it is like call to prayer in stereo. Where I currently live, the Mosque is only a few blocks away and the first call to prayer broadcast before dawn still wakes me every morning, but I am okay with that and have grown to really like the call to prayer. If I am in my car when the call to prayer is broadcast, I will turn off my radio, roll down the window and listen.
How grateful I am for this experience ! More to come in the future.
The time has flown and guess what, I am starting to feel at home in this city of fun, glass and glitz. I can make my way around the city (most the time now without the GPS), have made some great friends, attend Arabic classes and I am getting into a routine again, keeping myself busy and out of trouble, for now. Most important, I have found myself a women's salon. I am getting used to a lot of the things that first caught my attention when I arrived, but everyday I discover something new that totally intrigues me all over again.
Getting to know the city and culture has been fun and I feel like my eyes have been opened to the world around me. I love the people I have been able to meet and associate with. They are from all over the world. It certainly puts your life and how the world views Americans into perspective.
There are a few things I could write about, but unless you see or experience it for yourself you would never believe it. When I ask, "why is it that way?", I always get the same answer, " because they can". There is no truer statement for Dubai - because they can.
Below are a few more fun and interesting facts I would like to pass along....
1. Status is everything in Dubai. It is easy to identify the important people of the city on the road. Their cars and license plates tell you all you need to know.
Cars are driven around proudly, showing off their social status or place in Dubai's society via their license plate. A one digit number license plate is the Shaikh, the ruler of Dubai, himself. A two digit number is the royal family. A three or four digit number license plate signifies that you are friend or close relation to the Shaikh. A five digit license plate is what all the other people of the city or expatriates have on their cars, including yours truly. I proudly drive around my five digit license plated SUV.
If you really have the need to have a lower digit license plate, an auction is held yearly and plates with lower numbers are put up for bid. At last years auction, over a million dollars was spent on one of the low digit license plates. All in the name of status. Who would have ever thought.
2. Dubai is the luxury car Capitol of the world. Mercedes and Porsche's are mundane here, common place. Everyone has one and they are not that unique or special in Dubai. You see Ferrari's, Jaguar's,Maserati's, Roll Royce's, Bentley's, Mercedes G class with V 12 engines and even Maybachs all the time.
Luxury cars are everywhere you look. People that could not ever afford to buy a luxury car in their home country can now afford to buy one in the UAE. Chevrolet Tahoe's and trucks are also held with high regard and the Emirate Nationals love them. When I first arrived in Dubai, I was in awe and it was fun to see all the luxury, high end cars that I would rarely see in Utah, just being driven around the city, but now I barely notice them. Many of the car companies build spec's sepcific for cars driven in the UAE only. Who really needs a V12 engine for driving around the city? The V12 engines are so powerful you can hear them coming up behind you blocks away.
The cars that still astound me the most are the 24 K gold plated vehicles and SUV's. You can see them parked or being driven around the city. Even more surprising, no one would even think of stealing them - it is unheard of in Dubai.
3. There are non Muslim Pork rooms in some of the grocery stores. We cannot live without our bacon, pork chops, pork and beans, ham, and other pork related items. The Shaikh has allowed non Muslim pork rooms to be placed in the back of some grocery stores in Dubai. Some of the other Emirates do not allow pork to be sold in their city, but Dubai does allow it. Only non Muslims are allowed to enter the pork room and purchase pork items. The rooms remind me of the old porn video rooms that used to be in video stores years ago. The room you only looked into but never walked in. I proudly walk in the pork room weekly, picking up ham and other items we would like to purchase. Guess what else you can find in the pork rooms occasionally ? Oreo's, cinnamon bears, Pop Tarts, Marshmallows, etc. Yes, all those items are made with some sort of pork by product.
4. The Call to Prayer five times a day. The call to prayer is broadcast throughout the city five times a day. Besides the call to prayer, sometimes, 25 minutes later, the actual prayer is also broadcast. On Fridays, prayer day, the sermons are broadcast for all to hear. I don't know Arabic yet, but can get the jest of what is being said based on the emotion behind the broadcast.
Mosque's seem to be within a mile of each other and sometimes even closer. The call to prayer are not perfectly timed so you can have three or four being broadcast at the same time all around you - it is like call to prayer in stereo. Where I currently live, the Mosque is only a few blocks away and the first call to prayer broadcast before dawn still wakes me every morning, but I am okay with that and have grown to really like the call to prayer. If I am in my car when the call to prayer is broadcast, I will turn off my radio, roll down the window and listen.
At the Jumeirah Mosque, non Muslims are allowed to enter a few days a week for one hour to learn about the Muslim faith. It was fascinating to observe the prayer offered. It certainly helped us understand it so much better.
5. Arabian bread - we have given up sliced bread for flat, delicious Arabian bread. I love it , especially with butter and honey. Arabian bread is a staple in this areas of the world and it is enjoyed in so many ways.
We came across a very old bread bakery in an alley off a main road this week. The shop was very small, with a wide open window. Two men were siting on the counter, yep, sitting on the counter, cross legged and barefoot. One man was rolling the dough flat, then he would throw the saucer shaped dough into a glowing hole in the floor of the bakery. The second man, was holding a forked stick and would fish out the baked bread, throwing it up on the counter for purchase. As quickly as the bread came out of the hole, people were grabbing them to buy. We were lucky to grab four flat breads,which cost a total of 1 dirham ( @ 25 cents US). The bakery was extremely dirty and unsanitary but the bread was the best bread I have ever eaten. Out of the this world good.
I have grown to love this city in a very short time - 70 short days - but still have so much to learn and explore. It has been great having my youngest daughter Taeler here in Dubai for the month of May. While Jeff is at work we are out exploring, finding new things that totally amaze, scare or enchant us.
Fun fun fun...looks like you are having a blast...you also look at least 10 years younger...that's what time away from ESD will do! :)
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