The Dubai Expat Diaries

There’s been quite a lot of coverage as well as rhetoric in the British media of late, regaring Dubai and a possible terror threat, posed to the Palm Jumeirah and the Burj al Arab hotel. Some snippets from various media reports:

From The Telegraph:

Expats – who make up perhaps as much as 90 per cent of the population of Dubai – have lived with the veiled undertone of terrorism for many years, at least since the 9/11 outrage. Dubai – as it strives to reconcile the demands of Islam with its ambitions to be the modern business centre for the Gulf and a playground for tourists from all round the world – has seemed an obvious target for a long time now. The recurring subject of dinner party conversations in beach-side villas in Jumeirah (Dubai’s own version of Hampstead) has not been “will it happen?” but “why hasn’t it happened yet?”

From Hotels Magazine:

BRIT spies have uncovered an al-Qaida plot to target David Beckham and other England football stars. MI6 spooks learned the terrorists were planning to attack a holiday paradise in Dubai where Beckham and other stars have homes. The news sparked a fresh security alert in the Arab Emirates state and the Foreign Office has now upped its threat warning from “general” to “high”. The British Embassy in Dubai warned travellers: “There is a high threat from terrorism.

Beckham and his fellow footballers Gary Neville, Michael Owen, David James, Joe Cole, Andy Cole and Kieron Dyer all have properties on the artificial island of Palm Jumeirah, known as the “eighth wonder of the world”. The millionaires’ playground has been mentioned several times as a potential target on al-Qaida websites monitored by the security services. Also mentioned was the Burj Al-Arab, the world’s tallest hotel.

Continue reading ‘Terror threats Burj al Arab and Palm Jumeirah - Is the Dubai UK Terror Alert Media Hype?’

Please be warned! There is a hoax / false email being circulated warning of a Hurricane and possible thunderstorms this weekend in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and most parts of the UAE. Do not take it seriously!!! IT IS A HOAX. Please check weather.com or any popular site for the actual weather forecast and avoid circulating the email.

This is what the email looks like:

Hurricane coming from the Indian Ocean hit the island within the Arabic Tuesday evening (and God knows)

Riyadh:-

The U.S. Navy expected the arrival of the hurricane to the Sultanate of Oman and then to the Saudi capital Riyadh where it will be at it’s most power. The anticipated Hurricane will be directed towards the Arabian Peninsula until it reaches Riyadh and the eastern region, and expectations that the ratio of rain to hit Riyadh 70 mm especially south of it, God willing. On the other hand, warned meteorology person Khalid bin Mohammed Al-Awad that there is a hurricane coming from the Indian Ocean approaching from the Arab Gulf states including Saudi Arabia. He added in his statement to “Al-Riyadh news letter:” There are three possibilities for the path of the hurricane around the Kingdom in the way to the North between the Riyadh region and among eastern region, and second bath to be derailed over the waters of the Arabian Gulf and the deepening Ras Tanura until after the strike many of the Areas bordering the waters of the Arabian Gulf from the West, the third possibility to beat the Sultanate of Oman and then go strongly to the UAE and south-west Pakistan.

Continue reading ‘UAE Hurricane Hoax - Hurricane coming from the Indian Ocean hit the island within the Arabic Tuesday evening’

Westin ATM party draws over 2,000: Pre-ATM bash declared ‘hottest’ party of the year

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, May 6, 2008 – It was Open House at The Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi Beach Resort and Marina last night as the five-star resort flung open its doors to welcome in the world’s travel industry and give them a glimpse of Dubai’s very latest beachfront resort.

Over 2,000 people attended the gala event, which celebrated The Westin’s official opening, as well as set the stage for a week of business at Arabian Travel Market (ATM).

Continue reading ‘Westin Dubai ATM party draws over 2,000 - Bash declared ‘hottest’ party of the year in Dubai’

The West End Stage Experience – Live the Dream…

Popular Productions Ltd & West End Stage Experience are seeking talented actors, singers and dancers aged between 10 and 23 to audition to be part of one of the most exciting and successful musicals of recent years – Disney’s High School Musical.

The West End Stage Experience is designed to give young performers a real life taste of professional theatre. Auditions, rehearsals and performances all run according to professional practise, led by a team of excellent UK West End creatives who between them have many years of professional experience in their fields.

For two fun but intensive weeks, the cast will rehearse the show under the supervision of our West End creative team and will receive first class support in acting, dancing and singing as well as gaining excellent and valuable experience in staging theatre under professional conditions.

And, at the end the cast will experience the thrill of performing live on stage in the fully staged MIDDLE EAST PREMIERE PRODUCTION of DISNEY’S HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL in July, to a real audience of thousands over seven memorable performances at the Dubai Community Theatre, Mall of the Emirates.

Continue reading ‘Disney’s High School Musical - Auditions - Dubai’

The Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi Beach Resort & Marina showed the Dubai Taxi Drivers the Westin difference, when they invited them to experience a breakfast- to- go compliments of The Westin. Over 500 taxi drivers showed their support ahead of the opening and were met by key management staff of The Westin and handed a breakfast pack. “Dubai Taxis are an integral part of the daily operation of any hotels and this was a small way we could show them that we appreciate there support.”, said Ulrike Andorff, Complex Director of Rooms, The Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi.

Continue reading ‘The Westin Dubai opens, supported by over 500 Dubai Taxi Drivers!’

The Bride Show and Emirates Business 24/7 report that the wedding industry grew 20 % in 2007:

The cost of tying the knot can be anything from Dh20,000 for a small expat union to Dh500m for the most extravagant Emirati nuptials. But according to IIR – the Bride Show event organisers – the average cost is Dh300,000. It is estimated that couples in the Middle East spend the highest amount per head on weddings anywhere in the world, with the average cost in the United Kingdom being just  £18,000 (Dh135,000) and in the United States $30,000 (Dh110,00).

Kicking off on 23rd April 2008, The Bride Show Dubai will welcome more than 30,000 visitors to an exhibition where the most extravagant and exclusive items can be bought.  The Arabian Home Show and Women’s Healthcare run alongside The Bride Show Dubai at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre. All events are open daily from 2.30pm - 10.30pm

Twitter has now been blocked in Dubai and the UAE! Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that allows users to send “updates” (or “tweets”; text-based posts, up to 140 characters long) to the Twitter website, via short message service (e.g. on a cell phone), instant messaging, or a third-party application such as Twitterrific or Facebook.

Updates are displayed on the user’s profile page and instantly delivered to other users who have signed up to receive them. The sender can restrict delivery to those in his or her circle of friends (delivery to everyone is the default). Users can receive updates via the Twitter website, instant messaging, SMS, RSS, email or through an application. For SMS, four gateway numbers are currently available: short codes for the United States, Canada, and India, as well as a United Kingdom number for international use. Several third parties offer posting and receiving updates via email.

Media reports indicate that popstar Madonna may perform in Dubai in November, with a record $24 million 2 concert deal, that would have her earning over $133k per minute!!! How’s that for a great job!?

Barasti at Le Méridien Mina Seyahi Beach Resort & Marina is back on tour once again, with the first set of Barasti on Tour winners returning slightly hoarse from a three-day rugby spectacle after attending the Wales Vs France Six Nations match in Cardiff on March 15.

Charl and Eugene Roberts, Robin Ali, Nigel Smith, Stuart Morgan and Philip Madge were all winners of the first event for Barasti on Tour in 2008. They won a three-day trip to London and Cardiff to attend the Six Nations match, which saw Wales emerge victors in front of a riotous home crowd, after beating France 29-12.

Continue reading ‘Barasti Bar Dubai - Six lucky Barasti customers enjoy three-day rugby extravaganza’

Hotel eMarketing and Internet ‘e’volution – Creating an Online Culture at Hotels: Are you a hotel eMarketer looking for ways to better communicate, educate and develop the role at your property/ies? This article explores some of the issues surrounding these efforts, complemented by a dose of perspective and a generous helping of best practices, all garnished, hopefully, by your own ideas and experiences. By Jitendra Jain

Finding Meaning: Wikipedia attributes the word ‘evolution’ to the Latin term ‘evolutio’ meaning “unfolding”. While the tech and Internet revolution have anything but “unfolded” upon us (“exploded” would be more appropriate, given the short span of time over which most Internet-related developments have occurred), there is something to be learnt from the nature of these changes.

Continue reading ‘Hotel eMarketer tips for driving an internet culture in hotels’