The Dubai Expat Diaries

More Aerial Photos of Dubai – here you can see the Dubai Marina area…these photographs were taken in 2007.

Dubai Marina Pics / Dubai Marina Aerial Photos – The Palm Jumeirah Trunk and the Mina Seyahi / One & Only Royal Mirage area (Al Sufouh Road)

Dubai Marina Pics / Dubai Marina Aerial Photos – A great shot of the Dubai Marina

Continue reading ‘Aerial Photos of Dubai Marina’

More Aerial Photos of Dubai…these photographs were taken in 2007 – a lot has changed since then, especially in Downtown Dubai (and of course the completion of Burj Khalifa)

Downtown Dubai Pics / Dubai Aerial Photos – Sheikh Zayed Road from a distance

Downtown Dubai Pics / Dubai Aerial Photos – The Dubai Skyline and Sheikh Zayed Road

Continue reading ‘Aerial Photos Downtown Dubai and Burj Khalifa’

Old but gold…these Aerial Photos of Dubai were taken sometime in 2007, but still look great – some things have changed…and other things not so much!

Dubai Pics / Dubai Aerial Photos - The Mina Seyahi Marina and Hotels (Le Meridien Mina Seyahi and The Westin Dubai) – Al Sufouh

Dubai Pics / Dubai Aerial Photos – The Palm Jumeirah

Continue reading ‘Dubai Aerial Photos – Helicopter Pics of Dubai’

The Apple iPhone 4 and iPhone 4g will finally be available in Dubai from September! The Apple iPhone 4 was released on June 24, 2010 in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Japan.

The last time Apple launched the breakthrough iPhone, it took over 6 months before the iPhone was available in Dubai. Also, unofficial prices for the Apple iPhone 3GS when it was available ranged all the way upto $1200…upto 5 or 6 times the official price tag in some cases. We’ve seen quite a few people in Dubai already using the Apple iPhone 4 and iPhone 4g, most possibly purchased from the US (and other countries) and unlocked with an iPhone jail-break. So far the official Apple stores in Dubai have not released launch related information for the iPhone 4 in Dubai.

Continue reading ‘iPhone 4 Dubai – iPhone 4 Prices Dubai, Apple Stores Dubai’

Blackberry users in the UAE have been baffled by the recent news of the imminent ban on its services in the country. The TRA have announced to cut off its services by October 11 later this year until a solution they seek with RIM is reached.

This has come as a surprise to the many loyal Blackberry users unaware of the controversy surrounding this ban. This will definitely leave a void in the market as no other mobile phone comes even close to providing the ease of staying “connected” and doing business that the Blackberry provides to busy corporate executives.

The decision made in the  interest of security, will end up hurting businesses and corporations as there are no phones in the market at the moment that could take its place. But with the ban a few months away, its possible they  might find an amicable solution just in time and the Blackberry users may heave a sigh of relief.

It is soon going to be compulsory to have an ID card to access the internet from public locations such as cafes and shopping malls. This move is intended to protect children and prevent cyber crime.

This highlights the growing importance of having an ID card in the near future. Expats who don’t have an ID card as yet, have until the end of 2010 to apply for it.

For more information on the application process and fees, click here.

It seems like etisalat users will have to endure the incredibly slow internet connection until the end of this week. It has been about 2 weeks since it was announced that etisalat internet connection had been hit by a cable damage and this is the second time the repair date has been delayed. They have now said that due to bad weather they expect to have it repaired by April 30. Meanwhile for internet users it feels like this disruption has been going on forever.

For more, click here.

Although Dubai hasn’t yet made an official bid for the 2020 Olympics, the emirate is conducting feasibility studies to weigh the pros and cons of hosting the Olympic games.

According to Arabian Business, in a recent interview Sheikh Mohammed stated:

“Dubai already has a well-developed infrastructure and a good track record of staging international sporting events, although admittedly not on the scale of the Olympic Games…We will have to take an honest look at our weaknesses as well as our strengths.”

“I can assure you of this, though: If we decide to make a bid for the Olympics, we will be in it to win. We would not take such a step unless we were quite serious about it.”

Continue reading ’2020 Olympics in Dubai – still under consideration’

The on-going travel chaos caused by the volcanic eruption in Iceland has delayed the launch of the world’s first Armani Hotel in Dubai.

Located in the world’s tallest tower Burj Khalifa, the Armani hotel was due to open today. But thanks to the travel disruption in Europe, the designer Giorgio Armani and several hundred VIP guests could not make it to Dubai on the expected arrival dates. The opening ceremony has now been scheduled for April 27.

Continue reading ‘Armani Hotel launch pushed by another week’

Recent news have been dominated by the shutting down of the European airspace for days, which has happened for the first time in history, crippling the airline industry and leaving millions of travelers stranded around the globe. There are several stories of Dubai expatriates among others unable to return home, businesses suffering huge losses due to the grounding of all flights to and from the major destinations in Europe, hotels hiking up rates making the best of the situation and adding to the misery of those who have nowhere else to go and have no other means to return. The scale of this situation is astounding and almost everyone knows someone who has been affected directly or indirectly by the crisis.

Continue reading ‘Hope for stranded passengers as some European airports open partially’