February 2012 - the month we moved out here to the UAE (Abu Dhabi) - we flew into Dubai on 15th so an odd Valentine's Day was spent in the air after having left York in deep snow...
Quinn in our garden in York days before we were due to fly out to the desert sun...
We couldn't have left a more different place - climate, society, natural history, history, politics - you name it, it is totally different... Hopefully, here I will chat about my impressions of this extraordinary place...
The first thing you notice is the warmth... Of course coming from the cold of a UK winter most places feel warm, but the Gulf is different; it is warm here all the time - even in the winter the average day temperature is about 26C and the sun shines nearly all the time...
How the day begins - a glorious Arabic sun glowing over the desert - promising warmth...
So, once you recover from the unrelenting heat the next assault on your senses is the space... The UK is crowded, cities and towns are clustered around rivers or roads, houses jostle for space and in the urban environment, nowhere can you feel uncluttered. That feeling of closeness is actually comforting... here there is so much space - it takes an age to move around simply because the distance between places. And the buildings...
Well they don't do anything by halves... whether it is the iconic Aldar building (HQ of the major developer out here)...
or when they design high-rise in the city centre...
or the monument to the founding father Sheikh Zayed...
.JPG)
...like York Minster
or
Chartres... buildings cast from the very stones of the earth...
the grand designs of the Gulf appear plastic and temporary... Will they still be standing in 500 or 1000 years as monuments to a way of life and core beliefs of a nation and a cohesive people? I think not but only time will tell...
Dredger at work clearing a channel less than 4 years old...
But when they are stabilized (in a way) the beaches can look pretty inviting - if you like beaches...
...and of course there are the shopping malls if you like shopping and the amazing restaurants if you like eating - that seems to be all there is to Abu Dhabi really... the Weekly Time Out in AD promotes things to do in Abu Dhabi and nearly all of those tend to be "where to eat" or "where to shop" promotions; it's like they can't think of anything else.
But saying all of that, you can't help but like the place - it's the melting pot of nationalities, of cultures, of people. We are in it together really - working for the feudal lords who rest in luxury, sitting on silken cushions, resplendent in bling-inspired finery. Ferrari's, Lamborghini's and Maserati's cheek by jowl in the drive. We do their bidding... and enjoy the sun... Some aspire to be as our oil-rich lords, employing staff - maids and nannies - where they would never have thought of it "back home" in an attempt to disassociate themselves from the rest; but the truth is they are just like the rest, only with less housework...
In the course of the year we have visited most of the other Emirates and seen some amazing things...
The creek at Dubai...
Bull butting in Fujairah...
Wildlife in the mangroves of Ras al Khaimah...
The fascinating Museum of Arabian Civilisation in Sharjah...
Roadside markets in Liwa...
and the amazing design of desert hotels, this one just outside the oasis at Liwa...
All these experiences are of course educational and our son has seen things he would never have seen had we stayed in the UK and despite the misgivings about many aspects of life here, I can't see us leaving just yet... We still have many other things to see and I have this fledgling Photography Business to build...
See how that goes next week on Facebook page here - Click this link... and let me know what you think about anything...
Tutorials begin again next week after the Easter break and I am looking forward to seeing how my star pupil has got on (I do hope that all the set homework has been done...)
SO another blog ends... hope you enjoy it...
TTFN
We couldn't have left a more different place - climate, society, natural history, history, politics - you name it, it is totally different... Hopefully, here I will chat about my impressions of this extraordinary place...
The first thing you notice is the warmth... Of course coming from the cold of a UK winter most places feel warm, but the Gulf is different; it is warm here all the time - even in the winter the average day temperature is about 26C and the sun shines nearly all the time...
So, once you recover from the unrelenting heat the next assault on your senses is the space... The UK is crowded, cities and towns are clustered around rivers or roads, houses jostle for space and in the urban environment, nowhere can you feel uncluttered. That feeling of closeness is actually comforting... here there is so much space - it takes an age to move around simply because the distance between places. And the buildings...
or when they design high-rise in the city centre...
or the monument to the founding father Sheikh Zayed...
or the new artistic venture on Saadyat Island...
The UAE pavilion...
These buildings take your breath away, but you can't help thinking that all this is superficial - compared to the great buildings of North West Europe...
.JPG)
or
the grand designs of the Gulf appear plastic and temporary... Will they still be standing in 500 or 1000 years as monuments to a way of life and core beliefs of a nation and a cohesive people? I think not but only time will tell...
In addition to the buildings and of course the endless sun, are the beaches - they make a big deal about beaches out here - and with the occasional exception most are man made... As a consequence they spend an awful lot of money dredging the manufactured channels between areas of claimed land to prevent silting... the world's oceanic currents pay no respect to wealth or the desire for land and beaches where nature didn't intend them...
But when they are stabilized (in a way) the beaches can look pretty inviting - if you like beaches...
But saying all of that, you can't help but like the place - it's the melting pot of nationalities, of cultures, of people. We are in it together really - working for the feudal lords who rest in luxury, sitting on silken cushions, resplendent in bling-inspired finery. Ferrari's, Lamborghini's and Maserati's cheek by jowl in the drive. We do their bidding... and enjoy the sun... Some aspire to be as our oil-rich lords, employing staff - maids and nannies - where they would never have thought of it "back home" in an attempt to disassociate themselves from the rest; but the truth is they are just like the rest, only with less housework...
In the course of the year we have visited most of the other Emirates and seen some amazing things...
The creek at Dubai...
Wildlife in the mangroves of Ras al Khaimah...
All these experiences are of course educational and our son has seen things he would never have seen had we stayed in the UK and despite the misgivings about many aspects of life here, I can't see us leaving just yet... We still have many other things to see and I have this fledgling Photography Business to build...
See how that goes next week on Facebook page here - Click this link... and let me know what you think about anything...
Tutorials begin again next week after the Easter break and I am looking forward to seeing how my star pupil has got on (I do hope that all the set homework has been done...)
SO another blog ends... hope you enjoy it...
TTFN
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