Dubai is Getting Unfriendly to Western Dress: Dubai malls join anti-indecency campaign

Dubai seriously needs to reconsider what it wants to be.   No one will visit the equivalent of Saudi Arabia on a vacation.

Dubai’s shopping malls don’t just combine the awesome collections of international brand labels, but go further to enlighten newcomers on Emirati cultural rules and what’s the acceptable general behaviour.

The rules are on signs at the main entrances and distributed by security personnel as well.

It includes no smoking in the mall, wearing of respectable clothing and no kissing or public displays of affection, no consumption of alcohol in the mall and few other don’ts.

Sabina Khanvwani, Head of Public Relations and Marketing Department at Burjuman Centre, said despite the signs, there are still visitors who still need to be reminded of what is and what is not acceptable.

“Burjuman has already fixed stickers on the main entrances in order to deliver the message directly to them, some of them adhere and others don’t. We cannot enforce them to comply but we keep reminding them that Dubai is part of the UAE and it’s a Muslim country with a conservative society and must be respected.”

Most expatriates Gulf News spoke to say they didn’t do things on purpose or to annoy the Emirati community. They just grew up dressing that way.

Tania N. a 29-year-old Russian businesswoman, said she got confused when a security guard at the Mall of the Emirates handed her a brochure on how to dress appropriately.

“I respect Dubai, its religion, culture and people, I come here frequently for business and pleasure, and I was never asked to cover my shoulders or my knees until recently,” she said.

“I used to wear a sleeveless short gown or miniskirt and according to my background it is a decent outfit and doesn’t cause any kind of embarrassment. But lately a security approached me and in a polite way handed me a brochure that includes the mall’s courtesy policy regarding dress code and general behaviour.”

Asked whether she will adhere to the mall’s dress code, she said: “I really don’t find it necessary, besides I don’t have long or covered outfits, and the most importantly I didn’t do something bad to Dubai or its people.”

Katayoon Tahmoress M, an Iranian writer based in Dubai agrees with Tania.

“I love Dubai and I like its style. But the way I dress is completely a personal matter and I don’t allow anybody to educate me on what to wear and what not to wear.”

Gabriel and Elena, both Americans, said the visitors and expatriates should’ve been informed of the dress and behavioural rules before they fly into the country.

“Such instructions should be informed before we enter the country not while we are shopping. Besides the weather in Dubai is truly hot,” they said.

Mariam Al Salem and her Emirati companions said visitors and expatriates should tow the line.

“Our rules must be strictly followed,” Mariam said… SOURCE

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Sharjah celebrates heritage week

The Sharjah corniche road basked in a crimson glow of the setting sun, wooden dhows anchored bumped against each other with each incoming waves. It is celebration week.

Seagulls flew in patterns, the streets looked busy as always, and the air was filled with bhukoor (Arabic incense) and the aroma of freshly fried luqeimat (crispy dumplings dipped in honey or date syrup) that wafted from the adjacent heritage site in Shuweihan.

Amid the din of the usual evening traffic, the sound of faint rhythmic beats of the drums and a rustic chorus could be heard.
As the evening wore on, older decorative lights in green, yellow, blue and red draped the heritage area where people from all walks of life had gathered to witness the week-long celebration.
Stalls selling colourful jalabiya (traditional long dress worn by women), Kandoora (traditional long dress worn by men), Khaizarana (stick with a carved holder), bhukoor, honey, Jifeer (baskets made of the date palm leaves) and pottery lined up the area. Young and old flocked to the area where luqeimat and rigaag (bread) were being prepared by kohl-eyed women with golden and black burqa’ covering their faces. Freshly fired luqeimat topped generously with honey and date syrup seemed to be an instant hit among children and tourists who were seen going back for more. Children played musical chairs on a large stage in the middle of the area while their parents applauded…SOURCE

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The dark side of Dubai

Probably the best article ever written on Dubai, by Johann Hari in the Independent. It covers everything from wexpats:

Daniel [a brain tumour patient] was arrested and taken away on the day of their eviction. It was six days before she could talk to him. “He told me he was put in a cell with another debtor, a Sri Lankan guy who was only 27, who said he couldn’t face the shame to his family. Daniel woke up and the boy had swallowed razor-blades. He banged for help, but nobody came, and the boy died in front of him.”

To indentured labourers:

He shows me his room. It is a tiny, poky, concrete cell with triple-decker bunk-beds, where he lives with 11 other men. All his belongings are piled onto his bunk: three shirts, a spare pair of trousers, and a cellphone. The room stinks, because the lavatories in the corner of the camp – holes in the ground – are backed up with excrement and clouds of black flies. There is no air conditioning or fans, so the heat is “unbearable. You cannot sleep. All you do is sweat and scratch all night.” At the height of summer, people sleep on the floor, on the roof, anywhere where they can pray for a moment of breeze.

The work is “the worst in the world,” he says. “You have to carry 50kg bricks and blocks of cement in the worst heat imaginable … This heat – it is like nothing else. You sweat so much you can’t pee, not for days or weeks. It’s like all the liquid comes out through your skin and you stink. You become dizzy and sick but you aren’t allowed to stop, except for an hour in the afternoon. You know if you drop anything or slip, you could die. If you take time off sick, your wages are docked, and you are trapped here even longer.”

To Emiratis:

Sultan is furious. He splutters: “You don’t think Mexicans are treated badly in New York City? And how long did it take Britain to treat people well? I could come to London and write about the homeless people on Oxford Street and make your city sound like a terrible place, too! The workers here can leave any time they want! Any Indian can leave, any Asian can leave!”

But they can’t, I point out. Their passports are taken away, and their wages are withheld. “Well, I feel bad if that happens, and anybody who does that should be punished. But their embassies should help them.” They try. But why do you forbid the workers – with force – from going on strike against lousy employers? “Thank God we don’t allow that!” he exclaims. “Strikes are in-convenient! They go on the street – we’re not having that. We won’t be like France. Imagine a country where they the workers can just stop whenever they want!” So what should the workers do when they are cheated and lied to? “Quit. Leave the country.”

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Flickr Now Completely Blocked in the UAE

Yet another stupid decision.  If the Etisalat and DU software isn’t powerful enough to detect the nude photos on Flickr, they should take the ban off  completely.

Photographers can no longer share their photos with the country’s online community after telecommunications provider Du blocked the web site on Monday.

Etisalat has blocked the web site since 2006 because of nude images, but up until Monday, it could still be accessed through rival provider, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company, popularly known as Du.

The move will mean that dozens of photographers who had used the site to display their work will be denied access altogether.

One photographer, Catalin Marin, said he had access to Flickr since he lived in Nakheel-owned properties which used Du as a service provider.

“I’ve been able to sell some of my work through Flickr to magazines around the world,” he said. “It’s a massive bummer that they chosen to do this.

“There are some images on the site which use nudity for art, but this shouldn’t mean that the whole site should be blocked.”

Guidelines for the censorship of the web are set by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA). Content which promotes pornography, gambling and drugs, or those which defame religion, are blocked under guidelines set by the TRA… http://khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle08.asp?xfile=/data/theuae/2009/March/theuae_March450.xml&section=theuae

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No dancing in Dubai

Farewell to dancing dishdashes and foxtrotting abayas, with the latest fatwa on fun in the sandlands:

Dubai – Playing loud music, dancing, nudity, kissing and even holding hands in public is considered inappropriate behaviour under new guidelines laid down by the authorities of Dubai, a report said on Saturday.

But wait… what about that legendary Gulf cultural phenomenon, the breathtaking choreographed display known as stickdancing?

An entire Dubai-tourism-video-producing industry falls on its knees and weeps.

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Dubai Creek’s Dhow Harbor is Saved From a Move to Al Hamriya

according to The National.  Looks like someone finally came to their senses!

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2,000 year old Amphora Found in Al Ain

A construction crew digging for a municipal project in Al Ain has unearthed a glazed pottery vessel that dates back 2,000 years. Their find sheds more light on an ancient civilisation that once inhabited the country.

The Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (Adach) announced yesterday that a team of archaeologists has begun inspecting the site around the Sheikha Salama Mosque, which is being rebuilt.

The ceramic vase was crafted in the amphora style, with two handles on each side of a narrow body, used for transporting wine and other liquids.

It is believed that it was used during the Hellenistic civilisation – a period in which Greek culture heavily influenced the ancient world and also fused with elements of Eastern culture.

The discovery of the pottery in Al Ain strengthens evidence of trading relations between the UAE and Greece during that period.

In the UAE during the third century BC, ancient settlers inhabited the Mileiha site in present-day Sharjah and Al Dour in Umm al Quwain…SOURCE

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Dubai Spending Millions on PR Campaign to Promote Tourism

Tourism officials hope to dispel negative perceptions of Dubai in a campaign that will show world travel’s opinion makers the emirate as it really is.

“Keep Discovering Dubai” will bring more than 2,000 travel industry professionals and media to Dubai from now until May.

The campaign would help change “current negative perceptions” of the emirate, a source at Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing said.

The source was referring to illegal dumping of sewage on Dubai beaches and reports of an outbreak of legionnaire’s disease at a hotel, which were later disproved.

At stake is the emirate’s largest single revenue generator, worth Dh57 billion every year – 19 per cent of its economy.

Hoteliers and tour operators welcomed the move by Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), in partnership with Emirates Airline.

“Bringing in people to see the emirate first-hand is going to make a huge difference,” said Kulwant Singh, the managing director of Lama Tours, one of the largest operators in Dubai.

“At a time when countries such as Malaysia and Singapore are at war with Dubai to snatch tourists from us, the DTCM is supporting the brand it has created and putting up a fight.”

The department will pay for familiarisation trips of three to four days to more than 1,000 of the travel agents and tour operators, and more than 300 members of the media, the source said.

“These two groups have been identified as our main target through which we will effectively influence potential travellers.”

The objective of the familiarisation trips is to provide travel agents and media with first-hand experience of desert safaris, restaurants and cultural attractions such as the Bastakiya neighbourhood near the Dubai Creek.

“It looks like a great initiative to educate the retail travel agents,” said Jeff Strachan, the area director of Marriott Hotels in the Middle East.

Since the start of the crisis, the leisure capital of the UAE has seen hotel occupancy rates and margins fall….SOURCE

Too bad they are too buy destroying actual culture like the Dhow harbor and Satwa.

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Dhows to Be Banned From Dubai Creek

Time to lose more heritage apparently.

The historic dhow harbour, one of Dubai’s most popular tourist attractions, is to be closed to long-haul dhows because of growing concerns about the difficulty of maintaining security in the heart of the city.

For the past 100 years, the dhow wharves on the east bank of Dubai Creek have played a key part in the expansion of the city and the development of trade with East Africa and the Indian subcontinent.

Tourists flock to the Creek for the colourful and often chaotic spectacle of hundreds of workers loading and unloading goods from the traditional wooden dhows that ply their trade on age-old routes to destinations throughout the Gulf, the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean.

Now, however, the pressures of the modern world are rendering the traditional site unworkable. Dubai Customs is to relocate all dhow shipping to the expanding Al Hamriya Port in Deira, seven kilometres away by water on the coast at the base of the Palm Deira development.

“We don’t want dhows from around the world, often away from the country for weeks, coming right up to the heart of the city as they could be illegals and smugglers,” said Hassan Maidoor, the head of Dubai Airport Free Zone Inspection Centre.

Much of the trade centred on the dhow wharfage is with Iran; hundreds of vessels travel between the two countries every day, and one of the key concerns for the Dubai authorities is complying with UN sanctions designed to deny Iran access to “dual-use” technology which could have military and nuclear applications as well as civilian uses…SOURCE

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Now, They Are Coming For Your Shisha

Puffing shisha (hubble bubble) in public parks could be a recreation option of the past soon.

The Dubai Municipality is discussing options to ban or regulate the use of shisha in public parks, officials told Khaleej Times on Wednesday.

The move, which is likely to be announced soon, is an extension of the smoking regulations announced by the civic body from time to time in the past.

Salem bin Mesmar, the Assistant-Director General of Health, Safety and Environment Control said, “the matter is being considered and discussions are on with the concerned authorities at the moment. The decision in this connection will be taken soon.”

Many people, mostly Arab nationals, puff the hubble bubble in public parks and beaches, particularly during the weekends, which is one among their favourite leisure options.

The same could be extended to shisha smoking in public beaches too.

Civic body officials have earlier said that the aim of introducing smoking regulations in public places is aimed at protecting people from the harmful effects of smoking.

Last month, Redha Hasan Salman, the Director of Public Health and Safety Department at the municipality had told Khaleej Times that there will be new and more stringent regulations against smoking in public places this year.

The official had pointed out that 25 per cent of the coffee shops in the emirate continue to serve shisha without abiding by the regulations.

Last year, the civic body had announced regulations on shisha smoking giving a one year grace period for the those operating the business to make necessary changes, which ended in December last year…SOURCE

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Dubai International Poetry Festival to Begin

More than 100 poets from 45 countries will participate in the Dubai International Poetry Festival 2009 that begins today.

His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, will attend the opening ceremony of the seven-day festival, themed ‘A Thousand Poets – One Language’.

Launched by Shaikh Mohammed in July last year, the event is aimed to create a lively platform for humanitarian and intellectual exchange using poetry as a common language.

The festival, which ends on March 10, will witness the launch of the Dubai House of Poetry, reaffirming the emirate’s status as a centre for nurturing literary talent.

Jamal Khalfan bin Huwaireb, prominent UAE poet and chairman of the organising committee, said the festival, being organised by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation, is the first of its kind in the region in terms of its rich content, size and scope of worldwide participation.

“The festival’s theme reflects the universal nature of poetry as a bridge between cultures, fostering global unity through poetic expression regardless of nationality, beliefs, status, or economic circumstances,” he said.

The event features poetry soirees, seminars, workshops, forums, short dramas and live performances…SOURCE

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Art For Gaza

Ten Dubai-based artists – designers, illustrators, painters, photographers and a videographer – have combined their talents and put together an art show to benefit the children of Gaza. The artists are from Mexico, India, Canada, England and the Philippines. The show will formally open on March 3 through March 10 at the Dubai Community Theatre & Arts Centre located on the second level (orange car park) at the Mall of the Emirates…Source

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Image of the 5000 Year Old Seal Found in Abu Dhabi

Kim Burke, logistics manager of GRM International, found the bronze age scroll on the ground surface near Madinat Zayed. Lauren Lancaster / The National

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Bronze Age Seal Found in Abu Dhabi

Ancient seal dating back to Bronze Age discovered in Abu Dhabi

03/01/2009 11:58 AM | Staff Report

Abu Dhabi: An ancient stone cylinder seal dating back to the beginning of the local Bronze Age, around 5,000 years ago, has been found in the deserts of Abu Dhabi’s Al Gharbia area (Western Region), by a team working for the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD).

Its the first of its type in Arabia.

The seal is in the Jemdat Nasr style, from Mesopotamia (Iraq), and was unquestionably imported from Mesopotamia, according to a leading expert in Arabian archaeology, Professor Dan Potts of Australia’s University of Sydney.

Decorated with tiny carvings of women with their hair tied back in a plait, a stylised couch and a spider, the seal can be dated to between 3,100 BC to 2,900 BC, according to Professor Potts.

Similar seals have also been found at Susa, in Iran, and at Khafajah and Uruk in Mesopotamia.

While other cylinder seals from the Early Bronze Age have also been found in the UAE, at Hili, near Al Ain, and at Al Sufouh, in Dubai, for example, these are from the slightly later Umm Al Nar period, which lasted from around 2,500 BC to 2,000 BC, making the Madinat Zayed find of special importance. Moreover, according to Professor Potts, the seal is the first of its type found anywhere in the whole of the Arabian Peninsula…

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Pics of Dr. Who in Dubai

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