The oasis city has reached a deal with the US-based company to provide a host of online services to connect with residents and manage its internal operations.
Residents will be able to check information on new developments on Google maps, have city documents translated to another language and, possibly, have a direct e-mail connection with the local government.
Internally, the municipality will use Google systems for tasks such as document management and project planning.
Al Ain to Incorporate Google Services
“We can help Al Ain to maximise the effectiveness of its e-government portal [and] link all the information and resources available to Al Ain residents,” said Matthew Landeg, the head of enterprise sales for Google.
He was in Al Ain to speak with municipality department heads about how the company could strengthen the city’s online resources and provide better services and greater transparency to the community.
One idea that came out of the meeting was to set up a Google e-mail account for every household and use it to communicate with residents.
“If this idea is indeed put into effect, the Al Ain Municipality will probably be the first in the world to do this,” a spokesman said…SOURCE
04/11/2009 10:54 PM | By Mariam M. Al Serkal and Dina El Shammaa, Staff Reporters
Dubai/Abu Dhabi: Beaches were on the alert last week as the red tide passed through the Gulf waters, stirring the curiosity of residents as to where it was going to hit next.
The Environment Agency at Abu Dhabi (EAD) said that the red tide did not affect the capital, as its usual life cycle is about 3 to 4 days.
Last week red tide was spotted along the Dubai coastline, which prompted Dubai Municipality to close the beaches near the Burj Al Arab and Umm Suqueim Park.
Residents were also warned to avoid eating seafood that had been collected from the algal bloom area since it may be contaminated. City Talk took to the streets and asked residents if they are worried about the red tide and how this has affected them.
Mohammad Al Taweel, 27-year-old sales developer, Saudi Arabia, said: “I was planning to go to the beach [at] the weekend but have cancelled the plan now just to be safe. I read about it in the newspapers and am aware of the red tide phenomena, although I am not exactly sure what side effect it has on humans. But that has not stopped me from eating fish.”
Sibtain Hirji, real estate manager from the United Kingdom, 48, said: “The red tide is supposed to be harmless but it does give you rashes. I have seen that many beaches are empty now but think that people are only scared about it this week, and people will start going to the beach again soon. I have read that it is dangerous to eat fish that are affected by it, so I am not eating it and will wait a couple of weeks before buying it again.”
Jelena Bundesmann, German manager, 45, said: “I spend a lot of time on the beach, and have noticed that the water is milky and that there is less visibility and marine life. There are also more algae on the shores but that is not going to stop me from going to the beach and swimming, unless I see that reddish-brownish colour around me in the water. I will not stop eating fish unless they prove to me that the red tide has an impact on it until then, I have to assume that they only catch fish in good areas in the sea since fish only survive in good water conditions.”…
Britney Spears is being lined up to give a private concert for super-rich Dubai Arabs, according to UK tabloid the Daily Star.
Pakistani Sheeraz Hasan, founder of celebrity website hollywood.tv, is reported to have approached Spears for a one-off appearance that could net her $4 million.
Hasan claims he has already secured tabloid editor’s second favourite blonde, Paris Hilton, for a personal appearance in Dubai…LINK
Sydney: An Australian traveller who flew from Dubai to Melbourne was caught on arrival with two live pigeons stuffed in his pants, customs officials said on Tuesday.
The 23-year-old man was searched after authorities discovered two eggs in a vitamin container in his luggage, said Richard Janeczko, national investigations manager for the Customs Service.
They found the pigeons wrapped in padded envelopes and held to each of the man’s legs with a pair of tights, according to a statement released by the agency. Officials also seized seeds in his money belt and an undeclared eggplant…
Abu Dhabi has become the world’s biggest market for Rolls-Royce cars, edging out Dubai and Beijing in sales last year.
Rolls-Royce’s Abu Dhabi and Dubai dealerships achieved the highest sales and second-highest sales respectively, said Frank Tiemann, Rolls-Royce’s communications manager for Europe and the Middle East.
This was ahead of Beijing and London, which tied for third place, and Beverly Hills in the US in fifth place.
“This is a very impressive development for Abu Dhabi,” Mr Tiemann said yesterday. “It has been top five for the past three years.”
Overall sales in the Middle East rose 48 per cent last year, up from 40 per cent in 2007, he said.
The most popular Rolls-Royce model for Emirates buyers last year was the Phantom, a four-door limousine whose base price was about US$400,000 (Dh1.46 million) before taxes and without any customised features, said Mr Tiemann.
Worldwide, Abu Dhabi and Dubai had the highest levels of requests for customisation, which can range from a personalised colour to specially positioned knobs and buttons, he said.
“In the UAE, every single car was a bespoke Phantom, which can easily double the cost,” he said.
01/06/2009 12:01 AM | By Bassam Za’ za’, Senior Reporter
Dubai: A driver has been jailed for threatening to drive a woman crazy with the help of genies and to send her corpse back home in a body bag if she refused to marry him.
Records said the 31-year-old Tunisian woman claimed that the 47-year-old Syrian convict terrorised her and threatened to summon genies, whom he said will “intimidate her to madness before killing her and sending her to her hometown as a corpse if she didn’t marry him”.
The accused, M.S., will spend three months behind prison bars before being deported, as declared by the Dubai Court of First Instance recently.
Public Prosecution records show that M.S. appealed the initial verdict on the last day of 2008.
He was charged with threatening to kill the woman, breaching her privacy and modesty in a public place and abusing a telecommunication system, etisalat services, by repeatedly phoning her…
Please note, this publication is largely for people who might find themselves on the British version of the Springer Show.
British expatriates in the UAE said on Saturday that the decision of the British foreign ministry to warn its citizens against extra marital sex and kissing in public when visiting Muslim countries, as timely.
The British foreign ministry has issued a strong warning to its citizens against extra-marital sex and public kissing after thedeportation of a British man and a woman from the UAE this week. The couple was found having sex on Jumeirah beach on July 5. “I think it is the right thing finally. A large number of British people are still not aware about the traditions, customs and the laws of other countries.
This warning will help them to have an idea how to behave in a foreign country and respect their traditions and laws,” said Darren Baum, a British expatriate living in Dubai.
Baum said the beach sex case of the British couple gave a bad name to the country and this is the right time to prevent any such incident in the future.
Angelina Barrow, another British expatriate living in Dubai said, “People living here know how to behave and respect the tradition. But most of the tourists have no clue about it. The warning will help them to be careful how to behave when they are in a Muslim country.”
The advice, which goes further than the traditional admonition for women to dress modestly, follows allegations of drunken sex romps, the Guardian reported…SOURCE
ABU DHABI – Small and large pick-up trucks loaded with camels, tents, fodder and water tanks are causing heavy traffic on the usually quiet road to Madinat Zayed, the capital town of Al Gharbia, Abu Dhabi’s Western Region.
They all head towards Mazeira, the low desert beyond ZayedCity, where the 13-day Dhafra Camel Festival will kick off on December 23.
In its second year, the festival, also known as Mazayina, is much bigger thanlast year’s, with around 30,000 camels from all over the Gulf expected to compete in a one-of-its-kind beauty show.
The event is being organised by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage, under the patronage of General Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.
“Everyday we are registering around 600 to 700 camels and we have to extend the registration deadline by one more day, in order to cope with all the arrivals,” said Salem Ebrahim Al Mazrouei, in charge of organising the festival…SOURCE
12/14/2008 09:35 PM | By Bassam Za’za’, Senior Reporter
Dubai: The British beach sex couple, who were awarded a three-month suspended imprisonment, have turned themselves in to serve their sentence and they are currently detained at Dubai’s Central Prison, Gulf News has learnt.
The 34-year-old male visitor, V.A., and his 36-year-old compatriot female, M.P., paid their Dh1,000 fine yesterday at noon after they turned themselves in to the Criminal Rulings’ Execution Section at the Public Prosecution, their legal advisor Hasan Mattar told Gulf News.
The Dubai Court of Appeal had earlier suspended the Britons’ three-month jail term after they were found guilty of indulging in sexual activity on Jumeirah beachside and committing public indecency.
Presiding Judge Mohammad Abdul Aziz Hafez upheld their Dh1,000 fine (for taking alcohol) and confirmed the couple’s deportation order.
“The couple and I are still negotiating whether to lodge a petition to cancel their deportation order at the Attorney General’s office. They handed themselves in and paid their fine,” Mattar told the newspaper….
My oldest daughter recently wore an abaya we had purchased for a school play out bowling. She had a great time throwing the balls around in Sky24 in Sharjah: a wonderful place for bowling and iceskating in downtown Sharjah.
Pakistani Sheeraz Hasan, founder of celebrity website hollywood.tv, is reported to have approached Spears for a one-off appearance that could net her $4 million.
Words cannot express… ROFLMAO
Rolls-Royce’s Abu Dhabi and Dubai dealerships achieved the highest sales and second-highest sales respectively, said Frank Tiemann, Rolls-Royce’s communications manager for Europe and the Middle East.
with the help of genies and to send her corpse back home in a body bag if she refused to marry him.
