London
After leaving Rennes I had two days in London. On the first
evening I caught up with some friends and we were able to get
tickets for the Dame Edna show Eat, Pray, Laugh. They had never seen
Barry Humphries live and they were absolutely amazed and sore from laughing during the performance.
I had seen the show last year in Sydney and he had tweaked
it for the British audience and some topical news – which always goes over
well.
When our family had Christmas in London in 2007 we used the temporary
ice rink in Hyde Park and there were a few other stalls and carnival rides set
up for the season. Six years on and the Winter Wonderland has expanded
enormously. There is a large Christmas Market, and, along with the ice rink,
there is a massive fun park with elaborate rides that has been set up in the
area of Hyde Park that is generally used for pop concerts.
The Christmas decorations are brilliant in the main shopping districts of Regent Street and Oxford Street.
Protests
While wandering around London on my last day there I came
upon a hunger strike protest set up in front of the US Consulate in Grosvenor
Square. There were several tents with beds and the strikers were lying in these
but available to speak with passers-by. Apparently about 20 Iranian opposition figures
had fled Iran and had been housed in a refugee camp across the border in Iraq. These
refugee camps are established under the auspices and protection of the UN.
The signage was excellent and set out the background to the protest which
was that on 1 September this year, Iraqi militia arrived at the camp and
executed about 50 people including these well - known Iranian dissident political
figures. Several of the victims had been handcuffed before execution and photos
of some of the victims dead and alive were on display.
The political agenda for these activists was that Iran becomes
a secular state, adoption of a parliamentary democracy model and application of
the western rule of law, with universal suffrage and education.
This type of reform would be radical and a major problem for
the ultimate religious leadership of Iran which is an Islamist state with Sharia law. I
was surprised that I had not heard of these events in the news previously. With
the current delicate negotiations underway with Iran over nuclear disarmament I
suspect that hunger protestors in London will not be able to exert much
pressure on Iran via western governments. A dreadfully sad example of the
continuing travails in the Middle East.
Fortnum & Mason
Fortnum & Mason is an iconic specialist gourmet food
store that has operated on Piccadilly for over 200 years. About two hours after
seeing the protest in Grosvenor Square I was in Piccadilly and heard a loud
hailer and noisy organised chanting. I was surprised to see a rowdy group with
placards at the door of Fortnum & Mason.
As I got closer I realised that these activists were acting
on behalf of French Geese who presumably dislike being force fed corn in order
to fatten their livers! Under French law proper fois gras (which is a very
popular delicacy) can only be termed as such if it has been produced using
forced feeding techniques. Any other goose liver product cannot be sold as fois
gras.
I guess democracy is all about freedom of speech and right
to assembly but I couldn’t help but think that while some geese are obviously
having a difficult time in France – the political issues in Iran/Iraq are
infinitely more important.
Dubai
Dubai is the second city of the Arab country United Arab
Emirates (UAE). The UAE is bounded by the Persian Gulf, Oman, Saudi Arabia and
Qatar. For centuries this region has been home to nomadic tribes – usually Bedouin
and the seven emirates or principalities comprising UAE have their origins in these
tribes with tribal chiefs or ruling families for each. The country is led today
by those seven current chiefs or Emirs and has a form of partially elected
advisory government. Arabic is the national language and Islam is the state
religion.
There is no personal income tax in the UAE however land
owners pay 5% tax on any rents received. Foreign banks and corporations pay a
form of tax unless they are in designated geographical zones where nil tax of
any kind applies.
Abu Dhabi is the capital and Dubai is more the commercial/financial
hub of the country. Dubai has a population of less than 2 million and less than
20% of the population is native Arabic. It is home to many people from nearby Pakistan,
India and Bangladesh. These populations fall into two groups: those many
thousands who do the labouring/menial work and the wealthy classes who come to
enjoy the lifestyle afforded by Dubai.
There are no labour unions allowed in UAE and the massive
building explosion has been performed in the main by guest workers who
do not share in the very affluent lifestyle of the locals. Westerners make up
less than 10% of the population and usually work for international firms with
operations here.
History
The Turkish Ottoman empire controlled this region for over a
century up until 1916 when it came under attack by the allies in WWI. TE Lawrence
(Lawrence of Arabia) led several successful Arab campaigns against the Turks around
this time and was something of a hero to the Arabs and a firm advocate for the
independence of the Arab world.
Nevertheless the British made itself protector of the region
ostensibly to protect trade routes from pirates operating in the Gulf. While
there was some mutuality about these arrangements the emirs also ceded certain
rights to Britain.
On 2 December 1971 an agreement was struck between Britain
and the Emirs which resulted in Britain exiting the region and the UAE coming
into existence. By coincidence my arrival coincided with national day
parades being held to celebrate the anniversary of independence.
It was noteworthy that a lot of the bunting and celebration,
while highlighting the colours of the UAE flag, also highlighted the beatific
face of the Dubai emir who is the current leader of the UAE. His words are
quoted everywhere and he is often described as a visionary. Even some of his poems
were on display in English. Let’s just say that perhaps they lose something in
translation!
It has to be remembered that the Emir is a supreme leader
and is politically and commercially very powerful - and I just sensed that it
would do no harm and might even be prudent for a citizen to have the Emir's picture on
display along with all the flags etc on this special day!
Real Estate
It has to be realised that first of all Dubai and all of the
UAE is a desert - a classic harsh, sandy desert where tribes lived and
tended their herds for centuries. Dubai is on the coast and was established in
the early 1800s as a village of pearlers and fishermen at the mouth of a small
water course that is now called Dubai Creek.
At the time of independence in 1971 there were no
high rise buildings and the first high rise tower was opened by the Queen in
1979.
I suspect that the last two emirs probably have been
visionaries in that they have used wealth from oil (which really only started
to flow in the 1960’s in the UAE) for infrastructure, schools, hospitals and
have established policies that look well into the future. Today about 7% of
Dubai’s income derives from oil-and the plan is to replace that income with
tourism and allied activity.
Apparently 97% of its water comes from desalination plants
(thereby giving it a reliable and limitless source of water – provided the
pumps keep working). It consumes more water per capita than any other city and
this would be to tend the public gardens and incredible lakes and structures that now
cover this city. Waterfalls (indoor and outdoor) abound and water features seem
normal in this man made oasis.
But the most obvious feature of Dubai is its massive building
development. Everything is bigger or better than everything else! For
example-the recently opened highest building is over 800m tall-twice the height
of the Empire State building in the US.
Palm tree lined boulevards criss cross the city – the widest
I saw had sixteen lanes and cars and buses are the preferred means of
transport.
A national railroad and associated city subways project is
underway and who knows how many new huge waterfront resorts are currently planned or under
construction.
Shopping
Dubai Mall is the largest in the world – no question about
it! Frank Lowy of Westfield would be appalled at the vast open (empty and no
rent!) spaces or promenades that are topped by cathedral like domes that soar
ten stories up. Every brand shop I could think of was there. Think department
stores- Bloomingdales of New York, Galleries LaFayette of Paris, Waitrose,
Marks & Spencer of London – all present! Then there is the traditional souk
or local market (much better in an air conditioned mall environment with its
own distinctive wing). Then there is the Food Hall which dwarfs the whole of
Darling Harbour in terms of range and quantity of outlets. I nearly forgot the
massive aquarium and cinema complexes. And, of course, Fortnum & Mason has a big store at the Mall!
It really is daunting to the visitor and I had to seek
directions to find may way out on each visit!
Within a few km in any direction from the Dubai Mall there
are further malls – which all seem to be Westfield size edifices.
Official Religion
Islam is the official religion and this means some
limitations like very few outlets selling alcohol, restrictions on revealing
clothing etc. Prayer rooms are prevalent in malls and other public places and necessary if one is going to pray
at the five allotted times each day. Sharia law applies in matters of Family
Law but western style courts generally apply for other matters.
However, courtesy and hospitality appear to be prominent
values which obviously play well in an inbound tourist market. English is
widely spoken and westerners should have no anxieties about religious intolerance.
Appeal
While the lifestyle for westerners here would be opulent and
lucrative – it is almost unreal and in many ways is artificial. There are
wonderful parks built for children – but they are massive and you have to drive
to them as they don’t have local suburban parklands that are possible in our
climate.
The climate is hot - and at this time of the year dry. But I understand that in summer it is often over 40C and humid.
Services are cheap and performed almost exclusively by
foreign labour – Thai, Indian, Pakistani. At the prevailing wage rates nearly
every western couple would have a live in nanny and/or housekeeper and the
locals also avail of these services. I saw many instances of well to do
local couples in traditional dress of kandura (men) or abaya (women) with a few
kids in tow being managed or prammed by a foreign worker.
There may be more interesting traditional Arabic ports to
visit, but I think that Dubai has much to offer either an accidental tourist such
as me or someone seeking a week or more in a stylish resort. Now that Qantas is
using Dubai as a hub I expect that tourism and stopovers from Australia will increase – which
I am sure was something to do with the decision by Emirates to code share with
Qantas-and I don’t necessarily think that that business relationship will necessarily
end there!
But I will end my Gap Year blog here - as I leave Dubai
tomorrow morning to return home to Sydney!
