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40 Reasons, Big and Small, to Love UAE

Ion
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As we all join in celebrating the 40th National Day of UAE. Let me list down my 40 random reasons, big and small, to love the country:

  1. UAE bridges the gap between nations by being a venue for us, expats, to understand different cultures, traditions and beliefs
  2. UAE is still generally safe. I have a peace of mind whenever I roam in the country. There may be few cases of petty crimes but we hardly see them ourselves.
  3. UAE has balance of tourist attractions. Amazing futuristic cities in Dubai and Abu Dhabi and unexpectedly great escapes in Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah and the rest of the Emirates
  4. UAE welcomes Christians, other religions and their church in the country. There are at least 10 Christian / Catholic church in the country. Unlike other Islamic countries, Christmas is allowed to be celebrated here.
  5. There are no political circus in the UAE. No one talks about it (at least in my circles)
  6. It is generally clean and orderly here
  7. The country holds at least 10 world-records and still aiming for some. Just shows us how dedicated the nation is in providing top-of-the-world-class attractions, architecture and amenities.
  8. We can wear our casual attires outdoors – although I hate it when some go over-board
  9. There are a lot of green parks within the city – a good place for picnic, sports and kids playground.
  10. UAE have clean, white sand beaches – great water sports as well.
  11. All households are air-conditioned.
  12. It’s multicultural in the workplace. We discover a lot of things from our co-workers. We try to learn each other’s languages too.
  13. People’s level of passion about sports is ultimately high – especially football. There are world tournaments here as well like the Dubai Tennis Championship, Dubai World Cup, etc.
  14. Food is easier to buy – not that cheap, but more affordable against the monetary value.
  15. Apartment spaces are huge
  16. Public transportation are run by the government /semi-government alone; and now it is more orderly
  17. Shawarma stands are in every corner
  18. Desert safari and desert camping on pre-winter
  19. Amazing skydiving view on top of The Palm Jumeirah
  20. It has the only two 7-star hotels in the world – Burj Al Arab (Dubai) and Emirates Palace (Abu Dhabi)
  21. From time to time you can still encounter camels crossing on the road in front of you (near the deserts)
  22. There are loads of concerts of our favorite performers in Abu Dhabi and Dubai
  23. Iftar everywhere during Ramadan
  24. Dragonmart, Bur Dubai Creek, Karama and Satwa – places to find good bargains
  25. Big malls with great indoor parks and amusements like, Ski Dubai, Sega Republic, Kidzania, etc
  26. Stunning hotel exterior and interior designs
  27. Taking the Dubai Metro Ride
  28. Taking the water taxi (abra)
  29. Dhow Cruise at Dubai Creek and Dubai Marina
  30. Deep-see fishing on a yacht, while seeing the Dubai skyscrapers on the backdrop
  31. It’s TAX FREE here
  32. Gasoline / Petrol are really affordable
  33. Gold Souk for bargains and deals on gold and jewelries                                                                           
  34. There are various volunteer organizations and charities that give us opportunities to lend a hand within and outside the country
  35. Very patriotic and passionate celebration of the National Day
  36. There are sporting events/festivals for air (Al Ain/Dubai/Abu Dhabi Air Show), water (Sharjah Water Festival), and land (F1 Grand Prix, and more)
  37. Bars and Clubs are aplenty
  38. For non-muslims, there are pork products in select supermarkets and hotel restaurants
  39. There are more than 450,000 Filipinos in the country – and our favorite Filipino foods are available in many groceries and restaurants
  40. The social media online and offline communities and events are visibly active (Facebook Events, TwitUp, MeetUp, etc)

I’m happy to be living in this country I call my second home.  I’m sure there are more than 40 reasons. What’s yours?

Google’s Tribute to UAE’s 40th National Day

Ion
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The logo was Andrew Osama’s work – a 13 year old student from Abdel Jaleel Al Fahim School, who won in the My “UAE Doodle for Google” logo competition. The contest aimed at representing the culture, tradition and people of the Emirates. He bested 20,000 other entries from 30 different schools.

Happy National Day UAE! As my friend Olay says, Life begins at 40!

Balloon Night Glow & Lantern Release on UAE National Day

Ion
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Remember the floating lanterns scene from Disney’s ‘Tangled’? See it live in Dubai.

The Meydan is hosting an extraordinarily fun Balloon Night Glow and Lantern Release on UAE National Day, Friday 2nd December.  Almost all of the hot air balloons will be grouped in the evening. These balloons will be arranged in such a way that they are going to take off in the sky, but instead of ascending, the balloons will be held down.

This will also allow a perfect glimpse of night sky where the giant balloons will glow like a huge light bulbs recalling that  of Chinese lanterns. Hence, this will unleash a predominant preview for the spectators.  The mass floating skylamps release will be the climax of the evening. This will be a symbol of Unity where all will come together and actively participate to release the Skylamps. There will be about 20,000 biodegradable sky lanterns on display.

ENTRANCE IS FREE. Show starts at 5pm until 9pm. The Night Glow is part of the UAE Balloon Championship organised by Dubai Sports Council.

Like Meydan Events on Facebook for updates.  You can also check the Ballooning Championship website.

Wanted in Dubai: Respect, Good Cultural Understanding is a Plus

Ion
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An insensitive Caucasian man sunbathing in front of 2 ladies in abaya at Jumeirah Beach Park.

I stumbled across a disturbing photo shared by a friend on Facebook. She said, those two veiled women (on the photo) were just sitting there quietly when this Caucasian couple came and just joined them at the same table. Next thing you know, the guy stripped, the woman stripped to their swimsuits. Worst of all, the guy had to sunbathe right IN FRONT of the women. “It was quite a disgusting sight,” she added.

Swimsuits are accepted on Dubai beaches, yes. Western (and liberal) lifestyle, well most of, are tolerated as well. But being an open-minded city doesn’t say we can abuse things and take the situations on our own. This kind of things normally escalate to bigger cultural conflict debates. Good thing the women seem to not mind at all.

But please… we, expats are fortunate that we are free to do what we want to, but let’s all be aware of the limitations, be sensitive of others and respect the culture of this beautiful country we call our second home.

Samsung Galaxy Note World Tour Stops in Dubai

Ion
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The next stop for Samsung Galaxy Note WORLD TOUR is Dubai on November 29th, according to Samsung Mobile Facebook Page.

UPDATE: Samsung Mobile Arabia is giving 10 invitations to this exclusive event. Check this link on how to get a chance at one.

Britney Spears Did Well, Not Bad in Abu Dhabi Concert

Ion
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Photo from Britney Army World Facebook

She’s hot! Britney Spears definitely wowed the crowd, and allured the guys.

It was a continuous 1 hour and 10 minutes, opened with Hold It Against Me (Waz Up Abu Dhabi!) and ended with well, Til the World Ends on the encore – a lot of new singles on the set too. She’s great, full of energy; A full Femme Fatale production set, and she seems at her element. It’s Britney Spears live! She had a lot of costume strips, err, costume changes – which personally I never thought she’d be “allowed” to wear in “Abu Dhabi”. She’s daring! She pulled off her signature lap and pole dance with a male fan in the Lace and Leather performance – to the delight of the crowd. She never were on her famous two-piece in the entire evening though. (Butt) But there’s just much shots of her rear all throughout…

But, was it just my eyes or she’s lip synching? Well not the entirety of the show – ‘coz I knew she sang the soft and easy Don’t Let Me Be the Last To Know live.  It would have been so cool if she had interacted with the crowd more. Yeah she had shout outs but (as I’ve heard in the crowd) you can count on your fingers the words she said 🙂 #WhatsUpAbuDhabi #ThankYouForComingHere and the “energetic” #Amazing and #GreatJobGuys when some fans went up the stage to dance.

And oh, she also performed Rihanna’s S&M. She did great in it actually. It is one of the most received performance of the night.

Photo from Britney Army World Facebook
Photo from Britney Army World Facebook – by Martin Pfeiffer

Nonetheless, it was a great show. I like it, we do. Seeing the classic Hit Me Baby One More Time performed is epic! She’s our childhood ‘crush’ – and for once in high school we were surrounded by Britney fan girls too. It’s simply amazing that we got to experience Britney Spears in Abu Dhabi.

D/SLR Cameras Not Allowed on Concerts… Why?

Ion
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Camera deposit at Yas Arena, Yas Island, Abu Dhabi during F1 after race concerts

This is the most frustrating fact. You have a DSLR camera, spent a lot on accessories, fascinated to take beautiful snaps, yet come your favorite concert, you’re not permitted to carry it with you. But you are just a passionate hobbyist.  How bitter could that be?

Why are these concert organizers stiff on this policy? Is it simply defending the copyright of the performance? They don’t want the audience to capture high quality photos and videos and reproduce ‘pirated’ CDs or DVDs huh (?) They don’t allow us to make high resolution photos that we’ll publish online with our logo/name watermark in it; or they avoid us making unauthorized ‘merchandise’ like shirts, mugs and other prints of the artists or the concert – and monetize from it (?) What else?

Apparently, capturing our experience in high quality outputs isn’t included in the ticket price we pay.  I asked Think Flash Abu Dhabi on Facebook and they replied, “No professional cameras are allowed. Only personal pocket cameras.“

We may have ‘professional’ cameras, but we’re not professional photographers.  How do they classify ‘professional’ cameras anyway – anything big is one? As I understand, a good professional photographer could still take a quality photo even if he’s using a point and shoot.

I hope this policy would soon be scrapped. For now, it would take a genius to hide and get his D/SLR in.

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Flash Mobs Still Trending in Dubai

Ion
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WARNING! If you’re not into flash mobs, leave this article now… there’s loads of videos down here.

Flash mobs are still one of the most popular “alternative” marketing or brand awareness gimmicks in Dubai; and it looks like every mall and tourist spots will have to showcase their own versions. A flash mob is a group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform an unusual and sometimes seemingly pointless act or dance for a brief time, then disperse, often for the purposes of entertainment, satire, artistic expression, and lately, brand recall. Here are some of the flash mobs and so-called “flash mobs” that had happened around Dubai:

Dubai Airport Flash Mob

This so far is the best I’ve ever seen. It is (un)organized very well and has all the elements of a flash mob. No props, no costumes. People come in random and in mixed civilian attires. Performers came in from different locations and really surprise the crowd – the people standing beside them. The dispersal element is excellent – feels nothing had just happened. Great job!

Mirdif City Centre Flash Mob

They call this a flash mob though it lacks a lot of the right ingredients to classify it to such. It has an ‘obvious’ entrance choreography, costumes, and a set stage. It’s not a mob. A mob should depict a riotous crowd at least.

Deira City Centre, Iconic Flash Mob

The beginning looks like a ‘staged’ performance with those box props and entrance choreography. They made it though after a while when they mixed themselves to the crowd, creating a riot atmosphere until they ran going to the Iconic boutique. But still, there’s no surprise factor.

Mall of the Emirates, Harvey Nichols Flash Mob

This, again, is another ‘staged’ performance. Most elements of a flash mob is missing. Having it done on a Mall floor doesn’t consider it a flash mob already.

Dubai Mall

Not so much a mob, but looks good, I can’t just find the HD video.

Dubai Mall, Du Flash Mob

Just another so-so one…

This one at the Mall of the Emirates, though not a flash mob, creates a freeze mob

At the end of the day, all of these, successful or failed flash mobs still entertained the crowd, and til now makes us smile.

Did I miss any good flash mob? Please leave a link to it in the comment below.

A Magical Sunday Funday at Ping Pong Dim Sum Dubai

Ion
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Gaston Quieto

New and improved Sunday Funday weekly games night conjures up some award-winning magic by world-famous illusionist Gaston Quieto along with little magical parcels of deliciousness.

Ping Pong, the uber cool dim sum emporium at The Dubai Mall, has once again teamed up with legendary toy store Hamleys to launch Sunday Funday, a fun-filled weekly evening of traditional pastimes and board games.

However, this season there’s definitely more than a little bit of magic in the air. Quite apart from the classic board games such as Chess, Monopoly, Cluedo and Scrabble, Ping Pongers will also be amazed by the sleight of hand from world-famous magician Gaston Quieto, who will give a performance on Sundays
between 23rd October and 4th December.

Gaston is an international award-winning illusionist and sleight of hand specialist who has performed around the world, on stage and television, entertaining heads of state and royalty including former USPresident Bill Clinton as well as the royal families of Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwaitand the UAE.

And no need to queue or strain to see over a crowd, Gaston will pass by tables mystifying and enthralling kids and parents alike close-up and personal.


So how do you ensure Gaston visits your table? Well there’s no telepathy involved. There will be a special area of the restaurant which will be kept separate for guests who order the set menu, which is competitively priced at AED130 for 5 baskets per adult and AED60 for 2 baskets per child. Drinks are not included.

“We always encourage a fun and lively atmosphere at Ping Pong and we are extremely lucky to have Gaston, he is a real star, quite simply he’s magic. Combine that with our tasty dim sum dishes and families are in for a real treat,” said Angelo Domenico Rosato, General Manager of Ping Pong at The Dubai Mall.

One thing is for sure, chicken buns, vegetable spring rolls and of course the king of all dumplings, the prawn har gau, are proof enough Ping Pong’s chefs have their own brand of magic and that’s no illusion. Ping Pong Dubai is located on the lower ground floor of Dubai Mall, overlooking The Dubai Fountains.

Follow Ping Pong Dim Sum Dubai Facebook Page to receive more updates

Samsung Galaxy Note Sneak Peek in Dubai

Ion
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Samsung Galaxy Note had a soft launch last night at Dusk Terrace, Radisson Blu, Dubai Media City.  It was well attended by techies, bloggers, Samsung Mobilers, ambassadors and fans.

Galaxy Note is the latest mobile / tablet from Samsung. Looks like a really good hardware upgrade of the Galaxy Tab 1.0. This one looks more in between of a smartphone and a tablet. What I like the most is it comes with a stylus (S-Pen).

  • It runs Android 2.3 
  • on 1.4 GHz Dual-core processor
  • 16 GB memory upgradable up to 32 GB
  • 8MP camera
  • comes in 3G and wi-fi of course
  • It’s 9.65mm thin, 82.99mm wide, and 146.85mm tall

It comes in a large screen display of 5.3″ HD Super AMOLED display. Big, if you’re thinking of a mobile phone. Won’t really fit in your pockets (I can, in my back pocket 😉 ). AMOLED provides an expansive high-resolution screen that enables faster pixel switching response times than traditional OLED displays. It also consumes less power and offers a high refresh rate not compromising superior image quality.

Galaxy Note also boasts of a multi-input feature, and it’s where I think the S-Pen is a winner. S-Pen, according to Samsung, is “the most advanced pen input technology featuring an array of functions including pressure sensitivity, preciseness, speed and more.” I look at it as a minified version of WACOM pen. In the few minutes I tried the S-Pen, I have to get used to pressing the tiny button in it to properly do some inputs and enable some commands.  With the S-Pen, the Note by far is my most preferred alternative to a real notepad. I can screen capture, and easily can annotate anything in it.  I can sketch, scribe and as long as it is neat, can accurately be recognized and converted.

The S-Memo looks cool too. I can write, draw, import photos, videos and audio – and you can edit and crop images too. For someone like me who loves to draw charts and wireframes, it would be essential.

 

It was just my 5-10 minutes experience. Like anything else, it still needs to be proven on a user-testing perspective. I haven’t reviewed it thoroughly. There’s still more in it that needs to be experienced and tested – the MS Exchange ActiveSync, its info security capabilities, the Cisco WebEx conferencing, instant messaging, telephony, etc. There are also some little gesture recognition issues when I’m trying it, but let’s see in actual. So far looks good.

Samsung Galaxy Note will officially be available today, 4th November at the Samsung Brand Shop in Dubai Mall. I’ve heard they’re launching it giving first buyers a free accessory pack. It’s now available in Dubai.

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