Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
Aug 6th 2008, 2:54 am
#1
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Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 219
Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
Last month I was offered a position inAD paying 100,000 dh per month + reloc, flights home, healthcare etc. The 100,000 included 30,000 dh per month accomodation allowance which seemed alot but I understand is becoming more common.
Having now visitied both cities I can safely say that, god willing, I will never return to either city.
AD was by an incredible degree the nicer if you are prepared to live in units in the corniche (not my idea of a nice living arrangement though) and could live with the traffic problems that develop at times and the noise of the local hoons. And the lifeessness of it all unless you enjoy socialising in a mall food court.
Areas like khalifa city were so much more dusty to be unlivable for me which Im sure presents a health issue ... I certainly have had a dry cough since going there and expect to cough little piles of sand onto my work desk soon. Suffice to say id be very worried about my lungs but my driver also said kidney and even gall stones were very common although i suspect this may be BS.
Al Raha gardens was like living in a construction site with all the traffic, noise and aesthetic problems. Yet the office quite happily quoted 300,000dh rent for a 3 bedder in the middle of nowhere.
On an average package every dollar saved in tax would be eaten up by renting decent accom!!!????
But my tax dollars get me things like public transport system, health care, welfare to keep residents out of squalor and hardship etc etc.
And having got value for money for my tax dollars, here in syd I pay $750 per week to rent a $4.5m house on balmoral slopes on 650 sqm 300m from balmoral beach. and 300m from a proper villiage with proper stores delis and cafes. Yes its a bargain but they exist.
So in addition to having a better life I end up in a very similar financial position after rents are factored in. Mind boggling how they get aussies over there IMO.
No need to run such a comparion in relation to Dubai as it was nothing short of disgusting. I expected the traffic and lack of green and orange skies but the things that hit me were the ugly industrial facilities being littered around the city and the congested cheap looking developments that basically looked like ghettos and govt housing (albiet new) . Dubai really is the worlds greatest modern planning failure. Discovery Gardens gets the best view of the worlds largest area of huge metal trasmission lines. if they dont give you cancer Im sure things like gasses from nearby Dubal will.
The dust was clealy worse in dubai and it seemed to mix unfavorably with the shocking smog. That alone was a complete dealbreaker.
The absence of young pretty white women was immediately apparent (sue me but they are nice to have around just like bleu skies and trees). As far as whites go it really was a sausage party with an arrogant self absorbed UAE centric view of business people there, possibly an overcompensation for the sad life they have come to lead.
One of the expats i met that was better paid than my offer said "you wont save.. nobody save here ha ha". Im mean WTF is wrong with these people ... why are they living in desert hell then???!!!
The simplest processes seemed to end in drawn out chaos so i shudder to think what things like getting leases, licences, banking etc are like.
And yes it was 47.5 degrees but honestly that was the least of my worries ... i couldnt stop thinking how bad i would feel inflicting the place on my partner ... esp the boredom (broken only by a drive to the sad crowded and collapsing IBN mall).
I could go on but with along list of cons but there is not point as there was simply not one pro to weigh them against.
Even my asian driver on 2000dh a month for 6 12h days a week said he refuses to live in Dubai and urged people to stay in the west if they could survive there as even on a good initial impression each day is worst than the last.
Even if the tax savings werent almost fully cancelled out by the rent situation, for me life is too short to spend any amount of it in the UAE.
With recession looming in the west my honest advice would be to leave the UAE asap and get reestablished back home before recession hits the UAE and you are forced to return home as a mid recession fish out of water.
Having now visitied both cities I can safely say that, god willing, I will never return to either city.
AD was by an incredible degree the nicer if you are prepared to live in units in the corniche (not my idea of a nice living arrangement though) and could live with the traffic problems that develop at times and the noise of the local hoons. And the lifeessness of it all unless you enjoy socialising in a mall food court.
Areas like khalifa city were so much more dusty to be unlivable for me which Im sure presents a health issue ... I certainly have had a dry cough since going there and expect to cough little piles of sand onto my work desk soon. Suffice to say id be very worried about my lungs but my driver also said kidney and even gall stones were very common although i suspect this may be BS.
Al Raha gardens was like living in a construction site with all the traffic, noise and aesthetic problems. Yet the office quite happily quoted 300,000dh rent for a 3 bedder in the middle of nowhere.
On an average package every dollar saved in tax would be eaten up by renting decent accom!!!????
But my tax dollars get me things like public transport system, health care, welfare to keep residents out of squalor and hardship etc etc.
And having got value for money for my tax dollars, here in syd I pay $750 per week to rent a $4.5m house on balmoral slopes on 650 sqm 300m from balmoral beach. and 300m from a proper villiage with proper stores delis and cafes. Yes its a bargain but they exist.
So in addition to having a better life I end up in a very similar financial position after rents are factored in. Mind boggling how they get aussies over there IMO.
No need to run such a comparion in relation to Dubai as it was nothing short of disgusting. I expected the traffic and lack of green and orange skies but the things that hit me were the ugly industrial facilities being littered around the city and the congested cheap looking developments that basically looked like ghettos and govt housing (albiet new) . Dubai really is the worlds greatest modern planning failure. Discovery Gardens gets the best view of the worlds largest area of huge metal trasmission lines. if they dont give you cancer Im sure things like gasses from nearby Dubal will.
The dust was clealy worse in dubai and it seemed to mix unfavorably with the shocking smog. That alone was a complete dealbreaker.
The absence of young pretty white women was immediately apparent (sue me but they are nice to have around just like bleu skies and trees). As far as whites go it really was a sausage party with an arrogant self absorbed UAE centric view of business people there, possibly an overcompensation for the sad life they have come to lead.
One of the expats i met that was better paid than my offer said "you wont save.. nobody save here ha ha". Im mean WTF is wrong with these people ... why are they living in desert hell then???!!!
The simplest processes seemed to end in drawn out chaos so i shudder to think what things like getting leases, licences, banking etc are like.
And yes it was 47.5 degrees but honestly that was the least of my worries ... i couldnt stop thinking how bad i would feel inflicting the place on my partner ... esp the boredom (broken only by a drive to the sad crowded and collapsing IBN mall).
I could go on but with along list of cons but there is not point as there was simply not one pro to weigh them against.
Even my asian driver on 2000dh a month for 6 12h days a week said he refuses to live in Dubai and urged people to stay in the west if they could survive there as even on a good initial impression each day is worst than the last.
Even if the tax savings werent almost fully cancelled out by the rent situation, for me life is too short to spend any amount of it in the UAE.
With recession looming in the west my honest advice would be to leave the UAE asap and get reestablished back home before recession hits the UAE and you are forced to return home as a mid recession fish out of water.
Aug 6th 2008, 2:57 am
#2
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 2,474
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
bend over .... I predict a large great arse kicking
Aug 6th 2008, 3:07 am
#3
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Thread Starter
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 219
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
People living there Im sure are experts in bending over ... I however have no intention of doing so.
The intention is simply to encourage people to not go there, and for the people living there to wake up and get a life back home.
In any event living in the paradise of mosman syd Im hardly concerned about the sour grapes of the few that are trapped there.
The intention is simply to encourage people to not go there, and for the people living there to wake up and get a life back home.
In any event living in the paradise of mosman syd Im hardly concerned about the sour grapes of the few that are trapped there.
Aug 6th 2008, 3:07 am
#4
Banned
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 90
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
Last month I was offered a position inAD paying 100,000 dh per month + reloc, flights home, healthcare etc. The 100,000 included 30,000 dh per month accomodation allowance which seemed alot but I understand is becoming more common.
Having now visitied both cities I can safely say that, god willing, I will never return to either city.
AD was by an incredible degree the nicer if you are prepared to live in units in the corniche (not my idea of a nice living arrangement though) and could live with the traffic problems that develop at times and the noise of the local hoons. And the lifeessness of it all unless you enjoy socialising in a mall food court.
Areas like khalifa city were so much more dusty to be unlivable for me which Im sure presents a health issue ... I certainly have had a dry cough since going there and expect to cough little piles of sand onto my work desk soon. Suffice to say id be very worried about my lungs but my driver also said kidney and even gall stones were very common although i suspect this may be BS.
Al Raha gardens was like living in a construction site with all the traffic, noise and aesthetic problems. Yet the office quite happily quoted 300,000dh rent for a 3 bedder in the middle of nowhere.
On an average package every dollar saved in tax would be eaten up by renting decent accom!!!????
But my tax dollars get me things like public transport system, health care, welfare to keep residents out of squalor and hardship etc etc.
And having got value for money for my tax dollars, here in syd I pay $750 per week to rent a $4.5m house on balmoral slopes on 650 sqm 300m from balmoral beach. and 300m from a proper villiage with proper stores delis and cafes. Yes its a bargain but they exist.
So in addition to having a better life I end up in a very similar financial position after rents are factored in. Mind boggling how they get aussies over there IMO.
No need to run such a comparion in relation to Dubai as it was nothing short of disgusting. I expected the traffic and lack of green and orange skies but the things that hit me were the ugly industrial facilities being littered around the city and the congested cheap looking developments that basically looked like ghettos and govt housing (albiet new) . Dubai really is the worlds greatest modern planning failure. Discovery Gardens gets the best view of the worlds largest area of huge metal trasmission lines. if they dont give you cancer Im sure things like gasses from nearby Dubal will.
The dust was clealy worse in dubai and it seemed to mix unfavorably with the shocking smog. That alone was a complete dealbreaker.
The absence of young pretty white women was immediately apparent (sue me but they are nice to have around just like bleu skies and trees). As far as whites go it really was a sausage party with an arrogant self absorbed UAE centric view of business people there, possibly an overcompensation for the sad life they have come to lead.
One of the expats i met that was better paid than my offer said "you wont save.. nobody save here ha ha". Im mean WTF is wrong with these people ... why are they living in desert hell then???!!!
The simplest processes seemed to end in drawn out chaos so i shudder to think what things like getting leases, licences, banking etc are like.
And yes it was 47.5 degrees but honestly that was the least of my worries ... i couldnt stop thinking how bad i would feel inflicting the place on my partner ... esp the boredom (broken only by a drive to the sad crowded and collapsing IBN mall).
I could go on but with along list of cons but there is not point as there was simply not one pro to weigh them against.
Even my asian driver on 2000dh a month for 6 12h days a week said he refuses to live in Dubai and urged people to stay in the west if they could survive there as even on a good initial impression each day is worst than the last.
Even if the tax savings werent almost fully cancelled out by the rent situation, for me life is too short to spend any amount of it in the UAE.
With recession looming in the west my honest advice would be to leave the UAE asap and get reestablished back home before recession hits the UAE and you are forced to return home as a mid recession fish out of water.
Having now visitied both cities I can safely say that, god willing, I will never return to either city.
AD was by an incredible degree the nicer if you are prepared to live in units in the corniche (not my idea of a nice living arrangement though) and could live with the traffic problems that develop at times and the noise of the local hoons. And the lifeessness of it all unless you enjoy socialising in a mall food court.
Areas like khalifa city were so much more dusty to be unlivable for me which Im sure presents a health issue ... I certainly have had a dry cough since going there and expect to cough little piles of sand onto my work desk soon. Suffice to say id be very worried about my lungs but my driver also said kidney and even gall stones were very common although i suspect this may be BS.
Al Raha gardens was like living in a construction site with all the traffic, noise and aesthetic problems. Yet the office quite happily quoted 300,000dh rent for a 3 bedder in the middle of nowhere.
On an average package every dollar saved in tax would be eaten up by renting decent accom!!!????
But my tax dollars get me things like public transport system, health care, welfare to keep residents out of squalor and hardship etc etc.
And having got value for money for my tax dollars, here in syd I pay $750 per week to rent a $4.5m house on balmoral slopes on 650 sqm 300m from balmoral beach. and 300m from a proper villiage with proper stores delis and cafes. Yes its a bargain but they exist.
So in addition to having a better life I end up in a very similar financial position after rents are factored in. Mind boggling how they get aussies over there IMO.
No need to run such a comparion in relation to Dubai as it was nothing short of disgusting. I expected the traffic and lack of green and orange skies but the things that hit me were the ugly industrial facilities being littered around the city and the congested cheap looking developments that basically looked like ghettos and govt housing (albiet new) . Dubai really is the worlds greatest modern planning failure. Discovery Gardens gets the best view of the worlds largest area of huge metal trasmission lines. if they dont give you cancer Im sure things like gasses from nearby Dubal will.
The dust was clealy worse in dubai and it seemed to mix unfavorably with the shocking smog. That alone was a complete dealbreaker.
The absence of young pretty white women was immediately apparent (sue me but they are nice to have around just like bleu skies and trees). As far as whites go it really was a sausage party with an arrogant self absorbed UAE centric view of business people there, possibly an overcompensation for the sad life they have come to lead.
One of the expats i met that was better paid than my offer said "you wont save.. nobody save here ha ha". Im mean WTF is wrong with these people ... why are they living in desert hell then???!!!
The simplest processes seemed to end in drawn out chaos so i shudder to think what things like getting leases, licences, banking etc are like.
And yes it was 47.5 degrees but honestly that was the least of my worries ... i couldnt stop thinking how bad i would feel inflicting the place on my partner ... esp the boredom (broken only by a drive to the sad crowded and collapsing IBN mall).
I could go on but with along list of cons but there is not point as there was simply not one pro to weigh them against.
Even my asian driver on 2000dh a month for 6 12h days a week said he refuses to live in Dubai and urged people to stay in the west if they could survive there as even on a good initial impression each day is worst than the last.
Even if the tax savings werent almost fully cancelled out by the rent situation, for me life is too short to spend any amount of it in the UAE.
With recession looming in the west my honest advice would be to leave the UAE asap and get reestablished back home before recession hits the UAE and you are forced to return home as a mid recession fish out of water.
Aug 6th 2008, 3:14 am
#5
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Thread Starter
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 219
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
hi mantronic..........great info..we recently turned down offers in sydney as we had lived down that part of the world for a few years....but beautiful place..we have offers in dubai & abu dhabi as well as vancouver ( currently living in ontario )....salary on offer is nowhere near yours....up to 75,000 dh per month with a 10% increase in march....but i was thinking it would be 'tight'......with schooling,accomm issues we are leaning away from uae now...can't seem to find that quality of live issue that would bring us over....this is the most informative thread i have found......
There is tonnes of misinfo regarding the place hence my post.
10% is not an increase .. it wont even keep you up with the real inflation over there. i asked my offer to be indexed with inflation with annual increases over and above .. all smarter expats insisting on this.
With schooling you really must not go there .. you will pay through the nose and do your kids education a terrible injustice.
Aug 6th 2008, 3:20 am
#6
hmmmm...nice
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 27,923
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
There is tonnes of misinfo regarding the place hence my post.
10% is not an increase .. it wont even keep you up with the real inflation over there. i asked my offer to be indexed with inflation with annual increases over and above .. all smarter expats insisting on this.
With schooling you really must not go there .. you will pay through the nose and do your kids education a terrible injustice.
10% is not an increase .. it wont even keep you up with the real inflation over there. i asked my offer to be indexed with inflation with annual increases over and above .. all smarter expats insisting on this.
With schooling you really must not go there .. you will pay through the nose and do your kids education a terrible injustice.
thing is...it's a personal thing, some like it, some don't...
Good thing you came out, had a look and decided it wasn't for you...I cannot believe people move over here without a visit....
oh, and I love it here....sad eh
Aug 6th 2008, 3:35 am
#7
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 13,553
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
You pay an annual rent amounting to less than 1% of the value of the house? In a country where you can earn 7-8% just by leaving your money in a deposit account at the High Street bank?
Can you ask your landlord to call me please - if the asylum allows him to make outside calls or use telephonic equipment........... I'd like him to buy a house in Dubai and rent it out to me.......
Can you ask your landlord to call me please - if the asylum allows him to make outside calls or use telephonic equipment........... I'd like him to buy a house in Dubai and rent it out to me.......
Last edited by The Dean; Aug 6th 2008 at 3:36 am. Reason: e
Aug 6th 2008, 4:03 am
#8
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Joined: Jun 2008
Location: Abu Dhabi
Posts: 1,633
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
"With recession looming in the west my honest advice would be to leave the UAE asap and get reestablished back home before recession hits the UAE and you are forced to return home as a mid recession fish out of water".
Although I agree with a some of your points (bravely made!) I can't agree with this one - the Construction industry is booming here and will be for at least 10 years..... You don't say what industry you are in. It's good that you visited before you made a decision - so many people don't and then make the move with the family moving very soon after - we have seen many people leave because their family can't settle - some love it though and in my opinion you either love it or hate it.
Although I agree with a some of your points (bravely made!) I can't agree with this one - the Construction industry is booming here and will be for at least 10 years..... You don't say what industry you are in. It's good that you visited before you made a decision - so many people don't and then make the move with the family moving very soon after - we have seen many people leave because their family can't settle - some love it though and in my opinion you either love it or hate it.
Aug 6th 2008, 4:07 am
#9
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Joined: Mar 2007
Location: Abu Dhabi
Posts: 3,968
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
Fair play. that is a pretty accurate description of living here IMO. The dust is one of my main worries.
Obviously Manticore done the correct thing and visited..Plenty people dont and get dissapointed.
I couldnt agree more with this ...Half the financial type people (expats) are complete arrogant arseholes...in fact make that 7/8ths..i love walking into a bar to see the pinstripe brigade of whankers.
One point of note though, why is it that tonnes of Ozzies are here if your own place (which is pretty much a big barron desert in itself) is so great?
So Australians:
1. Earn more money in Oz
2. Have bigger houses in Oz
3. Are healthier in Oz
4. Are better educated in Oz
5. Wouldnt give a XXXX for anything
Sounds good, im coming...
Just curious.
For the record, we enjoy life here, we dont love it, its okay for the time being but for sure when my childs education is paramount, then we will be reconsidering.
Obviously Manticore done the correct thing and visited..Plenty people dont and get dissapointed.
As far as whites go it really was a sausage party with an arrogant self absorbed UAE centric view of business people there, possibly an overcompensation for the sad life they have come to lead.
One point of note though, why is it that tonnes of Ozzies are here if your own place (which is pretty much a big barron desert in itself) is so great?
So Australians:
1. Earn more money in Oz
2. Have bigger houses in Oz
3. Are healthier in Oz
4. Are better educated in Oz
5. Wouldnt give a XXXX for anything
Sounds good, im coming...
Just curious.
For the record, we enjoy life here, we dont love it, its okay for the time being but for sure when my childs education is paramount, then we will be reconsidering.
Aug 6th 2008, 4:20 am
#10
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 219
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
Fair play. that is a pretty accurate description of living here IMO. The dust is one of my main worries.
Obviously Manticore done the correct thing and visited..Plenty people dont and get dissapointed.
I couldnt agree more with this ...Half the financial type people (expats) are complete arrogant arseholes...in fact make that 7/8ths..i love walking into a bar to see the pinstripe brigade of whankers.
One point of note though, why is it that tonnes of Ozzies are here if your own place (which is pretty much a big barron desert in itself) is so great?
So Australians:
1. Earn more money in Oz
2. Have bigger houses in Oz
3. Are healthier in Oz
4. Are better educated in Oz
5. Wouldnt give a XXXX for anything
Sounds good, im coming...
Just curious.
For the record, we enjoy life here, we dont love it, its okay for the time being but for sure when my childs education is paramount, then we will be reconsidering.
Obviously Manticore done the correct thing and visited..Plenty people dont and get dissapointed.
I couldnt agree more with this ...Half the financial type people (expats) are complete arrogant arseholes...in fact make that 7/8ths..i love walking into a bar to see the pinstripe brigade of whankers.
One point of note though, why is it that tonnes of Ozzies are here if your own place (which is pretty much a big barron desert in itself) is so great?
So Australians:
1. Earn more money in Oz
2. Have bigger houses in Oz
3. Are healthier in Oz
4. Are better educated in Oz
5. Wouldnt give a XXXX for anything
Sounds good, im coming...
Just curious.
For the record, we enjoy life here, we dont love it, its okay for the time being but for sure when my childs education is paramount, then we will be reconsidering.
More junior people dont get paid to go and look like i did ... those people I think make a grave mistake. They get a few weeks paid accom, soon pay 12 months rent(!!) and stay because they have paid or in some cases have a loan to repay(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).
After a year there you have lost 12 months networking back home and lost some contacts and will have a hard time getting set up again. Senior positionas in Aus can take 6 months to find.
The wankery is absurd "AD just bought the chrysler building you know" as if they just bought manhattan. "AD owns 5% of Ferrari" ... 5% of a small niche of a small market - big deal! "we bought the right to use the name louvre, guguenheim etc etc" although we have no chance of filling even a room with that quality of art and have never visitied the actual instituions themselves.
"I saw an enzo yesterday" but I drive a lumina :curse:
All very conspicuous and with very little inherent merit .. this is UAE to the core.
Aug 6th 2008, 4:33 am
#11
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Thread Starter
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 219
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
"With recession looming in the west my honest advice would be to leave the UAE asap and get reestablished back home before recession hits the UAE and you are forced to return home as a mid recession fish out of water".
Although I agree with a some of your points (bravely made!) I can't agree with this one - the Construction industry is booming here and will be for at least 10 years..... You don't say what industry you are in. It's good that you visited before you made a decision - so many people don't and then make the move with the family moving very soon after - we have seen many people leave because their family can't settle - some love it though and in my opinion you either love it or hate it.
Although I agree with a some of your points (bravely made!) I can't agree with this one - the Construction industry is booming here and will be for at least 10 years..... You don't say what industry you are in. It's good that you visited before you made a decision - so many people don't and then make the move with the family moving very soon after - we have seen many people leave because their family can't settle - some love it though and in my opinion you either love it or hate it.
You remind me of another impression of dubai ... the fabled boom town looked more ghost town. Lost of unfinished stuff, not nearly as many cranes as i expected at all, tonnes of obviously empty buildings, and clearly nowhere near enough roads or transport to support them and most likely not the people (the marina with 1000s of units and on little road!!!!!!!!!!).
Once the building has slowed they will find they didnt need most of those buidling in the first place.
Some developments in dubai are offering large companies 2 bedders for 95,000 as they have so many empty ... almost half price .... they just wont let them publicly or they will ruin the illusion of undersupply.
The mighty burj was covered in sand on one side!!!!!! My driver said its common and laughed about it. The cracks in the myth have been there for a long time.
But the boom is definitely over ... they are limping along on ALOT of credit and not equity from the oil as many would suspect. Credit issues will hit the UAE the hardest, although AD will fare much better with its oil.
Then again AD probably financed expecting $150 oil but demand is stabilising with the west going greener fast. Oil heading for $130 again .. and it wasnt too long ago it was $80 a barrel.
Last edited by mantronic; Aug 6th 2008 at 4:43 am.
Aug 6th 2008, 4:33 am
#12
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Joined: Mar 2007
Location: Abu Dhabi
Posts: 3,968
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
I think aussies earn more gross in UAE ... 150% in some cases, with more senior positions. Those lucky enough to get that may be well served to go over for a while.
More junior people dont get paid to go and look like i did ... those people I think make a grave mistake. They get a few weeks paid accom, soon pay 12 months rent(!!) and stay because they have paid or in some cases have a loan to repay(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).
After a year there you have lost 12 months networking back home and lost some contacts and will have a hard time getting set up again. Senior positionas in Aus can take 6 months to find.
The wankery is absurd "AD just bought the chrysler building you know" as if they just bought manhattan. "AD owns 5% of Ferrari" ... 5% of a small niche of a small market - big deal! "we bought the right to use the name louvre, guguenheim etc etc" although we have no chance of filling even a room with that quality of art and have never visitied the actual instituions themselves.
"I saw an enzo yesterday" but I drive a lumina :curse:
All very conspicuous and with very little inherent merit .. this is UAE to the core.
More junior people dont get paid to go and look like i did ... those people I think make a grave mistake. They get a few weeks paid accom, soon pay 12 months rent(!!) and stay because they have paid or in some cases have a loan to repay(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).
After a year there you have lost 12 months networking back home and lost some contacts and will have a hard time getting set up again. Senior positionas in Aus can take 6 months to find.
The wankery is absurd "AD just bought the chrysler building you know" as if they just bought manhattan. "AD owns 5% of Ferrari" ... 5% of a small niche of a small market - big deal! "we bought the right to use the name louvre, guguenheim etc etc" although we have no chance of filling even a room with that quality of art and have never visitied the actual instituions themselves.
"I saw an enzo yesterday" but I drive a lumina :curse:
All very conspicuous and with very little inherent merit .. this is UAE to the core.
Aug 6th 2008, 4:44 am
#14
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Joined: Mar 2007
Location: Abu Dhabi
Posts: 3,968
Re: Abu Dhabi + Dubai impressions
anyway back OT.
Dubai is full of falsness...always has been.
Ohhh i live in Jumeriah dont you know.....Errr actually dont you live in Satwa?