Bigtaff

I would like to buy a book ahead of my life in Dubai and was wondering if any of you have read either the lonely planet guide or the time out guide, also wondering which of them is the better? Or anything else that would tell me a little about life out there. Not really worried about the historical side, just modern life.

admon

go to amazon

Type in Dubai Complete Residents Guide.

Its an explorer book, gives you all the lowdown on living here and the hoops you have to jump through on a daily basis.

Bigtaff

And that's the best one in your opinion?

Blue Cat

do you want facts and figures and paperwork information , like how to get a visa etc? if so Dubai Explorer I think is the one you will need.

Bigtaff

Just a general HONEST view of life there, what to avoid, where to go or not to go etc. I think my company will be sorting Visas etc. I don't want a polished view or a load of moaning by an Author that had a bad holiday there 16 years ago, no use to me!

shakh your bootie

The explorer is a factual guide rather than a gushing tribute to the UAE - it should be fine for your needs.

If you want honest views of life in the UAE, the people on this site can do that. Just don't ask Lionheart. Or Admon. They're neither of them awfully cheerful types....

Blue Cat

he can ask me though!! life here is what you make it, you can live the hi life and be out 7 nights a week dining in fabulous restaurants, it is all down to choice. I still make a Sunday lunch everyweek

shakh your bootie

It's when you make Sunday lunch every day that you need to start worrying....

Blue Cat

I do it on Saturdays what I am trying to say is we pretty much live the same here as we do in the Uk, lunch out a Friday, odd night out, the main difference for us is the weather and the higher standard of living, ie better car and accomodation etc.

shakh your bootie

Not to mention saving country clubs, felines, construction workers and battered maids and all the other stuff you get up to, BC......

busybee2

better accommodation? where? higher cost (standard of living). yes that may be the case in dxb because there has always been a high supply of housing stock, but if you were to venture down south to the capital then all of the above doesnt factor. so stay in dubai.

Blue Cat

yeah if I was in the UK I wouldn't be helping battered wives but probably still involved in the cat thing!

since when has there been a high supply of housing stock in Dubai? there may well be now but it has been crazy here for years. If I was living in the UK I am pretty sure I wouldn't be living in a 3 bedroom duplex with a pool, gym, sauna and jacuzzi for FREE

busybee2

ok if you compare ab dabs to dxb there has always been more housing stock ever since i have been here. go back 5 years when they started to build the likes of the meadows, arabian ranches etc, which has put how many houses on the market not even mentioning the "big pond" called the marina, even before that how many units are there in the old parts of jumeriah and um seq etc there has always been loads of houses compared to abu dhabi. dxb has many more compounds compared to ad where by they go for one house one plot etc, yes they do have them in some areas of dubai but in abu dhabi i could count the compounds on 2 hands, not so in dxb.

admon

you have how many fingers on your hands? that's what i want to know.

spartans53

BC

any news on the new country club not seen Andy S for a while and they seem to have gone quite with all that money they got. Also the Hayya club is shite and I want the Country Club back. I now sound like my DAD and I think the good old days were the best.

Lets bring back the Bunker and Panco Villas without the Hookers, CB villas and JA village.

Mike