British Expats

British Expats (https://britishexpats.com/forum/)
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-   -   BBC Article on Dubai (https://britishexpats.com/forum/sand-pit-116/bbc-article-dubai-799379/)

Kix Jun 7th 2013 8:35 am

BBC Article on Dubai
 
Can you guess the restaurant they went to?

BBC

Some great lines:-


Even the directions to the restaurant smacked of excess. "Take a cab to the Boulevard, walk past Bulgari, past The Ivy, take a right at Cartier, and you cannot miss it."

"These people seem to have emerged from some strange combination of sitcom and horror film”

She looked like she was going to cry, and hurried away to the toilet.
One heel had broken off her very high-heeled shoes, making her drunken gait even more unsteady - as if Charlie Chaplin had a lesser-known, and even more comical sister.

"I cannot stand dirty people," she told me, apropos of nothing. "I cannot stand poor people either. I went to India once. How those people smell."

"It is true that construction workers in Dubai used to have to sleep in shipping containers. But that does not happen now."

She was feeling intimidated - because if she could not talk about Hakkasan, or other restaurants, or how much she adored eating carpaccio of guava, what on earth could she talk about?
I think the last quote above sums them up brilliantly.

A funny friday read.

mentalist Jun 7th 2013 8:47 am

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 
The Dutch woman sounds vaguely familiar.;)

the_red_sheep Jun 7th 2013 9:20 am

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 
I just read the article and logged in here to post about it... It is perhaps the worst article on Dubai I've ever read. To be honest I'd question whether a shred of anything that is 'reported' in it actually happened, it seems to be entirely cobbled together with dreary stereotypes. Quite what the point of it is completely passed me by.

Robajob Jun 7th 2013 11:08 am

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 
I was chastised recently on another thread recently for being cheekily rude to someone who was looking for people to interview about expat life in Dubai for a TV show - When this is the level of reporting on life in Dubai from the BBC, the god alone knows how a commercial broadcaster would frame the lives of Brits out here.

To anyone that thinks they would get an opportunity to paint a balanced picture by putting their life across I think you would be sorely mistaken. Nice normal boring life makes for crap TV. Far more entertaining to paint us all as a bunch of booze swilling, nouveau riche boors who treat everyone else who lives here like shit, locals included. The truth that we are as varied a bunch as you would find in any town in the UK would not get a look in.

Rant over.

Kix Jun 7th 2013 11:32 am

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 
I think they are written out of pure jealousy and to make their readers think even less of Dubai and it's inhabitants than they do now.

Could it be politically motivated as the Dubai Inc publicity machine tries to sweep things under the carpet and only show the positives.

Anyone know which Restaurant they're talking about? I don't.

Edited to add, it's Hakkasan in Emirates Towers, found it on their website! (Top marks to me)!

Ethos83 Jun 7th 2013 11:57 am

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 
Yes, Rob, I beat you up on the other thread because the lot of you were very rude to a polite woman. If you were suspicious as to her motives it's perfectly fine to explain to why, but you did nothing but fuel the stereotype that Dubai expats are knobheads.

As for the BBC article, it might as well have been in London. Those same superficial people, including the exact same nationalities, just another dinner party at a posh restaurant in London.

mikewot Jun 7th 2013 1:15 pm

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 

Originally Posted by Ethos83 (Post 10745483)
Yes, Rob, I beat you up on the other thread because the lot of you were very rude to a polite woman.

She was in the wrong, site rule number 10.

Meow Jun 7th 2013 1:26 pm

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 
So this man meets a few drunken twats in Dubai and assumes that all Westerners here are like that? In that case I assume that all BBC journos are narrow-minded, ill-informed, judgemental hacks with a mean-spirited, nasty and underhand agenda.

Shame on the BBC for publiching this total non-story. Man on short break is kindly asked to join strangers for a few drinks and writes nasty story about them. Could be anywhere.

From a member of the midpriced sav blanc set...

Poshy Jun 7th 2013 1:33 pm

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 
What a pile of shit ! :thumbdown:

OleJanx Jun 7th 2013 2:49 pm

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 

Originally Posted by Poshy (Post 10745621)
What a pile of shit ! :thumbdown:

Can't think of a better way of summing it up. Have some Karma.

kittycat1 Jun 7th 2013 6:32 pm

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 
Of course noone wants to write that some people have rather normal lives here, people who work hard, save what they can and are actually down to earth nice people, but I guess that would not make an exciting story (not that this piece was either to be fair).

Having said that there are some extremely awful people here who have become detached from reality and live in the dubai bubble, if I ever even show a teeny tiny bit of that all my friends are ordered to bitchslap me back to normality.

Boomhauer Jun 7th 2013 8:28 pm

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 

Originally Posted by kittycat1 (Post 10746054)
Of course noone wants to write that some people have rather normal lives here, people who work hard, save what they can and are actually down to earth nice people, but I guess that would not make an exciting story (not that this piece was either to be fair).

Having said that there are some extremely awful people here who have become detached from reality and live in the dubai bubble, if I ever even show a teeny tiny bit of that all my friends are ordered to bitchslap me back to normality.

So err umm the people who buy expensive lingerie from you are more likely (than the average Jane) to be like the woman in OP ?:whistle:

Fossildog Jun 7th 2013 8:35 pm

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 
The article does not mention UK expats. Mentioned an Iranian and an Australian.

Boomhauer Jun 7th 2013 8:53 pm

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 

Originally Posted by Fossildog (Post 10746255)
The article does not mention UK expats. Mentioned an Iranian and an Australian.

While the article is cliched, is it really a shock to learn that many expats , especially those from the MidEast and Asia , hold such attitudes?

Fossildog Jun 7th 2013 9:02 pm

Re: BBC Article on Dubai
 

Originally Posted by Boomhauer (Post 10746274)
While the article is cliched, is it really a shock to learn that many expats , especially those from the MidEast and Asia , hold such attitudes?

I guess the BBC reporter is a bit naive. They should write a counter article on me and my quest to live on AED 100 a week although that would not be as sensational, although my midweek switch from lentils to cous-cous may provide a bit of excitement.

The lady is wrong about smelly people though. I am always pleasantly surprised at how clean everyone is here. Never encountered a smelly person yet, aside from the odd whiff of sweat.


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