kittycat1

I seem to be going through a period of lots of friends leaving, in the next month I know of 6 seperate friends leaving for pastures new. Some have been here longer than me some around the same sort of time. Just seems weird that so many are off at the same time.

Anyone else seeing this?

KC

commander

Pretty normal..its a fluid place..people come people go..

Its never forever...

commander

That said, I've no friends so maybe not qualified to answer

kittycat1

I know that commander but for me its a lot moving at the same time, I was wondering if it was a bit of a trend at the moment, cost of living is going up here, Dubai is getting busier again etc.

The Dean

Out of curiosity - why are they leaving?

Contract ended, been here ages, time to go? Better job offer elsewhere? Or something more negative (redundancies, not enough work, etc)?

I'm firmly in the 'the vaunted Dubai recovery is overstated, it was only patchy anyway, and it could quite easily peter out at any time' camp..........

commander

You could be right, the prices are getting stupid again. We are looking to renew our villa in the ranches and looking around the prices have rocketed..

kittycat1

Deano, various reasons, better jobs is a tricky phrase, the money may be less but in the world of fashion Dubai isn't excatly up there with London and New York, it gets to a point where being in Dubai for too long would become detrimental to your career. Most of my friends have had job offers come up and for some of them they are taking a side step but its a step back into the real world before they get trapped in the golden cage, others have had good roles come up that sound amazing, some are just done with dubai so have accepted the roles, and a couple are self employed and want a bit more than Dubai offers (not money). So a bit of a mix, but the bottom line is the same, they all want more than Dubai offers.

OriginalSunshine

we are seeing loads of construction folks come over from Dubai to Muscat - you can spot them a mile off. Full of flash & bullshit & attitude, wearing designer clothes in a place where no-one cares about that kind of thing, dressing up for the school run and Friday brunches where here school runs are a chore, and Friday brunches are just too filling let's all go to the crepe house on the beach instead?.

Kix

People actually EAT at Friday brunch?

I'm in Muscat for a few days for a conference 23-26 march. I've always liked Muscat, what's Crowne Plaza like?

co durham boy

We all leave eventually .

OriginalSunshine

yes, another shock to the Dubai crowd - our brunches are about FOOD, not booze (which is served after 2pm on a Friday here, it being, ya'know, holy day and all that ).

It's ok. Intercon is nicest of the area and in a bit more "happening" area. Grand Hyatt great restaurants. CP has a good bar, with nice British bar food. No beach there though which is frustrating considering the great views. I'd offer to show you around town for what it's worth but unfortunately I've got family staying that very same week.

Taxi from airport to hotel will cost 10 OMR (110 AED) but no taxi is metered, so always agree the price in advance and say you don't want to have other passengers.

Kix

Thanks for the info, have been to Muscat a few times, love it around the fish market area, watching the boats come in and all that.

The nightclub at the Intercon was something else!

If all else fails there's Rock Bottom i guess...

britexpat76

Eating is cheating. FACT

flares

Crowne Plaza is good.

I'm in Muscat 21-23 March. Leisure not business. Much looking forward.

Morecambe Mindy

I know lots who are going at the end of the school year (about 6 families I can think of offhand). All going back to home, mostly having children who are about to start at secondary school.

Haven't had anyone leave for a couple of years before that, so it does seem like a lot going at once, but that's the nature of the place.