commander

er I'm male, young and love spicy food.

Ethos83

Yes, darling. It was in a little place called London. Do you know of it?

I lived in an older villa in Umm Suqeim that was around long before most of New Dubai was built and we didn't know any of our Emirati neighbours, but I agree it was great having Al Reef right down the road.

Bur Dubai isn't without its virtues but it's silly to call New Dubai soulless. It's filled with people from all corners of the globe, the diversity is impressive and to be frank I meet far more people from different backgrounds than I did cooped up in a private villa in Umm Suqeim.

Blue Cat

Umm Seqeim wasn't built when I was living in Satwa. The new developments are even more soullness now than they used to be, they are like shanty towns, the greens included

co durham boy

Isn't it all pretty soulless as a city ? Apart from a a few mentioned places living in any one of these new developments is pretty soulless.

The places such as Satwa , Bur Dubai and so on have a certain feel because you are actually intergrated into some kind of community.You can actually feel that you're in a different environment.

That's what you get when you socially engineer societies .

Ethos83

According to our landlord the villa was built in 1988. So it's been around for ages by Dubai standard.

I'm going to call you a silly cat for claiming the new developments are soulless shanty towns. They're filled with people living every day lives, socialising with friends and neighbours, hanging out at the pools, going to the beaches, and whatever. I'd even claim New Dubai is more diverse than Satwa and Bur Dubai where the population is overwhelming Indian or Filipino.

If you'd prefer smelly, dirty and loud Satwa or Bur Dubai by all means that's your choice. But to claim the Greens is a soulless shanty town is just, well, silly.

Blue Cat

totally agree with you, what I miss the most is the accessability to so many wonderful little eateries all within walking distance of my front door, never mind the pub on the corner

Blue Cat

1988 in umm Seqium? exactly where was this villa? I was here in 1988 and there was nothing further up the SZR than the Metropolitan hotel

co durham boy

I'd agree it's getting more diverse as people now have the chance to rent in areas which in the past were inaccessible to them.

To be honest i never minded the smell , the noise and all the other city sounds it was quite a lively place and had a bit about it.

Satwa / Bur Dubai are like Monaco and St Tropez compared to some of the slums i've worked in.

Ethos83

We were a few blocks in from Umm Al Sheif, up close to the Beach Road. A single storey Arab villa inside a walled garden. It did look a bit like some of the villas you see out in the rural areas.

Blue Cat

I think it might have been more 1998 than 88

Ethos83

Is there a point to arguing over the villa's age? Landlord claimed it was 1988. We certainly had 1980s kitchens - cheap black cabinets, grotty tiles suitable for an Underground stop, pink and green bathrooms.

Millhouse

look, no one cares. The only question we have for Ethos is - did you knob her?

Bigtaff

I'm guessing not yet - he has been on here all afternoon arguing with BC (sexual tension pent up, I guess )

Meow

Do we really think a woman would want him?

Blue Cat

that has been my thought right from the beginning