Showing posts with label DUBAI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DUBAI. Show all posts
Monday, 13 September 2010
Monday, 16 August 2010
The Effect of “Debtors Prisons”: Abandoned Supercars in Dubai
So why are these guys in such a hurry to leave without a care as to what happens to their possessions? Well, as the world is painfully aware, Dubai has recently gone through a “boom and bust” cycle, which has left many executives on the hook for not only personal debts, but corporate ones as well if there name is tied to the corporation.
On the surface, such instances are no different in the US. Guys live large, then go broke and their stuff gets taken away and they have to start from the bottom. So what’s the difference?
Debtors prisons are the difference. Whereas Stateside, you get you credit score knocked down (and maybe bankruptcy) when you don’t pay your bills, in Islamic countries, not honoring one’s debts is goes against Islamic law, so trespassers can be tried and locked up if they don’t have the means to make right on their debts.
Since many of the investors, residents and executives of Dubai are expatriates of other countries, rather than stay in Dubai and face the music, they leave a note and haul ass back to the safety of their own country. Hence the cars with the notes on the windshield (often parked at the airports while the debtor is on their way out of dodge). The good news is that it’s now a buyer’s market on used cars in Dubai, with exotics going for 60 cents on the dollar over there. Just make sure you can make the payments.
Source By http://www.justaguything.com/
Friday, 23 July 2010
Goodbye Middle East: Dubai
Sempre é preciso saber quando uma etapa chega ao final...
Se insistirmos em permanecer nela mais do que o tempo necessário, perdemos a alegria e o sentido das outras etapas que precisamos viver.
Encerrando ciclos, fechando portas, terminando capítulos. Não importa o nome que damos, o que importa é deixar no passado os momentos da vida que já se acabaram.
Foi despedida do trabalho? Terminou uma relação? Deixou a casa dos pais? Partiu para viver em outro país? A amizade tão longamente cultivada desapareceu sem explicações?
Você pode passar muito tempo se perguntando por que isso aconteceu....
Pode dizer para si mesmo que não dará mais um passo enquanto não entender as razões que levaram certas coisas, que eram tão importantes e sólidas em sua vida, serem subitamente transformadas em pó. Mas tal atitude será um desgaste imenso para todos: seus pais, seus amigos, seus filhos, seus irmãos, todos estarão encerrando capítulos, virando a folha, seguindo adiante, e todos sofrerão ao ver que você está parado.
Ninguém pode estar ao mesmo tempo no presente e no passado, nem mesmo quando tentamos entender as coisas que acontecem conosco.
O que passou não voltará: não podemos ser eternamente meninos, adolescentes tardios, filhos que se sentem culpados ou rancorosos com os pais, amantes que revivem noite e dia uma ligação com quem já foi embora e não tem a menor intenção de voltar.
As coisas passam, e o melhor que fazemos é deixar que elas realmente possam ir embora...
Por isso é tão importante (por mais doloroso que seja!) destruir recordações, mudar de casa, dar muitas coisas para orfanatos, vender ou doar os livros que tem.
Tudo neste mundo visível é uma manifestação do mundo invisível, do que está acontecendo em nosso coração... e o desfazer-se de certas lembranças significa também abrir espaço para que outras tomem o seu lugar.
Deixar ir embora. Soltar. Desprender-se.
Ninguém está jogando nesta vida com cartas marcadas, portanto às vezes ganhamos, e às vezes perdemos.
Não espere que devolvam algo, não espere que reconheçam seu esforço, que descubram seu gênio, que entendam seu amor. Pare de ligar sua televisão emocional e assistir sempre ao mesmo programa, que mostra como você sofreu com determinada perda: isso o estará apenas envenenando, e nada mais.
Não há nada mais perigoso que rompimentos amorosos que não são aceitos, promessas de emprego que não têm data marcada para começar, decisões que sempre são adiadas em nome do "momento ideal".
Antes de começar um capítulo novo, é preciso terminar o antigo: diga a si mesmo que o que passou, jamais voltará!
Lembre-se de que houve uma época em que podia viver sem aquilo, sem aquela pessoa - nada é insubstituível, um hábito não é uma necessidade.
Pode parecer óbvio, pode mesmo ser difícil, mas é muito importante.
Encerrando ciclos. Não por causa do orgulho, por incapacidade, ou por soberba, mas porque simplesmente aquilo já não se encaixa mais na sua vida.
Feche a porta, mude o disco, limpe a casa, sacuda a poeira. Deixe de ser quem era, e se transforme em quem é. Torna-te uma pessoa melhor e assegura-te de que sabes bem quem és tu próprio, antes de conheceres alguém e de esperares que ele veja quem tu és..
E lembra-te:
Tudo o que chega, chega sempre por alguma razão.
Fernando Pessoa.
Wednesday, 2 December 2009
BBC NEWS/Middle East/Phone technology aids UAE dating
Aproveitando para falar de relationship aqui em Dubai, e muito crucial para os que vivem aqui, como ja falei uma vez e muito complicado mesmo, por exemplo se voce tem uma namorada ou vise-versa, nao e permitido uma serie de coisas em publico, como por exemplo uma demonstracao de carinho e por ai vai...e caso de voce levar uma multa por parte da policia e segurancas de shopping's e parques e as vezes preso e aguardar o processo de deportacao como ja vi em muitos casos por aqui.
As part of a series on young people in the Middle East, the BBC News website discovers how technology is aiding the secret liaisons of young men and women in the conservative culture of the United Arab Emirates.
Bluetooth user Ahmed says he is into poem
It happens in malls, cinemas and cafes - in Dubai's notorious traffic jams, and now by mobile phone.
Many of the city's black-shrouded UAE girls say they cannot check out the latest fashions in Zara or sip a smoothie in a cafe without being bombarded with the phone numbers of hopeful admirers.
Among UAE nationals - as the minority of the UAE's residents that are not expatriates are called - it is generally considered impolite for a man to speak to a woman he is neither married nor related to in public.
Traditionally, a young man's first amorous approach to a woman is supposed to be a marriage proposal made by his parents to her parents.
But the cards, scraps of paper and mobile phone messages that pass from male to female are testament to the double existence of some young UAE nationals as they take their love lives into their own hands.
Wireless advances
One technology is proving particularly useful.
"Our governments are all corrupt and, though there is some change for the better, nothing is really improving"
Rasha, Bahrain
Bluetooth is a feature built into some mobile phones which enables the user to transfer data to another wireless device nearby.
But crucially, it also enables one person to contact another within a 10 metre radius without knowing their phone number.
Ahmed Bin Desmal's friends joke that he is a "Bluetooth king". The 20-year-old says he has used the technology to send notes to girls he sees in public places.
"In our country it's very rude to go up and talk to them," he says. "I sent some notes, they liked them - they took my number and they called me. I say nice things - I'm into poems."
While to many like Ahmed, Bluetooth is just a way to start a conversation, for some it can go much further.
Usually only married or engaged UAE couples go out in public
Mohammed, 24, does not know how many girlfriends he has had. He prefers expat girls because he can take them to the beach or to parties, but finds Bluetooth useful when pursuing locals.
"In some areas you can't talk to a girl except through Bluetooth."
His flirtations by phone and other means sometimes end in sex. Even with national girls, it is possible to keep it secret: "Hotels, flats, houses, anything - there's always a way," he says.
But he wants to marry a virgin eventually: "The girls I have sex with are different from the girls I would marry - these girls want to play around," he says.
Choosing a wife
But not all are like this - far from it. At Dubai Men's College I meet several bright, studious young men.
I don't think I'd have a love marriage - family marriage is a bit more risk-free
Maryam Abdullah Bin Bilaila, 19
Most want to wait until they are established in careers and in their late twenties before marrying. Few have had friendships that would approach the Western definition of a girlfriend.
"If I tell you I don't think about it, it's a lie. Every day I meet a lot of women, but in the end if you can control yourself that's something good," says Salim Alakraf, 25.
For them the issue is how much they will be involved in choosing their wife.
"Nowadays people are really open-minded, although we still follow our culture. If I'm working with a girl and I think she is suitable for me, I can ask my family to go and ask her family about her to see if she is suitable," says Saeed Suwaidi, 27, the leader of the student council.
'Perfect talk'
Among national girls, it is virtually impossible for a young woman to admit to clandestine meetings with boys, although from the tales young men tell, it is clear that these take place.
Bluetooth can be used to locate and contact nearby devices
Even being friends with such a girl can damage a reputation, a word that comes up often.
And while some would like to meet their future husband "by coincidence" or through work, there is still caution about "love marriages".
"I don't think I'd have a love marriage. It's not that I don't want one, but our contact with guys is not that good, and a guy talks his perfect talk when he sees a girl so it could be a misjudgement. Family marriage is a bit more risk-free," says accounting student Maryam Abdullah Bin Bilaila, 19.
Instant messaging
But other young people are treading a cautious, secretive path towards love marriages, aided by technology.
Ahmed, 26, is in love with his girlfriend of five years, but neither of their families know.
"Dubai's traffic jams provide opportunities to exchange numbers
They talk often by mobile phone, but their meetings are limited to the 10 minutes between her leaving work and arriving home."
"Yes, I think I will marry her. We've had a long relationship, for five years. She knows all my secrets, I know her secrets," he says.
And Saud, 22, met the girl he describes as his girlfriend two years ago on the internet, through instant messaging software.
Although they talk on the phone, he has seen her only five or six times, by following her from a distance as she shops with her family in a mall. He says she's beautiful.
But, while the couple are finding ways around their society's cultural mores, for them, as for many young people, the consequences of being caught remain all too real.
"We are afraid someone from her family will see and there could be big problems which would mean we couldn't ever marry," says Saud.
Some names have been changed to protect the interviewees' identities.
Source by By Heather Sharp
BBC News, Dubai (Friday, 29 July 2005, 15:53 GMT 16:53 UK )
As part of a series on young people in the Middle East, the BBC News website discovers how technology is aiding the secret liaisons of young men and women in the conservative culture of the United Arab Emirates.
Bluetooth user Ahmed says he is into poem
It happens in malls, cinemas and cafes - in Dubai's notorious traffic jams, and now by mobile phone.
Many of the city's black-shrouded UAE girls say they cannot check out the latest fashions in Zara or sip a smoothie in a cafe without being bombarded with the phone numbers of hopeful admirers.
Among UAE nationals - as the minority of the UAE's residents that are not expatriates are called - it is generally considered impolite for a man to speak to a woman he is neither married nor related to in public.
Traditionally, a young man's first amorous approach to a woman is supposed to be a marriage proposal made by his parents to her parents.
But the cards, scraps of paper and mobile phone messages that pass from male to female are testament to the double existence of some young UAE nationals as they take their love lives into their own hands.
Wireless advances
One technology is proving particularly useful.
"Our governments are all corrupt and, though there is some change for the better, nothing is really improving"
Rasha, Bahrain
Bluetooth is a feature built into some mobile phones which enables the user to transfer data to another wireless device nearby.
But crucially, it also enables one person to contact another within a 10 metre radius without knowing their phone number.
Ahmed Bin Desmal's friends joke that he is a "Bluetooth king". The 20-year-old says he has used the technology to send notes to girls he sees in public places.
"In our country it's very rude to go up and talk to them," he says. "I sent some notes, they liked them - they took my number and they called me. I say nice things - I'm into poems."
While to many like Ahmed, Bluetooth is just a way to start a conversation, for some it can go much further.
Usually only married or engaged UAE couples go out in public
Mohammed, 24, does not know how many girlfriends he has had. He prefers expat girls because he can take them to the beach or to parties, but finds Bluetooth useful when pursuing locals.
"In some areas you can't talk to a girl except through Bluetooth."
His flirtations by phone and other means sometimes end in sex. Even with national girls, it is possible to keep it secret: "Hotels, flats, houses, anything - there's always a way," he says.
But he wants to marry a virgin eventually: "The girls I have sex with are different from the girls I would marry - these girls want to play around," he says.
Choosing a wife
But not all are like this - far from it. At Dubai Men's College I meet several bright, studious young men.
I don't think I'd have a love marriage - family marriage is a bit more risk-free
Maryam Abdullah Bin Bilaila, 19
Most want to wait until they are established in careers and in their late twenties before marrying. Few have had friendships that would approach the Western definition of a girlfriend.
"If I tell you I don't think about it, it's a lie. Every day I meet a lot of women, but in the end if you can control yourself that's something good," says Salim Alakraf, 25.
For them the issue is how much they will be involved in choosing their wife.
"Nowadays people are really open-minded, although we still follow our culture. If I'm working with a girl and I think she is suitable for me, I can ask my family to go and ask her family about her to see if she is suitable," says Saeed Suwaidi, 27, the leader of the student council.
'Perfect talk'
Among national girls, it is virtually impossible for a young woman to admit to clandestine meetings with boys, although from the tales young men tell, it is clear that these take place.
Bluetooth can be used to locate and contact nearby devices
Even being friends with such a girl can damage a reputation, a word that comes up often.
And while some would like to meet their future husband "by coincidence" or through work, there is still caution about "love marriages".
"I don't think I'd have a love marriage. It's not that I don't want one, but our contact with guys is not that good, and a guy talks his perfect talk when he sees a girl so it could be a misjudgement. Family marriage is a bit more risk-free," says accounting student Maryam Abdullah Bin Bilaila, 19.
Instant messaging
But other young people are treading a cautious, secretive path towards love marriages, aided by technology.
Ahmed, 26, is in love with his girlfriend of five years, but neither of their families know.
"Dubai's traffic jams provide opportunities to exchange numbers
They talk often by mobile phone, but their meetings are limited to the 10 minutes between her leaving work and arriving home."
"Yes, I think I will marry her. We've had a long relationship, for five years. She knows all my secrets, I know her secrets," he says.
And Saud, 22, met the girl he describes as his girlfriend two years ago on the internet, through instant messaging software.
Although they talk on the phone, he has seen her only five or six times, by following her from a distance as she shops with her family in a mall. He says she's beautiful.
But, while the couple are finding ways around their society's cultural mores, for them, as for many young people, the consequences of being caught remain all too real.
"We are afraid someone from her family will see and there could be big problems which would mean we couldn't ever marry," says Saud.
Some names have been changed to protect the interviewees' identities.
Source by By Heather Sharp
BBC News, Dubai (Friday, 29 July 2005, 15:53 GMT 16:53 UK )
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