18 months later: things that no longer shock me about the UAE

1. Men making horrible sounds in their throat and then spitting.

2. Labourers catching naps on small grassy stretches at the side of busy roads.


3. Children not buckled in to their parents' cars, babies on drivers' laps, or toddlers standing up and sometimes even poking their heads out the sun roof or the rear window for a peak.

4. Cats missing tails, eyes, ears paws and possessing the most horrible rasping meow you can imagine. Oh, and cats in the newsroom. Namely these two characters: Ceiling Cat (left) and Bill.



5. Cars and trucks drag racing down a main street at top speeds in the middle of the day.

6. Cars and trucks undertaking people travelling in the fast lane on the inner shoulder of major highways.

7. Children playing with things that even I, not a parent and inexperienced in the area, know aren't safe ie plastic drycleaner bags and fire composed of gas and matches.

8. Men stopping and offering me a ride while I wait for a taxi; some even circle around the block to check a second time if I am sure. (Although last night's version did raise an eyebrow: two men on a motorcycle, one mumbling "you need a ride" as I crossed in front of them at the signal. Not sure he had fully thought that one through)

9. The view, which is rarely beautiful (except in the desert) but often interesting. Take this one, from my room at the Monarch Hotel in Dubai.



10. Seeing women swim in abayas.

Overheard in the newsroom

"I'm sorry, there's no such thing as a 'press release' department".

Another day, another press release about H1N1 awareness training

The cartoon on the screen, the pig in a grim reaper's costume? Just a bonus I guess.

What do you think the owner of the car means by this sticker?

My sharp-eyed friend spotted this gem on a car outside my apartment in the Water Tank area one night. We were pretty floored. Is it the equivalent of the "girls keep out" sign in the boys' treehouse, ya think?

Snap caption: Woman's washroom in Emirates Palace tops for towel art

Dragon boat racing, UAE-style

Or you could just go to a marriage counsellor

Sometimes when I read newspapers over here I think I am still in the west, and forget to prepare myself for stuff like this, from the Gulf News piece Official stresses need for marital reconciliation on Sunday.

Abdul Aziz Al Hammadi, a marriage counsellor at Dubai Courts' Family Guidance and Reconciliation Section, points out there are loads of silly cases of divorce in the UAE. Men, he says, should not be divorcing their wives because they use too much salt in their food or call while he is watching football. (I have a hard time believing anyone would divorce anyone over this, but we are in a place where it is possible for a man to divorce a woman via text message so what do I know).

According to Sharia, a husband is advised to take a more civilised approach to keeping the magic alive.

So says Mr Al Hammadi:

"We call that ... the gradual edifying reconciliation method … whenever a husband notices a bizarre behaviour from his wife, he can advise her, then avoid sleeping with her in one room and if that doesn't work out then he can whip her gently in a manner that makes her understand the situation."