Qatar Airways gets flight landing deal; Canada fails to understand the importance of "timing"...

... and the UAE is sure to be even more p*ssed. According to yesterday's Montreal Gazette, the deal allowing Qatar Airways three passenger and three freight flights a week happened back on October 25.

And even though as I understand it, Qatar Airways (the world's only five-star airline, as the pleasant commercials go) has now obtained landing rights where Emirates and Etihad already had them and are seeking additions, in a week when the UAE has made Canada the only Western country whose residents need to obtain a visa before coming here, the optics ain't good.

Overheard in the newsroom: Nine words between a Brit, Canadian and American

Brit: What are your MPs called?

Canadian: MPs.

American: What are MPs?

Oh Snap: Grumpy UAE insists Canadians visiting the UAE as of Jan 2 need a visa

First Camp Mirage, now this.

What's next, for those of us who live here? Visas revoked? Internment? (Not that I'm suggesting anything)

Eid holiday inconveniently located in the middle of the week

Holidays are funny here. For example we only just found out from WAM, the state news agency, that public sector employees will have Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday off for Eid al Adha (Schools will be off all next week, however).

Can you imagine if there was a three-day holiday in Canada but no one knew for sure when it would fall until 7 days before?

No, neither can I. But it seems to work here. I mean, the scheduling editor is drawing up a plan as we speak, and everyone was just chilling until now, not knowing for sure when they would be off.

The news is bad for many people though, as beause work-week starts on Sunday and ends on Thursday, they are unable to tack on days from either weekend for a proper getaway. Everything is full and expensive anyway, or so I hear. I think I will wait until it's all over, then book a holiday somewhere rainy and balmy.

Press release of the day: Habib the Hand gets around

Overly enthusiastic subject line: "‘HABIB THE HAND’ A HUGE HIT! - MAFRAQ HOSPITAL’S HAND HYGIENE ROADSHOW CONCLUDES"

Jann Wenner, not your typical Arab success story

The National's Weekender had a nice piece on Jan Wenner in honour of Monday's launch of Rolling Stone Middle East. It helps answer the question: "So how does an uber-rich left-leaning secular Jewish pop culture media tycoon mesh with the Arab world?"  (Less so, although I shall be Googling, how after decades of marriage and children he announced he was gay and left his wife for a man. Someone needs to make an "it's get better video", pronto.)

I am not sure how I feel about all these Middle East magazine editions. The snob and magazine lover in me doesn't want to like them. I've already shunned the Middle East's Esquire while continuing to get the American version shipped over via Aramex. Not sure why. From what I can see, most of the articles are the same. And the price is right. Tens of dirhams less than the newsstand price or what I pay for shipping, not to mention a fraction of the ecological footprint.

Ditto Shape, which I've also basically ignored and continued to buy for about four times the price. The thing is, they won't be the same, will they? First of all I won't get those fun black squiggles the censors put over breast and bum cleavage. And Esquire won't be as fun-filthy, I know it won't. But the time is coming where this is no longer going to be tenable: the Middle East is the money maker, and there are loads more of these editions on the way, including, it is rumoured, a Vogue edition. (I am guessing probably not Cosmopolitan though. I mean, there is just no way to do the cover lines justice)

I am going to try, if only for my pocketbook and because these editions are going to become increasingly harder to ignore. So next month, the great Middle East edition magazine-reading experiment begins.

Passports, etc

So it's time for a new passport a) because the one I have is full – all those in-and-out of the UAE stamps (not to mention 12 countries in 2.5 years!!!) mean there is no room for a visa should I need one, and I will – and b) because mine expires in March and this is one thing I am not leaving to the last minute.

I have been curious to find out that Canadians face much stricter rules than a lot of nationalities when it comes to this issue. Our passports must be renewed every five years, and we need a proper guarantor: a lawyer or doctor or the like, not always that easy when you haven't lived in a place that long.

Brits, for example, only need to renew their passports every 10 years and any old person they've known for two years can vouch for them. I'm still waiting to find out if I need to part with my passport at all during this process. That prospect scares me.