The following is a collection of older updates (prior to Dad's vacation). The most recent update is at the top of the page, with the oldest at the bottom of the page:
FEBRUARY 2, 2006
Nothing too exciting for this update. Things at work have been really good lately. We�ve hired some new staff in our department, and have done some reorganizing which has made things a lot more efficient and lightened the work load.
For your interest, I�ve pasted links to some of the developments my department has been doing transportation-related projects for, and briefly described my involvement to give you some idea what I actually do over here!
Dubai Healthcare City � a complex of hospitals, healthcare institutions, hotels, and other medical/research-related buildings. I assisted in designing some of the junctions within the site, made an animated traffic simulation model using special software to demonstrate the traffic flow in and around the site, and prepared a PowerPoint presentation with our findings and recommendations for the final road design.
Dubai Industrial City � a massive mixed-use industrial/business park, along with hotels, apartments, labour accommodation, and retail development. I wasn�t too involved with this one personally, but it�s an interesting project and worth a quick browse.
Dubai Studio City � a development catering for the growing television, film, and music industries in the Middle East � consisting of film studios, apartments for crews and casts, several hotels, offices for animation and sound-dubbing companies, sound stages, a 10,000-seat amphitheatre for performances, and a shopping center. By examining our client�s proposed land uses, based on traffic count surveys of similar developments, I�ve calculated the number of vehicles which will arrive and depart the site during the peak periods, and the number of parking spaces required to accommodate those vehicles. From here on, our Roads Department will design the road corridors, accesses, and junctions within the site, then my department � Transportation Planning � will test their recommended network using special traffic modelling software.
Dubai Sports City � a development with 4 stadiums, golf courses, apartments, schools, mosques, hotels, a shopping center, single-family homes, and other facilities for international sporting competitions (including�they hope, the Olympics some day). I helped in determining the number of cars, taxis, and buses which would travel to the site � and where each category would park. I then helped our highway engineers design the site accesses, and came up with recommendations for strategies to reduce the number of vehicles traveling to the site � including providing drivers with free parking if they have 3 or more passengers per vehicle, off-site parking lots with free shuttle buses to the stadiums, traffic controllers and police to direct vehicles into available parking spaces, ensuring that no more than two of the stadiums schedule major events on the same evening, permitting �reversible� one-way entrances/exits which allow the number of inbound or outbound lanes to be altered at any time to match the greatest direction of traffic flow (before an event begins or after an event ends) and so on. I then wrote the report, helped prepare the drawings, and created a PowerPoint presentation with our findings and recommendations.
Legends � a huge development with three amusement/theme parks, themed-hotels, a shopping center, an 18-hole golf course, approximately 400 villas (single family homes), four office towers (one of them 50-storeys), twelve apartment towers, and a convention center. I determined the number of vehicles which would enter and exit the site during the peak periods, how many would be tourists, how many would be shoppers, how many would visit the convention center, or how many would visit two or more components on the site (and therefore only need one parking space), etc. A very complicated project. While our highway engineers designed the access strategy for the site, I came up with recommendations to reduce the number of vehicles on the site at the same time, such as the preferred operation hours for the theme parks and shopping center, shuttle buses between the hotels and theme parks, encouraging companies in the office towers to provide their employees with flexible work hours/weeks, or to permit them to work from home from time to time, and even create ride-matching programs � where two or more employees who live along the same route can travel to work together in one vehicle (and therefore cut the number of parking spaces needed in half!). Every little bit helps, not only for the site, but for the surrounding road network, the city as a whole, and of course, the environment. I then wrote the report and helped in preparing the drawings.
Dubai Marina � destined to become one of the world�s largest and most thoroughly-planned waterfront communities, this mainly residential community will see about one-hundred 80 to 100 storey apartment towers (some of the tallest buildings in the world), with world-class restaurants, boutique shopping, and other retail outlets at the ground level�all built around a massive man-made marina with hundreds of berths for private yachts. These apartment units will sell for millions! I liaised with Emaar Properties � the world�s largest construction and developing firm to understand their vision for the site, then estimated the number of vehicle trips which will enter and exit the site, determined the number of parking spaces needed for each tower, then assisted our traffic engineers in designing an access strategy which would permit the smoothest traffic flow possible in such a densely-populated area � in an already fairly-congested part of Dubai. Our recommendations also addressed pedestrian safety, parking policies, and access to the nearby railway stations. I then wrote the report and helped preparing the drawings.
Dubailand � the world�s largest theme/sports/entertainment park, built over some 2-billion square feet (about the size of the existing urban area of Dubai)! This development will include some of the projects I�ve already discussed above, such as Legends, Dubai Studio City, and Dubai Sports City. We�ve also done traffic-studies for smaller developments within Dubailand which currently don�t have a website available, including a gated residential compound and an amphitheatre.
Abu Dhabi National Exhibition & Conference Center � destined to become the Middle East�s largest conference center, this massive facility will host events which can accommodate up to 80,000 visitors, and includes hotels, serviced apartments, a shopping center, offices, restaurants, and retail outlets. This is an amazing project which we put together in just a few weeks due to an unexpected circumstance. I first had to liaise with the Developer on how they envisioned their site to work, then did a bit of research on other exhibition centers around the world (including Vancouver, Los Angeles, Detroit, Singapore, and Frankfurt), took note of their experiences, then determined the approximate number of vehicles which would travel to the site (and which roads they�d use to get arrive), as well as the parking demand during the worst-case-scenario � that is, when all the exhibition halls are hosting a major event. In the end, due to the shear scale of the development, and the fact that it�s located fairly close to a 65,000-seat sports stadium, our first recommendation was that the operators should avoid scheduling major exhibition events on nights when there are major sports events at the stadium. Our next recommendation was to avoid two major exhibition/conference events beginning or ending at the same time. Also, because it would be impractical to provide so many parking spaces on the site (which would take up a lot of land if they were on the surface, or would be very expensive if put underground) we recommended that the exhibition operator seek an agreement with the operator of the sports stadium a short distance away, and agree to share their parking lot when it�s not in use � then shuttle the exhibition/conference guests to the exhibition center on free shuttle buses � which would require very little land for pick up and drop off. I then wrote the report, helped prepare the drawings, and prepared a PowerPoint presentation.
Al Gurm Resort � a one-of-a-kind development in the UAE capital of Abu Dhabi, built on a series of mangrove-forest islands with luxurious villas, world-class restaurants, sports facilities, and spas. I�m finishing this traffic impact study right now, and should submit it before I leave on my vacation next week. I�ve been in contact with our Abu Dhabi office, and have determined the number of vehicles that will probably visit the site, and the number of parking spaces needed to satisfy those vehicles during the worst-case-scenario � when all hotel rooms are booked and the restaurants are at capacity. Next, I will have to anticipate where in Abu Dhabi these people will come from, and which roads they will use to get to the site�as well as the routes they�ll use to go home. As a tourist resort, some will go to the airport, while others to the city center, while others may travel onwards to Dubai, etc. Our traffic engineers will then take my predicted traffic distribution plans, and using traffic modeling software, they�ll determine the effects of the increase in traffic on the surrounding junctions to see if any of them need to be upgraded to elevated interchanges, roundabouts, or simply if a few more green seconds need to be added at the traffic light, or maybe an extra lane needs to be added for a certain stretch of road, etc. And of course, I�m sure I�ll suggest to them how they can minimize traffic flow to the site in the first place (thereby saving everybody money, air pollution, construction costs, etc), such as shuttle buses to and from the airport or downtown tourist attractions, etc. I'm in the process of writing the report, and have got our AutoCAD staff to begin creating a few drawings.
I've also done a lot of miscellaneous jobs, including preparing an article about the company which was published in the Canadian-Arab Business Magazine, prepared a strategy for Dubai Municipality on how to reduce traffic congestion and parking demand across the city, prepared an "About Transportation Planning"-type PowerPoint presentation for the company's Vice President to present to the Government of Kuwait, and organized company material for display at the Middle East's largest transportation conference and exhibition (Gulf Traffic).
Well, this update is long enough now, but I just wanted to give you a general idea of what I�m actually doing over here.
Briefly, I ran in the 2006 Dubai Terry Fox Run last weekend � which our company was a sponsor for. As many of you know, it�s a charitable Canadian event for cancer research, and I was amazed at the number of Canadian T-shirts, bandanas, flags, and even one guy wearing boxer-shorts with maple leafs on it during the run! A nice reminder of home � almost like Canada Day! It was amazing to see so many Canadians together at the same time � there were thousands of them, and they�re all so friendly - you really notice it!
I have one more week left at work, then my dad arrives, and I�ll take three weeks off to show him around Dubai, Abu Dhabi, other parts of the United Arab Emirates � as well as Muscat, Oman. I�m looking forward to a break, and seeing some things in the region I haven�t had a chance to do yet, as well as looking forward to seeing my first family member in nine months!
Alright. That�s enough!
Craig
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JANUARY 14, 2006
Happy New Year 2006! A lot has occured since I last wrote....
Firstly, I�ve uploaded some new photos taken on New Years Eve and New Years Day � which I spent camping and driving in the desert with friends. As our luck would have it, it poured with rain on the evening of the 31st � the first time its rained since I�ve been here (8 months!). After about half an hour, the storm passed, and we made a massive bonfire using dead trees, which we tore up from their roots using a tow-rope and an SUV! At midnight, although we were only about 40 kilometres from Dubai (about half-way to the border with Oman), from the top of one of the sand dunes we could see the firework displays in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi. On New Year�s Day we drove further into the desert, including making our way up a 500 foot dune � where we got stuck 3 or 4 times, taking us about 2 hours!
The next bit of news, is that the 3-day Islamic holiday of Eid (which is based on the phasing of the moon, where many Muslims travel to Mecca, Saudi Arabia to fulfil one of the "5 Pillars" of Islam � called the Haj) was predicted to fall somewhere within the regular work week � meaning that if I booked off that entire week from work in anticipation of some of those days being a holiday, if I included the weekends before and after that week, I could have a 9 day holiday � which is too long not to take advantage of. So, I made my own little "Haj" to Singapore for 6 days, as well as 1 day in Manama, Bahrain � the smallest of the Gulf states � since my flight had to connect there anyway.
However, a couple of days after I booked my trip, the Ruler of Dubai (also Vice President AND Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates), His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, died in his sleep at the age of 62 from heart problems while abroad in Australia. As was the case when the King of Saudi Arabia died several months ago, the UAE and most of the other Gulf states (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, etc) are in an official period of mourning, with their flags at half-mast, and all the television and radio stations singing from the Quran. Not meaning to sound positive about his death, but this meant that during my NINE days off work, I would now only miss ONE official work day as a vacation day � when you combine the days of mourning with the Islamic holiday of Eid! Sorry, I don't mean to sound positive!
Sheikh Maktoum (as he was called for short), played a huge role in the development of Dubai � which today is now the most stable, tolerant, wealthiest, westernized, and multi-cultural state in the Middle East, and is a good (yet far from perfect!) example to the surrounding countries. Under his leadership, Dubai has grown from a tiny desert town based on the pearl and fishing industries to the world�s fastest-growing city in just 30 years � which has twice in a row been named the world�s safest tourist destination. He played a major role in developing electricity and fresh water in the region, not to mention the Dubai International Airport (now the busiest airport in the Middle East), Emirates Airlines (fastest-growing airline in the world), and is credited with introducing the Arab world to international horse racing � and as such, he was very popular in the UK (he was named Europe�s Number 1 Horse Owner in 1997). He also implemented a lot of policies in an attempt to rid the UAE of slavery, and fought for increased human rights for expatriate workers � particularly for Indian / Pakistani / Nepalese construction labourers, and Filipino / Sri Lankan house maids. Under his rule, Dubai has grown to a population of 1.5 million, and is expected to reach 5 million by 2015 � the current size of Greater Toronto, the 5th biggest city in North America!!!
Back to my trip though � Singapore has got to be one of the best cities I�ve ever visited. Perhaps the best. I left Dubai last Thursday evening, arriving in Singapore on Friday morning, and booked myself into a cheap budget hotel in a "bad" part of town (I�m not too fussy, and always like a bit of excitement!...plus I got a great deal!). Singapore is a lot like Vancouver, but with a population of 4 million, has about double Vancouver�s population. Being monsoon season right now, it rained on and off every day (like Vancouver in the winter). Also like Vancouver, Singapore has a very relaxed and laid-back atmosphere, as well as a lot of nice parks, gardens, statues, public displays of artwork, amazing architecture (including old colonial buildings and new 70-storey skyscrapers), a world-class transportation system, as well as a very diverse ethnic composition, and a huge container shipping port � the busiest in the world actually!
Also in common with Vancouver, were the numerous Starbucks everywhere, as well as lots of little trendy neighbourhood cafes, bars, and restaurants. It�s very pedestrian-friendly and walkable � with sheltered walkways and carefully-planted trees to provide shelter from the rain and hot sun � and the drivers actually yield to pedestrians here � something unheard of in Dubai!
Like Dubai and Hong Kong, Singapore was also part of the United Kingdom until recently, and there are still many Brits and other Westerners working here. English is one of four official languages, and is the primary language of business � like it is in Dubai and Hong Kong � so there were no problems getting around.
During my stay I visited several museums and art galleries, went to a few outdoor amphitheatre shows, did the world�s only night safari (lions and tigers and....camels!), walked around the Singapore Zoo, took the cable car to Sentosa Island (like Stanley Park in Vancouver), wandered around Chinatown (visited some bustling market places, watched the Chinese New Year celebrations � with dragon dancers, fireworks, etc), explored Little India (saw a lot of Hindu and Sikh temples, lots of good restaurants), walked around the Arab Quarter (toured a mosque, had some great Arabic food � better than in Dubai!!!), etc. I also saw a lot of Buddhist shrines, and wandered around the old colonial district (where the British used to live), as well as the traditional heart of the city � the Singapore River, now home to towering skyscrapers, trendy restaurants, and river boat tours. I met a lot of other backpackers, mainly from the UK, but also a few from Canada, the United States, and Australia.
Before leaving Dubai, I also sent a few resumes to various planning / consulting organizations in Singapore, and managed to get an interview with the government�s Urban Redevelopment Authority. The interview went ok, but I didn�t really feel like I "nailed it" or anything�we�ll see what happens. It would certainly be a great place to work after my contract is done in Dubai, and would be a good base for exploring Asia (such as Hong Kong, Beijing and the Great Wall of China, Thailand, Malaysia, Japan, or even Australia and New Zealand, and Hawaii on the way back to Victoria!).
Singapore claims to be Asia�s "food capital", as it�s at the crossroads of many different nations and cultures, about 100 kilometres north of the equator. I tried a lot of different foods (some more pleasant than others!!), including Japanese, Thai, Malay, Indian, Arabic, Chinese, and of course � Singaporean.
I could go on and on about Singapore, but this �update� is already too long. Take a look at the photos now � they�re worth 1,000 words each, right?! The final word though, is that Singapore is an amazing city, and I�d highly recommend it to anybody, no matter what their interests are � to visit or work.
On to Manama, Bahrain � the current home of Michael Jackson! There is a lot of hype about Bahrain (over here in the Gulf anyway), but I didn�t really find it all that appealing � then again, I�m probably biased trying to compare it with cities like Dubai and Singapore. The first three taxi drivers I got tried to rip me off, and one guy even tried to give me back Qatar Riyals for my change instead of Bahraini Dinars. Like Doha (Qatar) and Abu Dhabi (UAE), Manama is also playing catch-up with Dubai, and is a large construction site. In the short 12 hours or so that I had between flights, I toured the Bahrain National Museum, the Manama Old Souq (old part of town with narrow, winding streets, and lots of street vendor stalls), the Diplomatic District (lots of embassies, consulates, and guards with machine guns!), and the waterfront Corniche (promenade along the waterfront). There�s no real traditional "downtown core" in Bahrain like there is in say Singapore and most Western cities � so there�s no real concentration of history, architecture, crowds, services, entertainment, and all that other good stuff that makes downtowns so appealing and exciting. Just my opinion though. I admit that I only had a short period of time to explore, and didn�t really know what to see or where to go. Hey, if it�s good enough for Michael Jackson, it must have something appealing, as he left Beverly Hills in Los Angeles for it!!!
I�m on my laptop at Bahrain International Airport right now, and they�ve just announced my final flight to Dubai will begin boarding in 10 minutes, so I�d better log off and head over to the gate. I�ll have tomorrow off to rest and get some food into the fridge which will be nice, then I�ll have just 4 work weeks before my dad comes to visit for 3 weeks. After that, I�m sure that my remaining 2.5 months in my contract will fly!
Remember to check out all THREE new photo albums from the "Photo Gallery" link on the left, including "New Years Eve 2006", "Trip to Singapore", and "Trip to Bahrain". Enjoy!
Finally, Happy Late Birthday wishes to my brother Alastair (19) and Dad (57).
Craig
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DECEMBER 26, 2005
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year for 2006. It's strange being in Dubai at this time of year. It seems too hot to be Christmas (yet I'm not saying I miss the Nova Scotia winters either!), and it's awkward being away from home, especially when they don't even give you an official holiday over here - although we're a Canadian company. However, I took the 25th and 26th off of work (as my own "vacation days"), and was invited to two very nice dinners with some German, British, and American friends. The weather is about as good as it gets now, reaching about 27'c in the afternoons, 15'c overnight - very pleasant. It should remain this way through February, then gradually increase to highs of 48, 49 or even 50 degrees in August! I'll be gone by then though! I've had enough, like I said in my previous entry below.
New Years Day is the next official public holiday, and I'm going to take the 31st of December off as well to have a 4-day long weekend. I'm planning on going camping with some friends, though I'm not sure where yet.
In early January, I'm planning to visit Singapore (and maybe Kuala Lumpur as well) for a break, as there are 4 days of Islamic public holidays in the UAE - which I'm going to take advantage of! Although the exact dates won't be announced until a day or two before (because they're based on the phasing of the moon), the all 4 days are anticipated to fall within the regular work week, so if I take just one extra day off work, and add on the weekends before and after the holidays, I could have a 9 day vacation! So, I've found a great deal to Singapore for 6 nights in a 3-star hotel + return airfare and taxes for only $1,100 CDN - not bad at all! Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) is just a 4 hour train ride north of Singapore � I�m not sure if I'll go or not, but it's tempting. I'm sure there�s enough to see in Singapore to keep me busy for a week.
After that, I expect the remaining few months will go by very quickly, and be much more relaxing. I haven't had a real break since I started, so I'm sure Singapore will be great, then soon after that my dad is coming to visit for 3 weeks in February, then before I know it, it will be May and I'll be getting ready to leave. It's been a good experience, but I've "done my time".
Merry Christmas,
Craig
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DECEMBER 18, 2005
It�s almost Christmas, but over here it doesn�t really feel like it, even though the malls are decorated, �sale� signs are everywhere, and the Christmas carols are playing. Actually, it�s strange to see Arabs walking around everywhere oblivious to the soft music in the background with lyrics like �born is the King of Israel� � ha! Besides, it�s not cold enough to be Christmas! I need a real Canadian winter to cheer me up (I probably won�t say that again ever in my life!). I just realized that this will also be my first Christmas without family and friends (please note: I'll expect double the amount of gifts next year!!). :)
Anyway, the news update for today, is that I finally sat down with my company�s senior vice president, as well as with my manager, and told them officially that I want them to fly me back to Canada at the end of the initially-agreed one year term of employment, which is up May 14, 2006. I�ve just had enough. For those of you who I maybe haven�t told before, though my company disagrees, I feel I have been totally overworked the last 7 months � well beyond what I think is reasonable, as defined in my contract. If I saw any sign of improvement, I may have hung on a bit more, but it�s just too much. Maybe I�m young and naive and new to this field, but surely, even in one of the world�s fastest-growing cities, a contract is still a contract. If it says �45 hours per week� (which is already long enough!), it should be 45�plus maybe a couple extra hours here and there when there really is an urgent deadline � but not every other day, and every other weekend. Everything here is "urgent" it seems.
What makes it even worse, is that even when I do put in the extra time (and I have!), they don�t seem prepared to give me the flexibility that I would expect. For example, a few weeks ago I stayed really late every single day for a week (missing out on my own commitments, plans, and sleeping patterns), including on the weekend, and working from home one day off sick with a cold! On the last three days before our deadline, I worked no less than 14 hours each day, until no earlier than midnight (still with a cold). After we submitted our report, although any good company would probably have given the following day off entirely, I just wanted some time to sleep in, wash my huge pile of dishes, iron some shirts, and get some food back into my fridge. To my amazement I was told that "the sooner I could come in the better", and when I did come in (by just 10:30 am, still with a cold I might add) I got a lecture about it! Unbelievable!
I�ve heard stories from some of the more senior staff in the company about their own vacations being delayed or cancelled at the last minute because of work requirements! It�s just not the kind of company I�m prepared to settle down in. I was even told that my contract �means nothing over here�. Time is respected much differently over here it seems. I�m not the only one who feels this way either. In the last 7 months I�ve been here, we�ve lost 5 or 6 senior professional staff members, who have resigned for similar reasons...and I'm sure there will be more on the way unless the company policies change soon.
Anyway, I hope I don't sound too negative � I�m actually very happy and positive right now! It was just �darkness� before, but as of this morning I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel. I�m planning to take a one-month vacation at the end of the employment term, and hope to be back in Victoria in early July.
Craig
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DECEMBER 8, 2005
It�s December already! The last 7 months have really gone by really quickly. The weather is amazing these days � about 29�c in the afternoon, down to just 18�c overnight. Very nice! As I�m writing this, I have CNN International on the television, and am hearing reports of a snow storm about to line up Washington, DC to St. John�s, NFL. I sure won�t miss those Nova Scotia winters!
There are a few things to tell you about since I last wrote on November 3.
I found an amazing British Airways seat sale last month, with a return ticket from Vancouver-Dubai costing just CDN$1,400 including taxes. So, my dad is going to visit me in February for 3 weeks. The price is amazing � some people would pay more than that to fly Vancouver to Toronto first-class, plus he�ll stop in London to visit his sister for a few days on his way back. I�ve ok�d everything with my manager, and will take 3 weeks vacation to show my dad around Dubai, Abu Dhabi, other parts of the UAE, and perhaps Muscat, Oman or even Baghdad, Iraq (just kidding dad!). There�s certainly a lot to see and do over here.
Last weekend was the UAE National Day, and as such most people had a long weekend. I rented a Mitsubishi Lancer and drove to the east coast of the UAE on the Indian Ocean, passing through the Emirates of Sharjah and Fujairah. It was a nice getaway, with gorgeous scenery, friendly people, and good hospitality � where the pace of life just slows down, and people seem to appreciate the simpler things of life. It was great to get away from the materialism of Dubai. Unfortunately however, the driving behaviour on the coast doesn�t seem to be any different, with accidents, speeding, and reckless driving still the norm � and with less enforcement! I just don't understand how some people think! It�s amazing how many cars you see over here with little children sitting on their parent�s lap in the front seat holding the steering wheel, with no seatbelt either of course!!! I�ve uploaded the photos to my site, which you can view as usual from the Photo Gallery page link on the left.
On another note, it�s that time of year again � Christmas, and I�m amazed how �celebrated� it is over here. All the shopping malls have giant Christmas trees, all nicely decorated and lit up, as well as photos with Santa Clause, and in some malls, even Christmas carols can be heard playing. It�s just as commercialized as it is in Canada � perhaps even more so. Our company actually had its annual Christmas party last night at a nice 5-star resort, with an open-air buffet with Arabic, Indian, Iranian, and Japanese food, with amazing service from the staff, and a British DJ playing popular English and Hindi tunes. All of Cansult�s UAE offices came to Dubai for the party, making the trek from Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and Al Ain, for a total of about 200 staff plus their guests. At the party, there was a �charity raffle� for the recent earthquake in Pakistan. I bought about 10 tickets, and my name was drawn � I won a very nice men�s Seiko watch, worth about 1,000 dirhams (CDN$350) I�m told! The grand prize was a return ticket to your home country�.and you know who won it? � some visiting sub-consultant from another company in Toronto who�s only here for 2 weeks anyway! C�est la vie!
As for work, it�s still very up and down, but overall, things are ok. Time is certainly valued differently in this part of the world, to put it nicely. If it weren�t for the excessively-demanding hours, I really would enjoy this job and perhaps even settle down for a while. Money isn�t everything, as we all hopefully know, however many people in the Gulf don't seem to have discovered this yet. The projects are interesting as always. We�ve just submitted a big traffic impact study for an exhibition center, and over the next couple of weeks will submit similar reports for two gated residential compounds, a film studio, an amphitheatre, and a healthcare hospital / business center. After just 7 months, I�ve certainly developed a pretty nice-looking resume with a lot of prestigious projects!
Dubai Municipality�s Roads Department recently underwent a restructuring scheme, and consulted our firm to give them recommendations for reducing reliance on automobiles in Dubai, as well as other general suggestions for reducing traffic congestion and parking demand. I was assigned this project myself, and was pleased to invest my private time to tell them what I (and others) really think about traffic, pollution, speeding, and the poor in Dubai. I just hope the right people read it! I suggested a lot of policies that have been introduced around the world, from light rail, bus rapid transit, city center and highway tolls, HOV (high occupancy vehicle) lanes, more police enforcement, improving the pedestrian environment, bike lanes, encouraging businesses to permit flexible work hours and compressed work-weeks (so everyone doesn�t need to drive at the same time), car-pooling organizations, park-and-ride stations, and better overall land-use planning (so you don�t have to use a litre of gas to get a litre of milk!). Sure, no one could have predicted that Dubai would have grown so quickly, but you have to experience the traffic here to see how bad it is, and how much more frustrating things are with the rude driving habits some people have in this part of the world. The city�s population is growing at nearly 7%, with the number of vehicles growing at 10%! The city�s infrastructure simple can�t keep up. This compares with about 2% in Vancouver and Toronto, or 3% in Calgary for comparison!
On another work-related note, I learned at the Christmas party last night that my manager (who recently got promoted to Vice President), will be leaving my department in order to focus on the day-to-day business affairs of the company. Our company flew in a Canadian guy from Toronto for the Christmas party, and is here to check out accommodation, the city, etc for a couple of weeks before making the permanent move in January. He seems like a nice guy, very organized, with a good sense of humour, and will take over the role of Transportation & Planning Manager when he arrives. Hopefully this will help reduce the work load for our department, as it seems to be getting worse! Currently, with my existing manager juggling her role of Vice President along with her Manger of Transportation and Planning role, it makes things very busy for her, and in turn for our department as well.
Moving on, after the weekend I have to go for a formal medical examination in order to complete the process for obtaining my Residency Visa (after all these months)! It�s a standard procedure they do for all people upgrading their Visit Visa to a Residency Visa, and involves a blood test for HIV. Afterwards, my Residency Visa will allow me a bit more freedom over here, such as getting a fast internet connection, credit card, cheque book, and less complicated entry into other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries such as Oman, Bahrain, and Qatar. Yes, some of the politics are ridiculous, but that�s just how it is in the UAE.
That�s all the news for now. Check out the new photos when you get a chance. I have one more week to use up for a vacation sometime (if I include the weekends on either side I can get 9 days off) if anybody wants to meet me somewhere over here, either in the UAE, or perhaps in Egypt or India?
Craig
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NOVEMBER 3, 2005
After all these months, earlier this week I finally got "welcomed" to Cansult as a permanent staff member, meaning I'm no longer on probation. The manager said she'd heard only good things about me, that I had learned quickly and improved a lot, and was supporting the senior staff very well. So, it's good to know where I stand, and I've really been enjoying the work lately, but I still doubt I'll want to stay for another year after my contract expires in May 2006. So I hope to be back in Victoria next summer, but then again, who knows? I never could have predicted I'd be in Dubai, so we'll have to see what happens. I'd still like to do some more traveling in the area, particularly to Bahrain, Egypt, or India. Can't do everything at once though I suppose, especially if I want to save up enough to get settled somewhere in Canada when I come back.
The weather is getting much better now. Around lunch time it gets up to just 35'c, and down to about 25'c over night. In another month, it will be glorious - 30'c in the afternoon, 20'c overnight. I don't know what I'll do when I come back to Canada - I'll probably freeze! I now know how Americans from Florida feel when they visit Victoria in the summer!
Ramadan is now over, and there is a long weekend for celebrations. Can't complain about that!
So, it's now time to start planning my vacation. I'm trying to talk my family into coming over around Christmas time. We'll have to see, but I'm sure they'll come - won't you?! :)
Craig
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OCTOBER 27, 2005
Further to my last update on October 15 (below), after owning my new mobile phone for just three days, it slipped out of my pocket in a taxi! I never even realized for a few hours, and by that time I couldn't remember which of the 5 or 6 local taxi companies it was. That night I phoned all of them to report it missing, and they all said they'd phone me at work if anything turned up, but they said it would be unlikely. After phoning each and every one of them day after day for about a week, it finally turned up. The driver had found it under his passenger seat after I dialed the phone from my office, and he had turned it in to a local police station! I was very impressed, as for the Syrian taxi driver it was probably worth about half a month's income (if I haven't mentioned it before, there are a lot of unfair labour practices in the Gulf states). He could have sold it at a pawn shop and gotten well ahead. I asked the taxi company for the driver's phone number, and met up with him later in the week and gave the guy the equivalent of about CDN$70 for his honesty. The phone (which has a camera, video camera, calendar, phone book, vibration alert, alarm clock, web browser, text messages, etc) cost me about CDN$300, so I was pretty happy to get it back.
Other news - November 14th will be the end of my 6-month probationary period at work. On that day, I'll find out if they're keeping me or flying me back home. Either way would be fine with me really, but ideally I'd like to finish the year. I've finally felt "settled" after all this time, and have made some great friends, and also feel I've improved a lot at work, and been more productive, and have been given more responsibilities, etc. Right now, I'm about 80% confident they'll keep me on, but we'll have to see. I'm not sure about my manager - things between us always seem up and down.
After the 14th, I'll be able to plan ahead a lot more. Even though things are going well now, I still doubt I'll want to renew the one-year contract at the end next May, at least not for another full year....perhaps I'll extend it until July (when I'd have worked long enough outside Canada to not legally have to pay Mr. Paul Martin taxes on my world income, and when the UAE weather approaches an unbearable 50'c!). We'll have to see though. I'm currently considering my options for a vacation, but it's hard to plan when I don't know what's happening. One thing for sure though, I'll have to leave the Emirates for another "visa run" by November 23rd - this time I'm thinking of either Manama (Bahrain), Kuwait City (Kuwait), or Mumbai (India). The company pays for the flights too, so I�ll again take advantage and make a long weekend out of it - I'll just have to pay for the hotel and any other expenses. I'll keep you all informed.
Hope everyone is doing well. Happy Halloween!
Craig
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OCTOBER 15, 2005
I just got a cell phone. From within Canada, phone 011-971-50-276-3530. From within the United Arab Emirates, phone 050-276-3530. The best times to phone me have been updated on my "Contact Info" page.
Craig
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OCTOBER 6, 2005
Just got back from a weekend trip to Muscat, Oman. It was a very relaxing getaway, where I toured the city's museums, fish market, old market places ("souqs"), castles, government buildings - as well as a visit to one of the Middle East's most popular 5-star beach hotels, dolphin watching, a drive through the rugged mountains, and a concert in the city's outdoor amphitheatre. I've got the photos up, which you can access from the "Photo Gallery" link to the left.
Work is still ok, with much fewer deadlines and unreasonable amounts of overtime required. I'm currently working on a cluster of twenty-five 40 to 100 storey apartment buildings around a man-made marina by myself, which is quite rewarding - as well as an exhibition center in the capital city (Abu Dhabi), a section of the world's future largest theme park, and a gated residential community on the edge of Dubai.
The weather is almost pleasant again - with highs of 37'c (instead of 47!) during the afternoons, and about 30 overnight.
Ramadan has just begun - the holy month of fasting in Islam. One of the "5 pillars" of Islam requires that Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset during this month. While it's not official "law" (like it is in other surrounding countries), it's not considered polite to eat, drink, or smoke in public during daylight hours in Ramadan - even for non-Muslims. Almost every restaurant and food court is closed, with the exception of big American chains like Subway - who still only do take-a-way during Ramadan. Some hotel restaurants are also open, where non-Muslims can eat behind a curtain to avoid offending the locals. At the end of the day, after the sunset call to prayer, the breaking of the fast celebrations begin, and Muslims meet together in homes or in public tents (or hotels, malls, etc) to share a huge meal. I've been invited by an Iraqi guy from my office to join him at one of these meals sometime. Looking forward to the experience!
I've been making some great friends over here, which makes all the difference. Living in Dubai certainly tests your patience sometimes - where there are many different cultures, the temperature is hot, clear communication is sometimes difficult, the traffic (and driving habits) is terrible, the work hours are excessive, and then today I read in one of Dubai's English-language newspapers that Vancouver is rated the world's number 1 city to live in! ...DOH!
Craig
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SEPTEMBER 22, 2005
Hi again. I've noticed these updates are getting further and further apart! Everything is going well. Work has slowed down a bit (which is strange, because two people have been fired, and another guy went on vacation - which left only me and one other guy in our Transportation Planning department), so life has been much more enjoyable. I've been getting into the gym regularly, and been going to church more often, and as a result am feeling like I have much more of a "life" here, as previously, it seemed like work was taking over! Last weekend, I borrowed a friend's car and drove to the capital of the United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi. Stayed in the Hilton Hotel - which was a big change for me, as I have generally stayed in hostels, camp sites, people's couches, or under bridges up until lately!! I've got a new photo album of the trip on my "Photo Gallery" page. The emirate is very wealthy - no wonder you guys are paying over a buck per liter for gasoline in Canada! See the photos!
I also have a new photo album with new photos in Dubai, including inside some of the themed-shopping malls...where you can visit China, Egypt, Italy, etc while you shop. They have a Starbucks in a huge "temple" with a Persian theme. Pretty amazing. The money this part of the world has is ridiculous!
I have to do another "visa run" next week, as I still don't have my work visa for the UAE. As I mentioned before, in order not to be classified as an illegal immigrant, the company pays for me to fly out of the country, then back in again every 60 days! Most people just come back immediately, but I take advantage of it of course! Last time I went to Doha, Qatar for a weekend. This time I'm going to Muscat, Oman. The boss has even given me an extra day off to make it a 3-day weekend. I'm looking forward to seeing an older, more historic and traditional part of the Middle East. Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha are all about money, oil, construction, trade, and business. It will be nice to see a "slower" place. I'll be sure to post an update and more photos when I get back.
Craig
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AUGUST 11, 2005
Things are still good. My United Arab Emirates "visit visa" was about to expire last week, so my company flew me to Doha, Qatar and back - which allows me to come back into the UAE and extend my visit visa. It's cheaper for them to do that than to pay for a "residency visa". So I decided to just pay the difference, and make a weekend out of it and do some exploring. By plane Doha is about 45 minutes west of Dubai, about half way to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The best way to describe Doha, as someone put it, is "Dubai 10 years ago". It has recently started a large-scale construction boom. Doha's population is about 600,000, and is the capital city of Qatar - one of the world's smallest countries, yet one of the most oil-rich in the world. Like Dubai, Doha has a large gap between the rich and poor - yet not as noticeably as in Dubai. Doha will host the 15th Asian Games next year in 2006, and is rapidly building new hotels, office towers, parks, stadiums, etc in preparation. I took about 50 photographs over the weekend, and have made them available from my "Photo Gallery" page. Check them out when you get a chance. English isn't as widely spoken in Qatar, but I got by. The most frustrating thing about Doha was the lack of taxis - which, when it's 47 degrees outside, makes you very anxious. I waited and walked for two hours once....downtown of all places!!! Then when one finally come, he didn't speak English - that however, I'll quickly admit is my fault for not speaking Arabic of course. But still frustrating. Anyway, I'm back in Dubai, and am looking forward to my next "subsidized vacation" in 60 days for a "visa run"! :) I think I'll go to Muscat, Oman next time.
Moving on, the death of the Saudi Arabia king last week was interesting. The guy was really appreciated in this part of the world, and left a legacy of transforming Saudi Arabia from a very conservative country to a modern, wealthy, oil-rich nation. After his death, all the television and radio stations in the Middle East (except CNN International and BBC World) were out of service, and there were just men singing from the Quaran on all the stations for several days.
The other big political item in the news here is the new Iranian president, who has been labeled as an �ultra-conservative�. As I�m writing this, the news stations are suggesting Iran wants to start up their nuclear program again. Interesting times! Dubai is actually closer to Iran than it is to Saudi Arabia!
Work is good too. I've been working on a number of very exciting and large-scale projects. I've got into some intersection and interchange design, as well as parking demand and access studies for theme parks, stadiums, hospitals, skyscrapers up to 140 stories, etc.
Now that I'm settled and have got used to my weekly "routine", I've updated the "best times to phone me" section on my "Contact Info" page. That's a hint!! :)
That's all the news for now.
Craig
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JULY 14, 2005
Hello again. You know, when you're closer to the equator, the world is spinning faster, and so does time it seems. I'm two months in now, and things in general are going very well. I'm even getting used to the heat (which is currently around 45'c in the afternoon!). I'm already thinking about my vacation! I'm hoping to go somewhere in October, which is about half-way through my one-year contract. That should work out fine with other staff in the office - and as a bonus, flights anywhere in the world are cheaper at that time of the year (between summer and Christmas), and the weather is good pretty much anywhere in the world as well. So, any ideas? I've got 30 days. Does anyone want to meet me somewhere? I'm open for suggestions. I'm thinking of maybe heading east to Hong Kong or Australia or New Zealand for a couple of weeks en route to Victoria for maybe one week. Or, I could head west to Europe for a couple of weeks, then on to Victoria. I'll save about 7 days so that when some of you want to come here, I'll be able to take a few long weekends to show you around. I know it's early, but if any of you are even tentatively interested in coming to Dubai, or meeting somewhere else (possibly in October), please let me know.
Craig
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JULY 1, 2005
Happy Canada Day! I haven't had as much free time as I thought I'd have to work on this website. However, it's finally more or less done. I've got five photo albums up and running, which you can access from the "Photo Gallery" link to the left. I'll be adding more photos from time to time, so please check back once in a while. I've also finally got around to adding my "Thoughts" page, where I ramble on about certain aspects of life in Dubai, such as the food, the people, and the weather. If you're interested, check it out. I'd love to hear your opinions.
Things in general are going well. I'm settled, and have finally got into a stable routine. I'm working out regularly, enjoying my duties at work, have found a great non-denominational church, and am making some good friends. I've also had opportunities to get out and explore some of the many attractions and sites in the city and out in the desert. When the weather is comfortable again in October, I'd love for any of you to come over and visit. I may or may not be able to get time off to show you around, but I'll still have my evenings and weekends. My contract expires May 14, 2006 - unless I decide to renew. Right now, it's questionable.
Craig
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MAY 26, 2005
Ok, I've finally managed to figure things out and get my Amsterdam photographs uploaded. Check back next week for a few more pics from Amsterdam, as well as (hopefully) pictures of Dubai, my office, and my apartment. I've also stated my apartment's phone number and address on my Contact Info page.
Craig
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MAY 25, 2005
Hello again.
I finally moved into my new apartment last night - a very nice building located a pleasant 15 minute walk from Downtown Dubai, where filling meals for the equivalent of CDN$1 can be found, and internet cafe's like the one I'm at now for CDN$1/hour! The office is about a 15 minute drive away, costing about CDN$5 by taxi, which isn't bad. Coming home, I plan on taking the bus, which is much more direct and costs just CDN$0.50.
My room is a very clean, spacious, fully-furnished, one-bedroom apartment on the 6th floor. I face an interior courtyard, so there's not any view, although I do get sunlight (which is directly overhead), plus here I don't hear the call to prayer from the mosques at 6 a.m. every morning, so actually, it's perfect!! The building is called the Al Attar Escala. At present, it looks like the real estate company is updating their web page about this building in particular, however for now the following link takes you to their web site - my building looks similar to the photograph of the building on the lower right, the Global Point tower. It has a very nice, modern gym with heavy free-weights, cardio machines, and squash courts, as well as a sauna, steam room, roof-top tennis courts, and a roof-top swimming pool/patio with several BBQ's. From the roof-top is an amazing panoramic view of Downtown Dubai, the towers along Sheikh Zayed Road, and one of the largest shipping ports in the world. I bet you though, by the end of my year's contract, there will be high rise towers all around me. This city is like no other. I love the "can do, will do" type of attitude people have over here. It's a very exciting place.
The room has literally everything, including a balcony, king-size bed, telephone, television, DVD player, dishes, cutlery, fridge, stove, combined washer/dryer, iron, bed sheets and pillows, vacuum cleaner, towels, etc. The tower also has 4 high-speed elevators and 24-hour security. All I'm planning on buying (or have already bought) is a CD player, coffee maker, alarm clock, and mini-grill.
Accommodation is very expensive in Dubai, perhaps one of the few expensive things in the city, however this place falls nicely within the extra part of my salary which is allocated for expenses, with tons left over, so all's well. It's populated mainly by westerners, which will provide added "social benefits" which you can't really put a price on. On the ground floor is a mini shopping centre selling diamonds, jewelry, and gold, as well as a decent grocery store (with very good prices). It's perfect!!
I've had some success these past few days in updating my web page, including adding links to some of Dubai's big development projects (on my "About Dubai" page). I'll try to get my photos up soon.
Craig
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MAY 22, 2005
To my family and friends,
Hello from the Middle East! As you can imagine, things are very busy right now as I get settled in and move into my apartment. I've put this website together, and plan to update it regularly. For now however, some of the pages are blank, I�m sure there are several spelling mistakes, and some of the links may not yet be working, including the Photo Gallery, but I wanted to at least make accessible what I've got so far. I�ll get this site all �polished up� soon enough. Please feel free to email, but keep in mind I won't be able to reply immediately.
I look forward to sharing my stories and hearing from you. Please stay in touch.
Craig
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