Walahi habibi, yalla, yallah!

So after a solid break it seems an appropriate time to pick-up blogging again.

Yes, I am still here in Dubai where the sun always shines, soldiering on in the City of Life. The above constituting approximately half of my Arabic vocabulary meaning Something like “Right, Darling, let’s go, come on”. So I will make an effort to get on with it, see if once again I can make blog become a kind of diary, a way to sort-out my thoughts and get my writing skills brushed-off. It’s so easy not to use them properly on an everyday basis in this country. There are so many other things to do, loads of distractions and hundreds of procrastinations that at times seem to lure me into neglecting writing. Distractions, like the idiot on the street outside the barrier to our covered parking area beeping away to make the security guard come out and open it. Too lazy to get out of his car and walk into reception to get the guard’s attention. Instead he is using the horn, which must be annoying everybody in the nearby buildings. But this is normal here. It’s all about me-me-me – the rest of the lot can go elf themselves. I want what I want and I want it now! It pisses me off all the time, but what to do about it, yani? It is definitely part of culture here. Even the taxi drivers are constantly beeping away when they pass you on the street to make you aware of their presence convinced that a middle-aged European male walking the limited pavements slash sand pits in Tecom must be in desperate need for a lift. “Hunk if you’re horny, habibi!” Not!

We have moved to Tecom, a very nice area near The Greens and opposite Internet City and Knowledge Village with one of the true landmarks of Dubai, the Al Kazim twin towers just across Sheikh Zayed Road, build to resemble the Crysler Building in New York City (only there are two of them). Location-wise it is perfect; everywhere we would want to go can be easily reached by car or even Metro. Tecom is really an up-and-coming neighbourhood in what is normally referred to as “New Dubai”. The whole area is but a few years old. We have lived in our beloved apartment for over a year now. It is a well-maintained building, a good landlord and a fair deal regarding rent. They even lowered the rent slightly at renewal even though rents in our area seem to have stabilised following the last two-years of decreasing rents in the wake of the credit crunch. We have a great two-bed apartment with a nice balcony. Needless to say there is a pool and sunbathing area on the rooftop and two gyms (gents' and ladies’) with all sorts of torture equipment in the building, full-time janitors keeping everything immaculately clean – and offering their services washing the residents’ cars 12 times a month for 100 Dirhams. 24hr security. And a covered parking space per flat downstairs where the above-mentioned idiot has just been let in after a good few minutes’ worth of being horny.

Still, it really is a good life here in Tecom, in our little apartment in the city where the sun always shines. City of Life.

Tweet