Reasons to stay away from Dubai

mellowsun

Hip touch lands man in hot water

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-tayside-central-41544117

At least he didn't spill the other guy's pint, might have got the death penalty for that!

TheMarlin

Maybe going to a foreign country where consumption of alcohol isn't entirely legal, and getting pissed is not a smart move.

bingefeller

If you were in a crowded bar, like the one pictured in the article, it would be pretty difficult to avoid touching other men.  Surely you're going to rub against them at some point.  

stickyfiddle

I know that bar. It's notorious for being where Brits go when they want to get wasted and act like dicks.... 

Quite simply he should've known better than to be steaming drunk at 4am (which he would've been to get in any trouble) and being a twat (which he would've been to get in any trouble) AND give the guy he bumped into shit (which he must've done to get in any trouble) and then give the police shit (which he must've done to get in any trouble). 

I've seen people do all sorts of really stupid things while extremely drunk out here and nothing ever happens. There's more to the story than is being reported, I'm quite sure. 

In any case, you'll note that all the injustices apparently done by the Dubai courts are against Brits who got fantastically drunk and then did something stupid. This guy had almost certainly been drinking for 16 hours (probably starting at brunch on Friday at midday)... 

proggy

Another good reason is probably women drivers.

badlydrawnbanjo

I agree with everything @stickyfiddle says. I've spent a decent amount of time in Dubai and have had some raucous nights and never had a second of trouble. Friday brunches are hardcore drinking. 

goldtop

stickyfiddle said:

In any case, you'll note that all the injustices apparently done by the Dubai courts are against Brits who got fantastically drunk and then did something stupid. 

Except that's b*ll*cks. It's just that cases involving British citizens are more likely to be reported back at home. There are many, many other victims.

Random example: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23381448

These are the voices of victims who are westerners. For those lower down the racist pecking order, or for Emiratis who dare write the wrong sort of letter to the government, their voices are not so often heard here. Dubai justice is f*ck*d up enough to have its own Amnesty International page: https://www.amnesty.org.uk/united-arab-emirates-uae-free-speech-repression-injustice-censorship

And western expats never know what went on because the UAE judicial system is not even remotely transparent. The Gulf News and Khaleej Times cannot print the whole truth, even if they know it. So there's a grapevine of Chinese whispers about what happened, with no-one knowing. However, every last one of them - including our fellow forumites - know that they do not want to be on the receiving end of Dubai justice (sic).

Another example: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-04-01/bringing-dubai-injustice-to-light/5357652

And if you've got the stomach for it: https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=glKOe5qNaCc (I've put a space in there so that FB doesn't parse the URL into an inline video. (This will also help to explain why the UAE and other neighbouring states want Qatar to gag Al Jazeera.)

notanon

@goldtop +1 I really don't want to visit a country where if I made a stupid mistake (albeit drunk - who hasn't been?)  I end up being in fear of my life or incarcerated for the rest of it. Right or wrong?: Turing was chemically castrated - similar debate IMO.

I know very good and kind Muslim people but I wouldn't like to visit some of their countries. That is for fear for my life if I screwed up.

Free speech and open for debate: This is my own opinion and is no reflection of the views of this forum.

Snap

There are many reasons not to visit Dubai, but the main ones IMO are that it is ridiculously expensive, fake, and full of wannabe celeb/rich kids/berks, intent on showing how wealthy they are.

Not my favourite place, for sure.

57Deluxe

Don't Touch Me There!

vasselmeyer

I'm going for work in a few days for a speaking engagement. I'm travelling out a couple days beforehand so I can to have a look at the place over the weekend. I've never thought about going but I'm curious  enough to take the opportunity to  poke around and see what it's all about. I'm not a drinker and my wife's coming with me so I doubt I'll get into any trouble.

p90fool

I thought this was going to be a thread about Jim Davidson.  

Axe_meister

vasselmeyer said:

I'm going for work in a few days for a speaking engagement. I'm travelling out a couple days beforehand so I can to have a look at the place over the weekend. I've never thought about going but I'm curious  enough to take the opportunity to  poke around and see what it's all about. I'm not a drinker and my wife's coming with me so I doubt I'll get into any trouble.

Just don’t show any affection towards your wife in public.

mellowsun

To be fair, I've never been. Is it a bit like Blade Runner 2049? I understand much of it was built by and continues to rely on bonded labour (not of the replicant type though I imagine)

stickyfiddle

mellowsun said:

To be fair, I've never been. Is it a bit like Blade Runner 2049? I understand much of it was built by and continues to rely on bonded labour (not of the replicant type though I imagine)

Well not really. The labour conditions are massively better than they used to be, and a lot better than most of Qatar and KSA, and crucially also better than India and Pakistan. There are tough laws around all of it; the issue is often that the people running the construction groups want to make themselves "look good" to their bosses by breaking those laws and saving money, but that isn't what the top bosses actually want, and thankfully those cases are getting much rarer. The leaders are making every effort to have the UAE being a forward-looking nation, but the guys down the chain don't always get the memo...

More than anything Dubai is a massive contradiction. It's trying to be a capital of business and tourism in a place where the law technically doesn't allow tourists to drink alcohol. I'm not going to pretend there isn't plenty that I miss about home (and I'm glad I live in Abu Dhabi rather than Dubai as it's much quieter and there are fewer dickheads) but there is loads of good too.

The food in a lot of places is incredible - particularly the huge number of Indian & Pakistani restaurants. And the infrastructure, when they get it right, is second to none. The Dubai Metro is brilliant and the standard of roads is very very high even compared with the best of the west. Both Dubai and Abu Dhabi airports are exceptional in terms of process - as a resident I scan my passport (AUH) or ID card (DXB) at immigration and can be off a plane and in the back of a cab inside 10 minutes on a good day.

goldtop

mellowsun said:

I understand much of it was built by and continues to rely on bonded labour

Life for these workers is still the exact opposite of that enjoyed by Western expats. See here for one insight into this:



(As always, it relies on secret filming to find out what conditions are really like; it is not fully reported in the local press.)

And it's not just construction workers, it's maids and many thousands of other servants, too. They hand their passports to their employer when they arrive and they do what they're told in the hope that they will be paid as promised. (Don't even ask what happens to the poor maid who gets pregnant - even if through rape - while in Dubai.)

stickyfiddle

I’m well aware of all of that but that video is already several years old (2011). They have passed huge reforms since then. 

Im not going to make excuses and I’m not going to argue as I’ve had the same conversations with plenty of people who’ve already made up their minds. 

It is a significantly more complex issue than is presented by left leaning western media.

Axe_meister

It is a place of Hypocrisy. Whilst staying in a hotel, a Limo turn up with a guy in traditional dress and his partner in full hijab.
The second they got through the hotel door they where at the bar, the guy ordered booze, the hijab came off revealing a hooker.

FX_Munkee

But where else can you play a decent game of "tourist or Russian hooker" these days?

My kids got quite good at it BTW.

fields5069

Axe_meister said:

It is a place of Hypocrisy. Whilst staying in a hotel, a Limo turn up with a guy in traditional dress and his partner in full hijab.
The second they got through the hotel door they where at the bar, the guy ordered booze, the hijab came off revealing a hooker.

Rugby tour!

Axe_meister

FX_Munkee said:

But where else can you play a decent game of "tourist or Russian hooker" these days?

My kids got quite good at it BTW.

Ford watch as I like to call it, as in Ford Escort