Green Community Roundabout

What a disaster this roundabout is - you basically take your life in your hands every time you go on it. Most days I end up in some kind of truck sandwich which can be quite scary. It's easy to blame the trucks (especially when you are coming out of Green Community and they don't leave any gaps for people to get out) but it also the cars driving at stupid speeds on what they obviously don't remember is actually a roundabout and not just a continuation of the road. Whatever you do, don't go on the road from SZR to Green Community at peak times - it will be quicker to turn back and go up Al Khail Road. When are they going to do something about this???

Global Village back on

So Global Village is back on again. Personally I think it is a great place so I will be heading down there in the next few days. I have a few friends who have stalls there so I will see how they are getting on. I think I have posted before about Global Village and the kinds of things you can get there and I'm sure it is no different this year. It's not on for quite so long this year, I guess they didn't get the visitor numbers they expected over the 5 months last year. For those who don't know it is on Emirates Road, pretty much signposted from most places in Dubai.

Summer in Dubai

For those who complain that there is nothing going on in Dubai in the summer, I think they need to look again! OK, so most of it is centred around the shopping malls but who can blame them to focus on air-conditioned comfort when the temperature is in the forties outside. There are lots of activities for children but also a huge number of genuine sales on. You can really grab a few bargains out there without looking too hard. It also seems that the place is not so quiet when it comes to ski Dubai. If you are able to even get a spot to watch the goings on in the snow park then you will see how many people are happily playing in the freezing temperatures on the many rides and runs they have to offer. If you are brave enough to face the heat then a trip down to the beach in the early morning can be pleasant enough for an hour or so, and a nice change from the noisy buzz of the quad bikes and jet skis that usually take over in the winter.

Dubai World Cup

Well the Dubai World Cup was once again an excellent day for racing and partying. International Village was full of people who were not interested in the racing and also a few who were.

The racing was great with the big race being a very exciting battle finally won by Frankie Dettori on Electrocutionist, despite coming from the much maligned stall one. It seemed like the whole of Nad Al Sheba erupted with joy when the Saeed bin Suroor trained horse passed Brass Hat to take the glory for Godolphin.

Of course there was the obligatory trademark flying dismount from Frankie (see picture, taken by Brian Fleischman)

Dubai Tennis Championships

I got my tickets early this year as by half way through the tournament last year the tickets for the finals had sold out and as there was an even better cast of players for this year I didn't want to miss out ont he possibility of a Nadal v Federer final. As luck would have it, I wasn't to be disappointed as this is exactly what we got. But more than that it was a fantastic match with some awesome and unbelievable shots being played and the match swinging from being a one-sided Federer affair in the first set to a thrilling 3 setter. In the end it was Nadal's day but you couldn't help thinking it could have gone either way and each one of them would have deserved it.

We shouldn't forget the women, who also had a great tournament albeit with a few stops due to rain. There were also big names here and both tournaments seem to be going from strength to strength no doubt with the help of the large pot of prize money from dubai Duty Free.

Dubai Racing Carnival

The Carnival is well under way for 2006 and having gone to the first meeting I also went to the third meeting last night (Thursday 2nd Feb). It is a great opportunity to get up close to some top quality horses and jockeys for free. The adverts imply that the admission price is 60 AED but if you are happy to muck in with the masses then there is no admission cost. Last night bore witness to Frankie Dettori's first win of the year which was celebrated with his trademark flying dismount. This is all a lead up to the big day on 25th March when the Dubai World Cup is run which I'm sure will be a huge event like last year. Of course there is also the chance to win a car each night which last night was a Tiida for a 10 AED ticket price. One thing, you have to be there at the end to claim your prize when the ticket is drawn...