Dubai; A land of fantasy

I’ve been through Dubai on a number of occasions, though, my experience within it has admittedly been rather short of embracing this fact. The UAE has a population of 9.54 million people (doubled in the past ten years), and with three quarters of the population being men (owing to the construction workers being predominantly men here alone to obtain funds for their families back home), the city is a relatively big one. Dubai’s population is only 1.72 million, though this is expected to grow significantly in the next few years.

Let’s talk about demographics – although I am fully aware of the fact that his is a city of expats (roughly 90%) I was surprised to find that the number of western expats number under ten percent! India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Philippines make up the majority of the expat population, and more than 50% of the total population. This should come at no surprise, the rapid expansion and development of the UAE, including Dubai is profound and therefore, the number of workers needed is very high. Some of the most ambitious projects have begun and been completed here. Things like the creation of the marina, the great palms (now two plus the world map, though a third, larger one is on the way), the Burj Khlaifa, the busiest airport, the largest mall, most expensive hotel etc… there was also rumour of creating a mountain to encourage rain here! The sheer scale of these projects is mind boggling, and the speed they are carried off and put into place in these desert conditions is truly a marvel. The projects are still going strong with a continued interest in the waterfront and man-made islands spanning into the water. The geographical ramifications alone is enough to we wowed and yet, the most astonishing thing is that on these sand banks which strut into the water, some of the most luxurious pent houses, apartments, shopping centres and spaces of attraction are constructed at break neck speeds in plus 40 degree heat! Again, another surprise moment was when I discovered say the palm was made completely of just sand. The wake barrier is however, made of rocks and boulders, but the palm itself is just sand. Construction on sand foundations I though was a no-no – obviously not.

There are no doubt environmental issues to be taken into consideration too when looking at these structures – with affects to sea life, bottom feeders and the highly sensitive benthic organisms. The dredging process does several things; such as with long arms which drag along the seabed, they suck up the sandy mush and drain it of its water to then shoot it out at the designated area in long arcs to collect and condense into increasing sand banks which eventually break the waters surface. This means that the fine particles of the sand become stirred up and impact on sea life by entering their gills, affecting food supplies and starving the water of oxygen and light. It is unclear how extensive these problems are, though it is rumoured that it decreases access to food by up to 40% for sea life. Recovery time is put at between 1.5 and 2.5 years for the biomass to return to normal. That being said, despite the huge ecological damage, the palms are seen to be creating a new marine ecosystem. With sheltered pockets of calm water at the breakwaters; spaces between boulders and the sinking of metal, interesting rocky reefs are now being seen. Human’s will always change the world for better or for worse; generally, for the rest of nature’s creatures however, for the worse. Everything has a cost and that goes the same for life. It should be observed, and decisions should be made to account for impact of how these decisions affect the greater world.

I have recently been listening to The Dalai Llamas (14th) book titled ‘The universe in a single atom’ on my drive to Abu Dhabi for tutoring, which goes into the philosophy of how to square up scientific endeavour (which he is fully supportive of) with the humanity of reason and inner, as well as outer experience. Change is the only constant, but like the scientific method, this change should be reflected upon beyond the realm of change (progress) for change sake, but to rationalise firstly the motives for this change and then reason to predict the outcome. Science is bound up with motivations of money, and when motivations are strictly money-orientated, what is the likelihood that these scientific outcomes will serve to enhance humanity as opposed to inhibit it? For what is the purpose of science but to aid humanity in terms of understanding and technology? – to utilise it without the greater picture of motive and outcome is to be as ignorant as a madman wildly waving a Katana around in a dark corridor – it might not cause damage, but what is the intention here? Owing to how I am describing this from very little understanding, reflection and memory of the book, you have to excuse how this comes across. The essence of it is that there are two ways we interpret the world; through objective experience and through subjective experience. The subjective, or mind is as crucial as the objective – like, one can see brain patterns light up on an MRI machine, one can describe a colour to a blindman and a song to someone without music, but it is no the same as experiencing it. It is with this that the Dalai Llama suggests that both the scientific world and the Buddhist practices are not at odds, but can work harmoniously to develop each-other. The Dalai Llama has great awe and joy in the workings of the scientific world with regards to the physical and the accepted theories of Quantum Mechanics and so forth, but also sees that a scientific imperative alone is not sufficient to realise one’s potential and to ensure humanity and the sanctity of life is held to be of the highest worth. What is it that we seek but to enjoy a long life with limited pain and high happiness. To identify the needs and wants of those who live on earth is to understand that action without accountability is meaningless and often, dangerous.

Back to Dubai: It’s kinda felt like a holiday being here in Dubai – not sure how it can seem like hard work. I get up when I choose, lark about in front of my screen, order food from a courier service so I don’t have to cook, stay in a nice apartment next to the marina, go to bed when I want, enjoy the sunshine in flip flops, got for swims and doze my days away. It all feels so wrong. I need complications, I need struggle. Maybe though, what I need is in fact within me, I’m just too lazy to find it.

I should probably now explain what I am actually doing here. Carfax is a growing organisation with multiple fingers in various pies. Beginning as a child caring group (Carfax Guardians) it has grown not only into tutoring, but the implementation of schools, the consultancy of curriculum and the expanding consultancy in international humanitarian evaluation contexts. It is this last area of Carfax’ expertise that I joined in September 2017. Apart from the schooling and office work that a number of Carfax employees work in, the work in general fluctuates – particularly in the role of a consultant; where you’re either on on or you are looking to be on something. No doubt the senior staff would disagree to some extent (I don’t think they sleep), but for the grunts there’s either too much work or not enough. I am one of these. That’s why, because of the lull in our schedule, I am in Dubai – working, I say working, but hardly, tutoring some kiddos in a range of things; Geography, History and English. The thing is, at this very moment, the terms are beginning to close and tutoring dries up also. I am also doing some of the project work too, but it seems to be a calm time, and the requests have reduced massively also. We have new staff see, and I think they are being put through their paces to test their grit and to get them up to standard. I can’t help feeling idle and I can’t help feeling like I am taking the piss a little with how ineffective I am right now. I guess this is why I am writing this, as a way of feeling I am actually contributing towards something – how self-serving I am!

The sun rises and the falls daily, blasting the city into a jolly furnace of sun feeling sweat mice. The city is busy – people dart from shadow to shadow, panting in the sheltered spaces between buildings. Some don’t leave but look out at the forest of glass and steel when having peeled themselves from the devices of our freedom and our incarceration. When the sun is no longer so high in the sky and the sun is cooled, the people emerge and head to fill themselves with whatever stimulation takes their fancy; from eating and smoking, to drinking ad dancing. It’s a city of means and despite its conservative apparel, people are people, and anything can be purchased when the price is right. Dubai, not only being a place where money is God (next to Allah of course), the name even sells it as such with Dubai – ‘Do Buy’. But it is also a place of fantasy and dreams.

I continue my sweat box treatment – and will see where this goes…