You don't need the Arabian Travel Market to tell you that Dubai's hotel and hospitality sector is booming. Just take a stroll through the Madinat Souk complex in Jumeirah on any night to see the evidence for yourself.
The 10-year-old development, and the neighbouring Jumeirah Beach Hotel, is virtually bursting at the seams. Both the Minah A'Salam and Al Qasr hotels on either side of the complex must be running at full occupancy, and new features inside the faux-Arabic market are pulling in non-hotel guests too. A visit confirms Dubai's status as the leisure centre of the Gulf, with the highest level of hotel occupancy in the world.
Two new venues are especially worth a visit. The Rivington Grill, famous for its top-notch eaterie by the Dubai Fountain in the shadow of the Burj Khalifa, has opened a branch in Madinat, and I can vouch that the food, drinks and service are at least equal to the original restaurant.
The other draw is a new version of the Belgian Beer Cafe, which already has successful operations in Festival City and Al Barsha. The one in Madinat is the same winning formula - foaming drinks, moules and frites - but on top of that is a great venue to watch football, with screens in every corner. Watching the big Manchester derby there the other night was exhilarating.
I also bumped into an all-too-infrequent visitor to Dubai. Aidan Birkett, the restructuring specialist credited with sorting out the mess that was Dubai World in 2010, was in town for his first board meeting as a non-executive at Dubai International Capital.
Aidan has been on a fitness regime, involving lots of exercise and healthy eating, and I can tell you he's looking good on it. The beard is a novelty, adding to the gravitas. He says it makes him look older, but, as I pointed out, once you get to a certain age that doesn't really matter. Much like myself, he doesn't look a day over 45.
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The phone hacking scandal in the United Kingdom has spiralled out of all control. The decision by British MPs investigating the affair to the effect that Rupert Murdoch is "not a fit person to run an international company" must rank as one of the most bizarre utterances ever, even in the flatulent world of Westminster.
Just what gives this bunch of hopeless has-beens the right to pass judgement on one of the most successful media moguls in history? How are they "fit" to reach such a conclusion?
Surely this whole thing has gone far enough. The British press, whatever its faults, is the most effective in the world in calling vested interests to account, whether they are from government, big business or the shambolic "celeb" world.
The witch-hunt in Britain has already damaged the media there. If it continues in the current direction, the result will be an obeisant and obsequious press as already exists in many parts of the world.
fkane@thenational.ae
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Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
The%20specs
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The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Seemar’s top six for the Dubai World Cup Carnival:
1. Reynaldothewizard
2. North America
3. Raven’s Corner
4. Hawkesbury
5. New Maharajah
6. Secret Ambition
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
TERMINAL HIGH ALTITUDE AREA DEFENCE (THAAD)
What is THAAD?
It is considered to be the US's most superior missile defence system.
Production:
It was created in 2008.
Speed:
THAAD missiles can travel at over Mach 8, so fast that it is hypersonic.
Abilities:
THAAD is designed to take out ballistic missiles as they are on their downward trajectory towards their target, otherwise known as the "terminal phase".
Purpose:
To protect high-value strategic sites, such as airfields or population centres.
Range:
THAAD can target projectiles inside and outside the Earth's atmosphere, at an altitude of 150 kilometres above the Earth's surface.
Creators:
Lockheed Martin was originally granted the contract to develop the system in 1992. Defence company Raytheon sub-contracts to develop other major parts of the system, such as ground-based radar.
UAE and THAAD:
In 2011, the UAE became the first country outside of the US to buy two THAAD missile defence systems. It then stationed them in 2016, becoming the first Gulf country to do so.
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
MATCH INFO
Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
ROUTE%20TO%20TITLE
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APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099