Three things are immediately apparent when you walk into Amalfi Villa, home to Pascal and Arina (last names withheld upon request): the abundance of natural light, the panoramic sea views and the immediate sense of calm.
The three-bedroom villa on Jumeirah Bay has statement pieces aplenty, both structural – the floor-to-ceiling windows, the double-heightened dining room – as well as those added by the couple – the dramatic, oversized artwork on the walls. However, with the living area spread across three floors, not to mention the roof terrace, you get a feeling the space could never be overwhelmed even by the most ardent collector.
And Pascal is a collector, but with a pared-back, minimalistic and measured approach as befits his profession as a lawyer –not to mention his passion for polo, both of which require a keen eye for detail and razor-sharp instincts.
It was these decisive traits that saw Pascal close on the Dh22 million villa at the end of 2021 with Agatha Magdalena of Dubai Sotheby's International Realty, moving in the spring of 2022 with his wife and their dachshund, Boston.
“I had a similar town house in Switzerland and was looking for something with several floors and a garden,” he says. “We wanted to be close to the sea because I love swimming, and so I found this community.”
A contemporary canvas
That community is “Billionaire’s Island”, as the luxury residential beachfront enclave of Jumeirah Bay is nicknamed. It's a 10-minute drive from City Walk and 15 minutes from Dubai International Airport, and a short stroll to the nearby Bulgari Hotel and Yacht Club.
Amalfi Villa has a living space of 4,012 square feet on a 3,118-square-foot plot, with lush communal gardens beyond the terraced courtyard and views of the Dubai skyline and Burj Khalifa from the rooftop.
A lift services the first three floors (Boston’s preferred method of getting upstairs), with the living area, dining room and kitchen – with its Miele appliances – on the ground floor, a bedroom, mezzanine family room and two balconies on the second, and the main and second bedrooms on the third floor.
All bedrooms are en suite, along with two additional powder rooms and a maid’s room on the ground floor.
“In my view, the interior design has to match with the building,” says Pascal. “Here we have contemporary town house styles and to fit in with the house itself, the interior design is contemporary and minimalistic but also with touches here and there, art and pictures.”
Pascal's travels through Africa and Asia mean plenty of artwork from those continents are dotted around the villa, while his love for the UAE is apparent in the large white corals he found washed up on the beach in Fujairah. These take pride of place on black plinths in the living and dining rooms, as well as in the bedroom.
“I love the sea and I love diving. I found them on the beach around Fujairah and they have become statement pieces,” he says.
Seamless flow
Changes made to the original interior are few and far between, but impactful. Three towering structural columns between the vast windows have been layered with Italian marble over their original light cocoa hue.
“The columns were not covered in marble and I took advantage of their position to use them as a design element,” Pascal says. “There is marble on the kitchen island, and I wanted something similar. The bedrooms, too, feature statement marble walls and aesthetically I like it. It’s like a piece of design without having lots of stuff on your walls. It’s beautiful, like art in itself.”
The couple also added travertine, a textured sedimentary rock, to the walls and floor of the open-air courtyard and terrace. “We wanted the garden to be an extension of the lounge, so the colours match the beige inside and out so that it flows seamlessly,” he says.
Greenery comes courtesy of towering palm fronds in oversized pots, as well as stark, minimalistic cacti potted on the balconies.
The open-plan layout is the perfect foil for the natural light that streams in through the top-floor skylight, which opens to reveal access to the roof terrace.
The community itself is well set up for outdoor life, with vast communal gardens and a pool, as well as the private beach that lines the shore of this seahorse-shaped island, where footballer Cristiano Ronaldo owns a home.
Island living close to the city
“We really enjoy living here,” reiterates Pascal. “It’s quiet, as there are not so many people, but at the same time it’s very close to Dubai city centre and City Walk. I feel like I’m on an island somewhere, especially with how green it is and with the sea all around.”
Daily swims, followed by leisurely dinners on the terrace, weather-permitting, make up home life for the trio, with Pascal noting his wish to stay true to “Arabic colours” has come true.
“I’m very happy we have a place like this island in the UAE,” he says. “In Dubai you can live a very urban city life if you want to, such as in Downtown or DIFC, which feel like New York or London. And then, just a few minutes away, there’s here where you could be on an island in the middle of the ocean.”
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
Five hymns the crowds can join in
Papal Mass will begin at 10.30am at the Zayed Sports City Stadium on Tuesday
Some 17 hymns will be sung by a 120-strong UAE choir
Five hymns will be rehearsed with crowds on Tuesday morning before the Pope arrives at stadium
‘Christ be our Light’ as the entrance song
‘All that I am’ for the offertory or during the symbolic offering of gifts at the altar
‘Make me a Channel of your Peace’ and ‘Soul of my Saviour’ for the communion
‘Tell out my Soul’ as the final hymn after the blessings from the Pope
The choir will also sing the hymn ‘Legions of Heaven’ in Arabic as ‘Assakiroo Sama’
There are 15 Arabic speakers from Syria, Lebanon and Jordan in the choir that comprises residents from the Philippines, India, France, Italy, America, Netherlands, Armenia and Indonesia
The choir will be accompanied by a brass ensemble and an organ
They will practice for the first time at the stadium on the eve of the public mass on Monday evening
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 3.9 seconds
Price: Dh230,000
On sale: now
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Revibe%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hamza%20Iraqui%20and%20Abdessamad%20Ben%20Zakour%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Refurbished%20electronics%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%20so%20far%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410m%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFlat6Labs%2C%20Resonance%20and%20various%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
One-off T20 International: UAE v Australia
When: Monday, October 22, 2pm start
Where: Abu Dhabi Cricket, Oval 1
Tickets: Admission is free
Australia squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Mitch Marsh, Alex Carey, Ashton Agar, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Chris Lynn, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, Darcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa, Peter Siddle
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
|
1.
|
United States
|
|
2.
|
China
|
|
3.
|
UAE
|
|
4.
|
Japan
|
|
5
|
Norway
|
|
6.
|
Canada
|
|
7.
|
Singapore
|
|
8.
|
Australia
|
|
9.
|
Saudi Arabia
|
|
10.
|
South Korea
|
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Bib%20Gourmand%20restaurants
%3Cp%3EAl%20Khayma%0D%3Cbr%3EBait%20Maryam%0D%3Cbr%3EBrasserie%20Boulud%0D%3Cbr%3EFi'lia%0D%3Cbr%3Efolly%0D%3Cbr%3EGoldfish%0D%3Cbr%3EIbn%20AlBahr%0D%3Cbr%3EIndya%20by%20Vineet%0D%3Cbr%3EKinoya%0D%3Cbr%3ENinive%0D%3Cbr%3EOrfali%20Bros%0D%3Cbr%3EReif%20Japanese%20Kushiyaki%0D%3Cbr%3EShabestan%0D%3Cbr%3ETeible%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
Ant-Man%20and%20the%20Wasp%3A%20Quantumania
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPeyton%20Reed%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Paul%20Rudd%2C%20Evangeline%20Lilly%2C%20Jonathan%20Majors%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
If you go
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Nairobi, with fares starting from Dh1,695. The resort can be reached from Nairobi via a 35-minute flight from Wilson Airport or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, or by road, which takes at least three hours.
The rooms
Rooms at Fairmont Mount Kenya range from Dh1,870 per night for a deluxe room to Dh11,000 per night for the William Holden Cottage.
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
THE BIO
Ambition: To create awareness among young about people with disabilities and make the world a more inclusive place
Job Title: Human resources administrator, Expo 2020 Dubai
First jobs: Co-ordinator with Magrudy Enterprises; HR coordinator at Jumeirah Group
Entrepreneur: Started his own graphic design business
Favourite singer: Avril Lavigne
Favourite travel destination: Germany and Saudi Arabia
Family: Six sisters
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
Watch live
The National will broadcast live from the IMF on Friday October 13 at 7pm UAE time (3pm GMT) as our Editor-in-Chief Mina Al-Oraibi moderates a panel on how technology can help growth in MENA.
You can find out more here
Conservative MPs who have publicly revealed sending letters of no confidence
- Steve Baker
- Peter Bone
- Ben Bradley
- Andrew Bridgen
- Maria Caulfield
- Simon Clarke
- Philip Davies
- Nadine Dorries
- James Duddridge
- Mark Francois
- Chris Green
- Adam Holloway
- Andrea Jenkyns
- Anne-Marie Morris
- Sheryll Murray
- Jacob Rees-Mogg
- Laurence Robertson
- Lee Rowley
- Henry Smith
- Martin Vickers
- John Whittingdale
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More on Quran memorisation:
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
