You might expect a good number of both international and domestic tourists to have their interest in Abu Dhabi’s Empty Quarter piqued by the movie release of the “generational classic” Dune: Part Two in February, which provides a stunning perspective of this magical expanse of desert in the UAE.
As director Denis Villeneuve told The National during a promotional tour after the film’s Middle East premiere, the UAE desert served as a unique inspiration: “It’s not only fantastically beautiful, but you feel the power of nature. There’s a presence to this landscape that I didn’t find anywhere else.”
There is no doubt that every time a major movie production is filmed in the emirate (or high-profile sporting event is staged in the country), it serves as an excellent entry point for, and informal selling platform to, overseas audiences and as a reminder to residents of the country’s many charms and interesting locations.
Who didn’t feel a tinge of jealousy when Tom Cruise ran across the roof of the new Terminal A of Zayed International Airport in the latest installment of the Mission: Impossible franchise last year, or wonder when they too could fly to or from the futuristic terminal as he had done last summer? The answer to that question arrived late last year, of course, when the new terminal opened to more regular human beings than Ethan Hunt, although I’d imagine it will always be an impossible mission to run in the footsteps of Cruise on the building’s rolling sand dune roof.
The Empty Quarter, however, might get a little busier with film fans over the next few months, with people eager to see for themselves the inspiration for Dune and other films, such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
The greatest strength of the list of Abu Dhabi's landmarks is its diversity and willingness to reach beyond the most obvious choices in identifying points of interest
The tourist trail to that stretch of desert is punctuated by the Emirates National Auto Museum about 40 minutes from Abu Dhabi and then by the crossing of the Tropic of Cancer, which is another 50 minutes down the road to Liwa. As the late Peter Hellyer noted in a column in 2019, approximately 337 kilometres of the latitudinous northern hemisphere line that forms the tropic fall within the UAE’s borders. All of those kilometres are also within the Abu Dhabi emirate.
The east-west crossing point of the Tropic of Cancer on the north-south Hameem Road has been marked, in recent years, with a brown tourist information sign, making it a great talking point en route and place to pause for a photo for travellers into Al Dhafra region, particularly as the tropic cuts through an array of countries around the globe, including Mexico, India, China, several African nations, as well as two other Gulf states, Oman and Saudi Arabia, and the Bahamas.
It is the kind of initiative and signposting that the country has become really good at, continually expanding the tourist trail to include multiple smaller points of interest and attractions, alongside the constellation of museums, hotels and theme parks that international visitors might instantly think of before they travel to this country.
At the start of this month, Abu Dhabi began installing plaques at dozens of modern heritage sites across the emirate. For the curious visitor or civic proud resident, the plaques provide a patchwork tour of the city as it used to be.
As we reported, the first plaque was recently inaugurated at the Cultural Foundation. Most of the landmarks on the list date back to the 1970s and 1980s and will be registered on the emirate’s Historic Environment Record.
They include places such as the Chamber of Commerce, the Central Bank, Al Ibrahimi Tower, Zayed Sports City and the Main Bus Terminal. Residents will all have their favourites, but the greatest strength of the list is its diversity and willingness to reach beyond the most obvious choices in identifying points of interest. The Niqa bin Ateej water tank and park in Khalidiyah is, perhaps, the most shining example of that trait.
I advocated for this form of signposting on these pages in a 2019 column, which makes me happy to see a scheme of this nature being brought into being.
The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi’s Urban Treasures scheme, which recognises the cultural significance of longstanding shops, restaurants and cafes, is another good example of how to encourage visitors and residents to sample some offbeat and truly authentic parts of the city. The same applies to the Michelin Guide, now in its second edition for the city, which recognises a range of restaurants, from upmarket to budget.
What binds these lists together is the continual expansion of the range of attractions for visitors to intersect with. Long gone are the days when within a few hours the visitor could get a comprehensive sense of the city or the country. The experience continues to grow – for those who are curious and for food lovers, fun seekers and heritage buffs alike.
But more than that, plaques and schemes of this nature signpost the past and provide a framework for investigation of the urban landscape.
And each one of those desertscapes presented in the cinema provides a perfect reminder that the naming convention for the Empty Quarter is a misnomer. Far from being a void, it is a place of both extreme serenity and powerful beauty.
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Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 0
Wolves 2 (Traore 80', 90 4')
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
HWJN
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Fund-raising tips for start-ups
Develop an innovative business concept
Have the ability to differentiate yourself from competitors
Put in place a business continuity plan after Covid-19
Prepare for the worst-case scenario (further lockdowns, long wait for a vaccine, etc.)
Have enough cash to stay afloat for the next 12 to 18 months
Be creative and innovative to reduce expenses
Be prepared to use Covid-19 as an opportunity for your business
* Tips from Jassim Al Marzooqi and Walid Hanna
'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
START-UPS%20IN%20BATCH%204%20OF%20SANABIL%20500'S%20ACCELERATOR%20PROGRAMME
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Greatest Royal Rumble results
John Cena pinned Triple H in a singles match
Cedric Alexander retained the WWE Cruiserweight title against Kalisto
Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt win the Raw Tag Team titles against Cesaro and Sheamus
Jeff Hardy retained the United States title against Jinder Mahal
Bludgeon Brothers retain the SmackDown Tag Team titles against the Usos
Seth Rollins retains the Intercontinental title against The Miz, Finn Balor and Samoa Joe
AJ Styles remains WWE World Heavyweight champion after he and Shinsuke Nakamura are both counted out
The Undertaker beats Rusev in a casket match
Brock Lesnar retains the WWE Universal title against Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
Braun Strowman won the 50-man Royal Rumble by eliminating Big Cass last
Mountain%20Boy
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The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh130,000
On sale: now
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
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ARSENAL IN 1977
Feb 05 Arsenal 0-0 Sunderland
Feb 12 Manchester City 1-0 Arsenal
Feb 15 Middlesbrough 3-0 Arsenal
Feb 19 Arsenal 2-3 West Ham
Feb 26 Middlesbrough 4-1 Arsenal (FA Cup)
Mar 01 Everton 2-1 Arsenal
Mar 05 Arsenal 1-4 ipswich
March 08 Arsenal 1-2 West Brom
Mar 12 QPR 2-1 Arsenal
Mar 23 Stoke 1-1 Arsenal
Apr 02 Arsenal 3-0 Leicester
HOW%20TO%20ACTIVATE%20THE%20GEMINI%20SHORTCUT%20ON%20CHROME%20CANARY
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TOUCH RULES
Touch is derived from rugby league. Teams consist of up to 14 players with a maximum of six on the field at any time.
Teams can make as many substitutions as they want during the 40 minute matches.
Similar to rugby league, the attacking team has six attempts - or touches - before possession changes over.
A touch is any contact between the player with the ball and a defender, and must be with minimum force.
After a touch the player performs a “roll-ball” - similar to the play-the-ball in league - stepping over or rolling the ball between the feet.
At the roll-ball, the defenders have to retreat a minimum of five metres.
A touchdown is scored when an attacking player places the ball on or over the score-line.
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
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Hotel Silence
Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir
Pushkin Press
Australia World Cup squad
Aaron Finch (capt), Usman Khawaja, David Warner, Steve Smith, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Jhye Richardson, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Lyon, Adam Zampa
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Six tips to secure your smart home
Most smart home devices are controlled via the owner's smartphone. Therefore, if you are using public wi-fi on your phone, always use a VPN (virtual private network) that offers strong security features and anonymises your internet connection.
Keep your smart home devices’ software up-to-date. Device makers often send regular updates - follow them without fail as they could provide protection from a new security risk.
Use two-factor authentication so that in addition to a password, your identity is authenticated by a second sign-in step like a code sent to your mobile number.
Set up a separate guest network for acquaintances and visitors to ensure the privacy of your IoT devices’ network.
Change the default privacy and security settings of your IoT devices to take extra steps to secure yourself and your home.
Always give your router a unique name, replacing the one generated by the manufacturer, to ensure a hacker cannot ascertain its make or model number.
UAE squad
Esha Oza (captain), Al Maseera Jahangir, Emily Thomas, Heena Hotchandani, Indhuja Nandakumar, Katie Thompson, Lavanya Keny, Mehak Thakur, Michelle Botha, Rinitha Rajith, Samaira Dharnidharka, Siya Gokhale, Sashikala Silva, Suraksha Kotte, Theertha Satish (wicketkeeper) Udeni Kuruppuarachchige, Vaishnave Mahesh.
UAE tour of Zimbabwe
All matches in Bulawayo
Friday, Sept 26 – First ODI
Sunday, Sept 28 – Second ODI
Tuesday, Sept 30 – Third ODI
Thursday, Oct 2 – Fourth ODI
Sunday, Oct 5 – First T20I
Monday, Oct 6 – Second T20I
