In Ahmed Mansour M Khateeb's excellent memoir Sand Huts and Salty Water: The Story of Abu Dhabi's First School Teacher, he describes the capital as "nothing like I had ever experienced before" when he arrived in this "simple and chaotic place" in 1958.
He had moved to Abu Dhabi after accepting a job to become the first teacher at what is recognised as the city’s first school, Al Falaheyyah.
Several prominent figures of the modern era benefited from his tutorship, although such is Khateeb’s humble writing style it wouldn’t be appropriate to name check them here.
It was, however, the city's freeform mid-century brand of urban planning that instantly captivated him.
“Abu Dhabi gave the impression that one could build a house wherever one wished … for there were no roads. To get anywhere meant that you would have to walk over sand,” he wrote. Overhead photos from that era thoroughly support that observation, revealing compounds, abutting each other, arranged in irregular patterns, clustered along the coastline with no obvious routes to navigate around them.
Khateeb spent more than three decades working in the city – his life and times are documented in full in his charming book, published in 2016 – first as a teacher for a couple of years and then, after a seven-year gap, returning in 1967 to work outside the education sector. He left in 1996, when he retired, aged 60.
The threat to how the entire world lives feels vast. The assumptions we made about our lives yesterday seem like enormous presumptions to make today
By the time his second stint in Abu Dhabi began in the late 1960s, a few months after Sheikh Zayed had become Ruler of Abu Dhabi, he could see the beginnings of the city we now know. The dirt roads were becoming proper streets and new buildings had begun to replace the arish houses of old. The hardships of the late 1950s were gradually dissipating.
Khateeb returned to the UAE once more in 2014, by now in his 70s, to visit his son, who was working in the country. He arrived in what he described as a glorious place. “The vision of Sheikh Zayed”, he concludes, had “built something beautiful”.
To some degree, Khateeb's narrative arc hoves close to the conventional telling of the UAE's history as one that moves from sand to skyscrapers. The one where development, progress and certainty are seen as a form of guaranteed destiny.
Right now, of course, we find ourselves in a moment of great uncertainty, with confirmed cases of coronavirus rising every day around the world, including more than 660 positive tests in this country. Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary General, described the Covid-19 outbreak this week as the "worst global crisis since the Second World War".
The threat to how the entire world lives feels vast. The assumptions we made about our lives yesterday seem like enormous presumptions to make today.
But it’s not the first time this territory has faced great uncertainty and threat.
Although Abu Dhabi was rapidly modernising, the Trucial States of the late 1960s faced the toughest of challenges.
A monetary crisis on another continent put the Gulf into a moment of great jeopardy, after the UK pound was devalued by 14 per cent in mid-November 1967. The action set off a precipitous chain of events that had wide-ranging implications.
Two months later, British prime minister Harold Wilson announced that his country could no longer afford to meet its overseas obligations, with the consequence of throwing the future of the Trucial States into doubt. He said Britain would withdraw from the region and cancel security arrangements by the end of 1971. By doing so, he set the clock ticking on negotiating a complex political settlement.
The news could hardly have arrived at a worse time in the Gulf. Abu Dhabi's economy showed signs of growing pains in the late Sixties. Iran's rumbling territorial designs under the shah complicated the picture. The Arab-Israeli conflict of 1967 had further shaken the region. Were seven of the Trucial States ready to form an independent nation? How could so many separate parts be brought together into a single entity?
Sheikh Zayed carefully balanced short and long-term goals during this period, seeking out a range of opinions from across the political spectrum, while also demonstrating a brand of humane, decisive leadership to progress a path forward for what would later become the UAE.
According to historian Jayanti Maitra in her thorough book Zayed: From Challenges to Union, he was "a careful listener who always showed his readiness to accept advice" as Abu Dhabi moved relentlessly on with its development.
But the Founding Father also believed in the idea of being stronger together. He set about marrying the range of interests of the seven emirates at a time when it might have been easier to focus on nearer horizons and self interests. He worked tirelessly with Dubai’s Sheikh Rashid to make this happen.
Arab unity was Sheikh Zayed's guiding principle and that goal was achieved through perseverance and diplomacy over a sustained period, which concluded at the moment the UAE was born on December 2, 1971.
Those characteristics, seared into the collective national identity long ago, were on show again this week when Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, directly addressed the challenges the world faces, remarking that "we are honoured to serve all people who live in the UAE … we will overcome this through solidarity."
The UAE’s story tells us great challenges can be beaten and the best way to do so is through courage, purpose, a willingness to adapt and a belief in unity. It is a message that we should all embrace today.
Nick March is an assistant editor-in-chief at The National
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Neighbourhood Watch
Going grey? A stylist's advice
If you’re going to go grey, a great style, well-cared for hair (in a sleek, classy style, like a bob), and a young spirit and attitude go a long way, says Maria Dowling, founder of the Maria Dowling Salon in Dubai.
It’s easier to go grey from a lighter colour, so you may want to do that first. And this is the time to try a shorter style, she advises. Then a stylist can introduce highlights, start lightening up the roots, and let it fade out. Once it’s entirely grey, a purple shampoo will prevent yellowing.
“Get professional help – there’s no other way to go around it,” she says. “And don’t just let it grow out because that looks really bad. Put effort into it: properly condition, straighten, get regular trims, make sure it’s glossy.”
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
FIXTURES
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Friday
Saint-Etienne v Montpellier (10.45pm)
Saturday
Monaco v Caen (7pm)
Amiens v Bordeaux (10pm)
Angers v Toulouse (10pm)
Metz v Dijon (10pm)
Nantes v Guingamp (10pm)
Rennes v Lille (10pm)
Sunday
Nice v Strasbourg (5pm)
Troyes v Lyon (7pm)
Marseille v Paris Saint-Germain (11pm)
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
DMZ facts
- The DMZ was created as a buffer after the 1950-53 Korean War.
- It runs 248 kilometers across the Korean Peninsula and is 4km wide.
- The zone is jointly overseen by the US-led United Nations Command and North Korea.
- It is littered with an estimated 2 million mines, tank traps, razor wire fences and guard posts.
- Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un met at a building in Panmunjom, where an armistice was signed to stop the Korean War.
- Panmunjom is 52km north of the Korean capital Seoul and 147km south of Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital.
- Former US president Bill Clinton visited Panmunjom in 1993, while Ronald Reagan visited the DMZ in 1983, George W. Bush in 2002 and Barack Obama visited a nearby military camp in 2012.
- Mr Trump planned to visit in November 2017, but heavy fog that prevented his helicopter from landing.
Top investing tips for UAE residents in 2021
Build an emergency fund: Make sure you have enough cash to cover six months of expenses as a buffer against unexpected problems before you begin investing, advises Steve Cronin, the founder of DeadSimpleSaving.com.
Think long-term: When you invest, you need to have a long-term mindset, so don’t worry about momentary ups and downs in the stock market.
Invest worldwide: Diversify your investments globally, ideally by way of a global stock index fund.
Is your money tied up: Avoid anything where you cannot get your money back in full within a month at any time without any penalty.
Skip past the promises: “If an investment product is offering more than 10 per cent return per year, it is either extremely risky or a scam,” Mr Cronin says.
Choose plans with low fees: Make sure that any funds you buy do not charge more than 1 per cent in fees, Mr Cronin says. “If you invest by yourself, you can easily stay below this figure.” Managed funds and commissionable investments often come with higher fees.
Be sceptical about recommendations: If someone suggests an investment to you, ask if they stand to gain, advises Mr Cronin. “If they are receiving commission, they are unlikely to recommend an investment that’s best for you.”
Get financially independent: Mr Cronin advises UAE residents to pursue financial independence. Start with a Google search and improve your knowledge via expat investing websites or Facebook groups such as SimplyFI.
Dark Souls: Remastered
Developer: From Software (remaster by QLOC)
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Price: Dh199
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
