It’s common for most people not to have visited their city’s most famous landmarks. Not all New Yorkers have been to the Statute of Liberty, not all Londoners have ridden on the London Eye, not all Parisians have been up the Eiffel tower and not all Dubai residents have been up Burj Khalifa, yet.
However, ask anyone who lives in Dubai whether they’ve been to Global Village and the answer will often be a resounding yes.
This month, the cultural entertainment destination turns 26 and is a firm staple in the emirate's entertainment scene. It’s fascinating to reflect on how Global Village mirrors and celebrates one of Dubai’s, and the UAE’s, greatest assets and values — its multicultural fabric.
When it started as several kiosks in January 1997 on the Creek side opposite Dubai Municipality, the welcoming sign, as seen in the photo above, illustrated different structures from around the world, such as the Taj Mahal in India and the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt.
It then moved to Oud Metha near Wafi City for five years before settling in its current location between the Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Road and Emirates Road in Wadi Al Safa, where it welcomes millions of visitors a season. Starting off with two shorter seasons a year, Global Village now opens for six months a year.
Organised in four sections, Global Village now has 3,500 retail and commercial outlets and more than 200 food outlets representing the tastes and culture of as many as 93 cultures and 27 international pavilions. There are more than 170 ways the whole family can entertain themselves through carnival rides, arcade games and with more than 40,000 live performances ranging from cultural dances to acrobatics. Over the years, Global Village has also had its share of international superstar appearances or performances for fans, including Shah Rukh Khan, Jason Derulo, Liam Payne, Samira Said and Elissa.
Over the past 26 years, the entertainment destination has achieved numerous world records. During its 25th season it broke 25 Guinness World Records in celebration of the silver jubilee.
Some of these included the highest altitude skydiving firework display at 4,907.28 metres, the most letters sent to Santa with 2,144 collected in 24 hours, the largest underwater LED mesh screen at 5,013.4 square metres, and the largest board game, snakes and ladders at 95.63 metres squared.
While these records are entertaining and fun, they are part of a larger picture that makes the cultural destination, an indelible part of Dubai and the UAE. Celebrating diversity and culture is at the heart of Global Village. This is not only proven in the world record they achieved with most nationalities, 65, waving simultaneously but as a destination that welcomes so many visitors from around the world enjoying how other countries and cultures celebrate the best of what they have to offer.
For its 27th season, Global Village will run until April 29
The biog
Age: 23
Occupation: Founder of the Studio, formerly an analyst at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi
Education: Bachelor of science in industrial engineering
Favourite hobby: playing the piano
Favourite quote: "There is a key to every door and a dawn to every dark night"
Family: Married and with a daughter
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
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Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
GAC GS8 Specs
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
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The five pillars of Islam
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
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Uefa Champions League last 16 draw
Juventus v Tottenham Hotspur
Basel v Manchester City
Sevilla v Manchester United
Porto v Liverpool
Real Madrid v Paris Saint-Germain
Shakhtar Donetsk v Roma
Chelsea v Barcelona
Bayern Munich v Besiktas
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
- Tourism industry knowledge.
- Professional ethics.
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre 6-cyl turbo
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Company profile
Date started: January, 2014
Founders: Mike Dawson, Varuna Singh, and Benita Rowe
Based: Dubai
Sector: Education technology
Size: Five employees
Investment: $100,000 from the ExpoLive Innovation Grant programme in 2018 and an initial $30,000 pre-seed investment from the Turn8 Accelerator in 2014. Most of the projects are government funded.
Partners/incubators: Turn8 Accelerator; In5 Innovation Centre; Expo Live Innovation Impact Grant Programme; Dubai Future Accelerators; FHI 360; VSO and Consult and Coach for a Cause (C3)
Temple numbers
Expected completion: 2022
Height: 24 meters
Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people
Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people
First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time
First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres
Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres
Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor
The biog
Name: Younis Al Balooshi
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Doctorate degree in forensic medicine at the University of Bonn
Hobbies: Drawing and reading books about graphic design
