Category Archives: Public Holidays

Celebrating 41st UAE National Day

Posted on December 1, 2012 by | Leave a comment

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Earlier I intended to write historical bits and pieces of UAE in commemoration of their 41st National Day. Half way through, I was bored (just a proof that I don’t have a penchant to history in general).

Anyway, why not feature interesting and amazing facts about UAE. It’s more entertaining to read, right?

So, here we go.

  • Burj Khalifa – world’s tallest building. Click here to read my tour experience.
  • Dubai Mall – world’s largest shopping mall by its area (source)
  • The Dubai Aquarium & Discovery Centre – world’s largest acrylic panel (source)
  • Dubai Metro – the longest driverless metro line (source)
  • The most expensive dressed Christmas tree was erected and displayed in Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi in 2010. Its value was US$ 11.2 million. (source)
  • UAE Oil Reserves and Natural Gas Resources are ranked as the 7th world’s largest (source).
  • Al Ain Paradise Hanging Gardens – world’s most hanging flower baskets (source)

So far, UAE holds a total of 102 Guinness World Records.

Happy 41st National Day everyone!

 

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Posted in Life in Abu Dhabi, Public Holidays

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Visiting Six Senses Zighy Bay: Things to Bear in Mind

Posted on October 30, 2012 by | 1 Comment

It was a long weekend, thanks to the Eid holidays. Our family decided to head to Dibba, Oman (just across the border of UAE and Oman) to visit Six Senses Zighy Bay Resort. I was confident that things would go well.

Earlier the police would require only your original passport or Emirates I.D. to cross the border and vehicles with UAE number plates were able to pass without any issues. I know because I had been there many times though my last visit was in April 2011. You can read my previous post here.

We aimed to leave early but still ended up leaving Abu Dhabi at 1pm only. Six Senses Zighy Bay is quite a long drive from Abu Dhabi.

Anyway, as we were approaching the border I asked my sister to prepare the passports and (their) visa copies. After counting the passports and the number of passengers in the car, the police asked me something again in Arabic which unfortunately I didn’t understand. He made a sign language referring to a document. If I understood him correctly, he was asking for the hotel booking confirmation or gate pass.

To avoid obstructing the queue of cars in the border, the police told me to park on the side. Then I called my contact in the hotel and informed her about the situation. I came to know that the issue was the gate pass. While my contact was verifying the status of our gate pass, the police came again and finally allowed us to pass without that document. It was really a big relief!

I thought that it was the only hurdle but I was mistaken.

As we drove towards the arrival area of Six Senses Zighy Bay, we were stopped again by the Omani police. Surprisingly, they had a checkpoint established just few meters away from the arrival area. The usual routine – checking of driving license, car’s registration number and the compartment – was carried out.

So far everything was going well until they asked for Oman car insurance. Hearing this, my heart beat faster! I was driving a car with UAE number plate and I didn’t have any Oman car insurance.

So I explained (hoping that I would convince the police) that we would not stay long and had visited the place many times but was never asked for local car insurance. Then he looked at us again and finally allowed us to go with a condition that during my next visit I should have a local car insurance.

I really don’t like to be stranded in the border. It makes me nervous even though I am not doing anything wrong.

Anyway, this is just a heads up to those who are planning to travel and stay in Dibba, Oman. If you are staying in hotels, make sure you get the right information (i.e. required documents) to avoid any problems in the border.

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Posted in Accommodation, Public Holidays, Travel

Lazy Long Weekend…

Posted on September 11, 2010 by | 1 Comment

I wish this is my long lazy afternoon..

I had been looking forward to this weekend, a 3-days consecutive off, because of Eid Al-Fitr. Somehow my things-to-do-list has already been clearly written in my mind days in advance.     

And here I am on the second day of Eid holiday, struggling to complete one sentence and not making any progress in my writing projects.   

I fret for each minute that passes because I know I could have written and finished at least one of my writing assigments. Unfortunately, it seems my mind is stubborn and uncooperative.. I find it difficult to write.   

As a result, I have been wasting my time since morning watching documentary movies and surfing the net.   

Sigh.. I really cannot afford to continue doing like this today and tomorrow. After this Eid break, I will be busy again and for sure I will not have an ample time to write again.   

I must be productive during this long weekend. I have to..

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Posted in Extra Income, Life in Abu Dhabi, Public Holidays

Eid Mubarak

Posted on September 9, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Last night at past 9pm, I received a confirmation that indeed Eid is on Friday and not today though government offices are already closed for Eid holiday since yesterday while other private firms started today.  

Eid Al-Fitr marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan when Muslims fast from dawn to dusk.  The beginning and the last day of Ramadan is always determined through the moon (sighting of the Crescent moon) because Muslims follow the lunar calendar in which the year is shorter for 11 to 12 days compared to the commonly used solar calendar.

For this reason, the exact date, as to when the Ramadan will start or end, will not be known in advance. However, one thing for sure! Eid is always anticipated because it means public holiday for expat workers. (**Smile**)

Generally it is a 3 days off for government and 2 days for private firms. If the Eid falls on weekdays then followed by weekend, it makes a longer Eid holiday. Sadly, the Eid this year falls on weekend.

As of next week, normal working hours and workloads are back again. (**sad**)

Anyway, Eid Mubarak to everyone!

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Posted in Events, Life in Abu Dhabi, Public Holidays, Ramadan

Ramadan in Abu Dhabi

Posted on August 11, 2010 by | 1 Comment

Ramadan Kareem!

It is another holy month of Ramadan for our Muslim brothers and colleagues. Today marks the first day of Ramadan in which Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset.

Here are few things to remember during Ramadan.

Eating is not allowed in public areas. For years I have been working in UAE in an environment with mixed religion, I and most of my colleagues are accustomed not to eat openly in the office during Ramadan. It became a sort of common and implied gesture to respect our colleagues who are fasting. We drink our coffee or take our meals in the pantry or in any private and secluded areas.

Majority of the restaurants are closed until Suhoor or the breaking of the fast. In hotels, though they keep one restaurant open for non-Muslims, the windows and doors are covered with curtains so there is no visibility of food from the outside.

Working hours are shorter during Ramadan time. Generally Muslims will work for 6 hours only. For my company, Muslims will work from 9am to 3pm and for non-Muslims 9am to 4pm. Other companies work only for six hours regardless if you are Muslim or not.

So, if you happen to have business meetings during Ramadan and it is your first time here in UAE, it is better to check first their Ramadan office hours.

Ramadan time applies to any establishments from shopping malls to offices.

Majority of the bars and discotheques are closed too during Ramadan. If they are open, there are no live music and entertainment. I remember my first visit to a bar during Ramadan. It felt very odd because the ambience was very quiet. No upbeat and loud music. People just drank and talked.

Lastly, the commonly used greetings during this Holy Month are “Ramadan Kareem” or “Ramadan Mubarak”.

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Posted in City Events, Life in Abu Dhabi, Public Holidays, Ramadan

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UAE Public Holidays

Posted on December 3, 2009 by | Leave a comment

I think end of November and December are the favored months this year for most of us, expats, because of successive public holidays. Few days break is great way to rev up your energy.

So, let’s wrap up the public holidays that took place this December.

Eid Al-Adha
The occasion of Eid Al-Adha was a three day public holiday for private sectors which started on Thursday, November 26 until Saturday, November 28. As the weekend here is Friday and Saturday, the public holidays that fell on weekends were forfeited. Still it was great to be off on Thursday!

By the way, Eid Al-Adha is a three day festivity that takes place at the end of Hajj, an annual pilgrimage of Muslims in Mecca.

UAE National Day
The 38th National Day of UAE was celebrated last 2nd of December and it was marked by a 45 minutes fireworks. It aimed to hold the record of the world’s longest fireworks in Book of Guinness.

As much as I wanted to go out during National Day to witness the various events, I was traumatized in my experience in 2007. Since then I never go out on this particular day.

This event is always anticipated with grand celebration. The streets are adorned with lights and figures which is ‘38’ this year. It represents the number of years since the country was founded. The cars which are dressed up in the color of UAE flag parade in the streets while the drivers keep sounding their horns. Others wave the flags and banners of UAE flag.

The streets are really packed with people and cars.

This was the reason that took me more than six hours to go home in 2007. I was new in Abu Dhabi and I never thought that it would be a nightmare to go out this time. My friend and I could not find any taxi at all. Desperate to go home, we ended up agreeing to pay Dhs 50 per person to a car owner who took advantage of the situation.

It also took us more than an hour to travel from the mall to my home in which in normal circumstances, it is 15 minutes drive only.

Islamic New Year
It is not yet announced but Islamic New Year may take place between December 17 or 18. If it falls on Thursday, 17th December then it signifies another day off for us.

Honestly, I always look forward for any public holidays because it gives me time to write and complete my projects.

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Posted in City Events, Public Holidays

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