Casablanca

Although as the economic hub of Morocco Casablanca does not have a reputation as being much of a tourist town (when compared to other culturally-rich Moroccan cities like Marrakesh and Fes), it's definitely worth at least a few days visit. The corniche (boardwalk) comes alive around sunset with hordes of people out on evening strolls enjoying the cool Atlantic breeze, and the ancient market area is also definitely worth a visit as a feast for the senses with it's myriad sights, sounds, and scents of North Africa.

Casablanca via Dubai & Sharjah

From Abu Dhabi the cheapest flight we could find to Casablanca was on Air Arabia, about $350 1-way. The flight leaves from Sharjah, the emirate north of Dubai. It's a no-frills flight, meaning you have to pay for meals (about $7 for the vegetable briyani) and if you want to reserve a seat ahead of time it will also cost about $7. Yesterday I took the bus from Abu Dhabi to Dubai, and lugging my backpack in the 115 degree afternoon sun from the bus station to a Dubai hotel has motivated me to lighten my load before continuing on to Morocco. Tomorrow before the flight I'll reconsider what items are really necessary (e.g., clothes, sunglasses, toiletries, camera, iPod) and mail the rest back to Abu Dhabi ...

Prisoners of Conscience in the UAE

It has recently been reported that five activists are being held in custody in the United Arab Emirates for insulting Emirati rulers and "perpetrating acts that pose a threat to state security." These accusations might lead one to think that the five are violent criminals plotting unspeakable terrorist acts in an attempt to overthrow the government. As it turns out, however, their "crime" is simply having petitioned the UAE rulers for a more equitable distribution of the country's oil wealth and universal suffrage for the Emirati people. Amnesty International has described the five activists as "prisoners of conscience."

To read a recent article about the arrests log onto the following site:

http://en.news.maktoob.com/20090000708456/UAE_confirms_five_activists_held_in_custody/Article.htm

Snuffing out Democracy in the UAE

The United Arab Emirates is in many ways a great place to live and offers plenty of interesting things to do. For example this past weekend the WOMAD (World of Music & Dance) festival once again took place in Abu Dhabi. A number of great bands played during each of the 3 nites, including Baaba Maal (Mali), Paloma Faith (UK), Jimmy Cliff (Jamaica), Speed Caravan (France/Algeria), and Hindi Zahra (Morocco). At the same time, however, the UAE's not such a great place when it comes to its human rights record. Within the past few days three pro-democracy activists have been arrested here (including an economics professor from the Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi branch) and the UAE government has shut down their Facebook forum (known as Hewar, meaning "Dialog" in English). Here's an on-line article about the arrests:

http://en.news.maktoob.com/20090000682096/UAE_police_hold_third_activist_colleague/Article.htm

And here's the Facebook site, which is now blocked here in the UAE:

www.facebook.com/pages/UAE-hewar/138966642807420

Revolution's in the Air

Autocratic rulers have been overthrown in Tunisia and Egypt, political protests continue in countries including Libya, Morocco, Djibouti, Algeria, Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Yemen, while independent political parties are currently attempting to form in Saudi Arabia. Throughout major parts of the Middle East and North Africa we are seeing the age-old struggle of countries attempting to break free from the chains of tyranny in the name of increased economic equality, freedom of speech, fair and equitable governance, and other basic human liberties.

Christmas in Dubai 2010

UAE 39th National Foaming Day

Last Thursday was the 39th National Day here in the UAE, the celebration of the seven Emirates joining together to form the United Arab Emirates. Each year this celebration gets more intense here in Abu Dhabi. Buildings and vehicles are decorated, there are concerts and street performers, and the past few years foam spraying as well. This used to involve young Emirati boys chasing one another on the street trying to foam one another. Each year, however, more people are getting in on the action and this year it was not only Emirati boys doing the foaming but also Emirati girls, laborers (Pakistanis, Indians, Afghanis, etc.) and Western expats and tourists as well. If you want to venture out on this nite you must expect there's a good chance you'll get foamed at least once -- and possibly many times -- and if you dislike the idea of getting foamed then it's best to stay far away from the main celebration areas.