Did I mention this wonderful place called Dragon Mart?
It's the Made-in-China Central situated at the International City about half an hour's drive from Dubai. Always hard to find parking, always crowded. It's an oasis in this expansive (read: expensive) desert city for the cash strapped expat who thought his/her salary package is fab until he/she had to pay rent.
For some odd reason, the Cosco Warehouse sited right next to it features the neo-Medieval fortress aesthetic, whilst Dragon Mart itself takes design inspiration from .... (no points for correct answer) a dragon. It's essentially a long portal framed warehouse structure built to abstractly resemble a dragon. If this were in Hong Kong, some Feng Shui master would have been on TV explaining the mystical forces at play.
But, there are practical uses to the dragon iconography. When asking Chinese traders for directions, you'd usually get an answer like, "It's near the Dragon Head!" , or "Go toward the dragon tail, it's on the left..."
And inside, you'd really feel you are in China.
This is coming from someone who actually lived in China before. In fact, this place reminds me of Shenzhen. Shenzhen is a city on the south of China filled with the Chinese diaspora of the domestic kind. The majority of the population in Shenzhen is not local to the region. So in Shenzhen, it's normal to find business names featuring geographic locations from all over China, more so than other Chinese cities.
Dragon Mart has the same thing! Among the myriad of pinyin trade names, location specific names are apparently quite popular. E.g. Baoding Tianjia Trade Co, Wenzhou Jinliang Electrical, Qing Dao Electrical, Shandong Investments, Ningbo Trading, etc. etc. Or there are the China cliche ones like Golden Phoenix. My favourite is a store called Al Golden. Very fusion.
Of course, it's not just the trade names that lends the 'China' feel to me. It's the young store assistants sporting the latest in chinese hairstyles (there is a chinese barber shop nearby) idly playing with their mobile phones sitting on a stool outside their store, it's the rites of bargaining that frequently involve pretending to be from somewhere you are not, it's the sheer variety of products showcasing the sheer range of what can be made in China these days. I went in greeted by Hello Kitty, I went out staring at solar panels.
This is Chinatown of the contemporary kind. No longer a ghetto trying to retain the traditions of the old, but a salute to Deng Xiao Ping's free market reform, an immersive lesson in the China brand of socialism (aka "Capitalism" quoting me Chinese friend), and a bustling hub of international trade.
This Chinatown also has stores run by South Asians. The cafes that sprinkle the "dragon spine" are manned by Filipinos. Most of the shoppers are Arabic, and the rest would be a United Colours of Benetton mix of people from all over. According to a report in The National newspaper, people drive from Saudi Arabia and Oman to shop in Dragon Mart!
Well, not to mention the cash strapped Singaporean and her mates then :)
My friend wanted a bike rack for his hatchback. We found one, agreed on a price, and asked if we can return it if the rack did not fit. Usually, I'd expect a "yes" to this question, but the lady's answer surprised me.
We did not have to pay for the rack if we are unsure, we can try it out on his car without paying, and if it does not fit, bring it back. Now this is something new...
"Aren't you scared we'll just drive home with the rack?" I asked in Chinese.
"No" she replied.
Apparently her Arabic customers sometimes do not bring enough cash, so she lets them bring the goods home first, and deliver the cash to her later. Unless you are trading with someone you know very well, this will NEVER happen in China.
And this, is what I call Regionalization.
2010/01/23
2010/01/17
It's a small world after all
I remember growing up, that Hong Kong is a faraway place.
Singaporeans had their skewed perception of Hongkies, as do Hongkies Singaporeans. Then I made friends with a lot of Hongkies in Uni, but Hong Kong was still far away. I did not understand or maybe "feel it" when HK TV shows/movies, and my friends talk about Shatin, Tsim Sha Tsui, Central, etc. etc. And never did I imagine I would actually live in HK at some point in my life.
In Hong Kong, I realized that 3 of my childhood playmates, whom I have not seen for at least 17 years live there! This was surprising, coz 1 one them is Singaporean, the other 2 migrated to Canada a long time ago. My sister, whom I never expected to want to work in Asia, made the move to HK sometime before I was leaving. And when she arrived, I was introduced to even more ghosts of my past whom I did not know were in HK.
So then I move to the UAE. A distant and exotic land.
A serendipitous series of events lead to W and I being invited to a Christmas dinner at a friend's place in Abu Dhabi. And of course you engage in polite conversation over dinner with the other guests about your place of origin, how long you have been in UAE, rugby 7s,etc. etc.
So there was this guy whom W was trying to explain the location of Shenzhen to, and the guy said "I know Shenzhen, I worked in HK". "Ah, what did you do?" I asked. His answer filled me with a tinkling feeling, something like a soothsayer might feel before making a prediction. "Where did you work?" I asked, "not TL!!"
His eyes opened wide, and both of us covered our gapping mouths. "My god!"
"What's your name again?" Then came the reply in full, the 2 names lit up in my head like a matchstick. I have heard of this guy throughout my time in TL. He had left TL before I went in, but we know the same people.
He had gone to HK, gone to Canada, and now to UAE.
This was Christmas last year. And just an hour ago, I found out my postgraduate course mate in Oz is also here! I have not seen her in about 6 years! She also went halfway round the world, and now live in UAE.
So it is a small world after all.
Singaporeans had their skewed perception of Hongkies, as do Hongkies Singaporeans. Then I made friends with a lot of Hongkies in Uni, but Hong Kong was still far away. I did not understand or maybe "feel it" when HK TV shows/movies, and my friends talk about Shatin, Tsim Sha Tsui, Central, etc. etc. And never did I imagine I would actually live in HK at some point in my life.
In Hong Kong, I realized that 3 of my childhood playmates, whom I have not seen for at least 17 years live there! This was surprising, coz 1 one them is Singaporean, the other 2 migrated to Canada a long time ago. My sister, whom I never expected to want to work in Asia, made the move to HK sometime before I was leaving. And when she arrived, I was introduced to even more ghosts of my past whom I did not know were in HK.
So then I move to the UAE. A distant and exotic land.
A serendipitous series of events lead to W and I being invited to a Christmas dinner at a friend's place in Abu Dhabi. And of course you engage in polite conversation over dinner with the other guests about your place of origin, how long you have been in UAE, rugby 7s,etc. etc.
So there was this guy whom W was trying to explain the location of Shenzhen to, and the guy said "I know Shenzhen, I worked in HK". "Ah, what did you do?" I asked. His answer filled me with a tinkling feeling, something like a soothsayer might feel before making a prediction. "Where did you work?" I asked, "not TL!!"
His eyes opened wide, and both of us covered our gapping mouths. "My god!"
"What's your name again?" Then came the reply in full, the 2 names lit up in my head like a matchstick. I have heard of this guy throughout my time in TL. He had left TL before I went in, but we know the same people.
He had gone to HK, gone to Canada, and now to UAE.
This was Christmas last year. And just an hour ago, I found out my postgraduate course mate in Oz is also here! I have not seen her in about 6 years! She also went halfway round the world, and now live in UAE.
So it is a small world after all.
2010/01/16
What's in a name (and a passport)?
The UAE has gone on a full gear to get everyone an ID card. So all nationals and foreigners with residence visa need to get an ID card. The first thing to do is to download an .exe program from the official website, and fill in your details electronically. The .exe will then generate a pre=registration form for you, which you need to print out before making an appointment with the authority via the online appointment system.
I'm now on the form filling stage, and slightly baffled by the form fields.
I am not sure why the Middle Name is a compulsory field while the Family Name is not. But what if you don't have a middle name, like me?
I think I understand the rest of the fields, but what I really don't get is the Famous Name. I tried asking a Lebanese who lived here before about the Famous Name,and he had no idea. But he said when Arab people ask for your middle name, it means your Father's name. But since I am not Arabic, I find it weird to put Dad's name on any documents coz Dad's name never appears on any of my official documents except for the birth certificate.
And then there is the passport section. 5 kinds of passports! What is a private passport? How does that work? I definitely do not hold a diplomatic passport, and am pretty sure my passport is not temporary.
So I was tossing between the Standard passport and the Travel Document passport. I decided to choose the Travel Document option. Only to find out from a friend the next day, that Travel Documents in the Middle Eastern context means Palestinian refugees in say Jordan. They do not have Palestinian passports, and the Jordanians do not give them citizenship. So they end up travelling with a Travel Document.
Now where is the Save and Continue button?
I'm now on the form filling stage, and slightly baffled by the form fields.I am not sure why the Middle Name is a compulsory field while the Family Name is not. But what if you don't have a middle name, like me?
I think I understand the rest of the fields, but what I really don't get is the Famous Name. I tried asking a Lebanese who lived here before about the Famous Name,and he had no idea. But he said when Arab people ask for your middle name, it means your Father's name. But since I am not Arabic, I find it weird to put Dad's name on any documents coz Dad's name never appears on any of my official documents except for the birth certificate.
And then there is the passport section. 5 kinds of passports! What is a private passport? How does that work? I definitely do not hold a diplomatic passport, and am pretty sure my passport is not temporary.
So I was tossing between the Standard passport and the Travel Document passport. I decided to choose the Travel Document option. Only to find out from a friend the next day, that Travel Documents in the Middle Eastern context means Palestinian refugees in say Jordan. They do not have Palestinian passports, and the Jordanians do not give them citizenship. So they end up travelling with a Travel Document.
Now where is the Save and Continue button?
2010/01/14
New insight into this thing called an Abu Dhabi Address
Finally! My own internet in the comfort of my own home... no need to steal Wifi through windows anymore!
The guys came to rig it today, and to my mild surprise, there is an address section in the documentation.
"You guys actually have my address?" I asked to have a look at the form.
"No, no, this is plot number, only Etistalad use" replied the technician.
"And electricity, and water" quipped the other technician.
So apparently this is how it works. Mail still needs to go to a P.O. box, but in order to locate a building for billing/installation/repairs/etc, utility companies (internet included) use 2 things to figure out where you are: The sector, and the plot number.
E.g. Sector E11, Plot Number P44
And in the case of villas, the plot number is usually also the building number. So never mind what your landlord decides as his villa number, what really matters is the plot number :)
The guys came to rig it today, and to my mild surprise, there is an address section in the documentation.
"You guys actually have my address?" I asked to have a look at the form.
"No, no, this is plot number, only Etistalad use" replied the technician.
"And electricity, and water" quipped the other technician.
So apparently this is how it works. Mail still needs to go to a P.O. box, but in order to locate a building for billing/installation/repairs/etc, utility companies (internet included) use 2 things to figure out where you are: The sector, and the plot number.
E.g. Sector E11, Plot Number P44
And in the case of villas, the plot number is usually also the building number. So never mind what your landlord decides as his villa number, what really matters is the plot number :)
Dinner
W and I went for buffet dinner at Shangri La today. Like well trained Asian people ever watchful of even the most unprized possessions, we took care to always leave one person seating at the table to watch our stuff while the other one goes food hunting.
So as it was, we did not have much of a prolonged conversation coz one will be eating whilst one is "out there", and when he/she comes back, the other will have cleaned the plate and ready to hit the road.
I sat around while W went food hunting, looking aimlessly at the other people. An Emirati couple seated next to us had both gone to get food, leaving the wife's Burberry bag perched on the table.
So if she feels OK to leave her Burberry unmanned, who would want to take W's aged knapsack?
So as it was, we did not have much of a prolonged conversation coz one will be eating whilst one is "out there", and when he/she comes back, the other will have cleaned the plate and ready to hit the road.
I sat around while W went food hunting, looking aimlessly at the other people. An Emirati couple seated next to us had both gone to get food, leaving the wife's Burberry bag perched on the table.
So if she feels OK to leave her Burberry unmanned, who would want to take W's aged knapsack?
2010/01/13
Just to dispel the pork myths
Folks tend to think that you cannot get pork here at all. Well, guess the UAE is more liberal than some other Arab countries in this regard. But you do need to make an effort coz not a lot places have it. Spinneys in Abu Dhabi has it, but piggies are cheaper out there in the desert...
Pork section of a chinese grocery shop in the China section of International City. Not just pork meat in there, some products are inside because they contain pork products (e.g. oil) in the production process.
Although the classic Cha Siew Bao is made of chicken in most places, those who seek shall certainly find some run down in-the-corner chinese establishment to satisfy that craving.
Pig Trotters!
This was in Dubai, run by Shangainese. Did not know Shanghainese can cook like this, my recollection of Shanghainese food is sweet black noodle and pan fried buns. Anyways W enjoyed this meal. The orangey thing on the bottom right was roasted prawns. Yummy like anything too.. maybe coz of pork oil..
And if you do find pork at a restaurant, more often than not, the bill will say something like "Beef" for your pork dish. I once had fried Kimchi at a Korean restaurant where the pork slices were hidden within the cabbages and thick Kimchi sauce... naughty....
Edit: Was chatting with a guy who grew up in one of the expat compounds in Saudi Arabia. Compounds are essentially gated expat communities which is a must rather than a choice. But inside them, you can live like you lived at home with all the booze AND pork you want. So you can even get pork in Saudi Arabia!
Although the classic Cha Siew Bao is made of chicken in most places, those who seek shall certainly find some run down in-the-corner chinese establishment to satisfy that craving.
Pig Trotters!
This was in Dubai, run by Shangainese. Did not know Shanghainese can cook like this, my recollection of Shanghainese food is sweet black noodle and pan fried buns. Anyways W enjoyed this meal. The orangey thing on the bottom right was roasted prawns. Yummy like anything too.. maybe coz of pork oil..
And if you do find pork at a restaurant, more often than not, the bill will say something like "Beef" for your pork dish. I once had fried Kimchi at a Korean restaurant where the pork slices were hidden within the cabbages and thick Kimchi sauce... naughty....
Edit: Was chatting with a guy who grew up in one of the expat compounds in Saudi Arabia. Compounds are essentially gated expat communities which is a must rather than a choice. But inside them, you can live like you lived at home with all the booze AND pork you want. So you can even get pork in Saudi Arabia!
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