Supper

[Brazen]

Really cool thing about living in the Middle East is the food. Can order fresh Indian food for very little money and have it brought right up to my door. Tonight it's Paneer Palak - Indian cheese and spinach curry. Divine. Next week it's back to cooking. Cr@p.

[#2]

yes that and the taxis...clean cheap, efficient, and if the taxi driver even looks at u funny he faces deportation back to wherever he came from

[Wizard]

Is it true that they leave the engine of their cars to idle while they go shopping so the Air-Con can run inside??

[Brazen]

Haha, true C. For about R10 I can go just about anywhere in Abu Dhabi, and no one would dream of hassling you. Yip, Wiz, in the summer nearly every car parked at the malls has the engine running, sometimes for hours. Probaly the most environmentally unfriendly city in the world.

[#5]

oh ...I almost forgot...dont forget about clean bottoms...all scrupulously clean...

[Brazen]

Oh Lord. . . that hose. How on earth are you supposed to use it without getting your pants wet? And I don't wanna know about the stuff you got up to with it.. . . okay, I really do. Just don't use the word enema.

[#7]

Brazen...oh dear oh dear...u arent supposed to show it up your bottom!...just a gentle hosing of the peri anal area....you were walking round with a bowel full of water...no wonder u wet your pants!

[Brazen]

Bwhahahahahaha! Thanks for that. If only I'd asked your advice two months ago. . . Shoulda made the connection - toilets, hoses, Chartist. . .

[#9]

Brazen,which country in the Middle East?Did you eat from an Indian eatery because Indian food is not the diet of the Middle Eastern countries.Their food is very less spicy,if not bland and simple with much use of yogart.This diet also helps in very hot temperatures.

[Brazen]

Abu Dhabi Mose. You're right about the food, but AD is 80% expats, most of whom are Indian or Pakistani - the area I'm living in is called Little Karachi - so there's a lot of Indian food available. Also great Lebanese places which serve the foods you mention. All in all, the 'street' food is brilliant, and really cheap even in ZAR terms.

[#11]

Hi Brazen-the functioning of their economy is highly dependent on expats.Asians mostly for labour and European/US for engineering and corporate. How long have you been living there and if I may ask in what field of livelyhood.

[Brazen]

Ya, and the expats drive the enconomy in that they are the majority consumers. There's been a massive boom for the last few years but the cracks are beginning to show. Property, which was in a frenzied bubble, is beginning to tank and the first waves of retrenchments are starting, mostly in Dubai in the property sector. Their market has lost over 70% as well. The UAE is in a better postition than most but not unscathed by any means. Their banks were downgraded yesterday too. They give massive unsecured debt to Western expats and the number of people running up cards and absconding is rising very rapidly. My husband is working for their new English language paper 'The National' and I have been here on and off for 5 months. Too expensive to live here full time with two kids. Rentals are insanse in AD - paying about 20K ZAR for a one-bedroomed flat. And schools run at about R100K per child per year for primary school.

[nala]

come live in Fordsburg -you will have curry every day

[nala]

come live in Fordsburg -you will have curry every day

[#15]

A myriad of tongues.Have you familiarized with any?

[DST]

Why go so far? I've met some people from your very own Kanicener who also think if they burn enough incense the rent will be sort of ok.