In recent days, visitors to the public beaches of the United Arab Emirates were met with some disheartening warnings: signs were placed along these beaches warning that skimpy or revealing attire such as bikinis and briefs are no longer welcome there. While exact penalties for this newly minted offense are unclear as of the moment, there is much talk of cash fines involved.

News of this unexpected regulation came from the Emirate of Ras-Al Khaimah [RAK], which currently accounts for over 4 million of the UAE's residents and is occasionally seen as the next Emirate to follow in the footsteps of Dubai's tourism success. Not being as oil-dependent as novice students of the Middle East might expect, much of the $25 billion local and foreign investment to have gone into RAK will clearly go towards further amenities and facilities to keep visitors happy. It is worth considering briefly how this ban can be expected to impact such outreach efforts.   more ...

The United Arab Emirates, as of a 2011 Al Arabiya report, was host to nearly 4 million foreign-born laborers from sub-Continental Asia, the Arab world and elsewhere, with an expatriate population of twice that number (and, just as a reminder, the vast majority of UAE residents do qualify as expatriates). The majority of the foreign-born workforce does not have professional qualifications, however, with the same report claiming fewer than 230,000 residents with university degrees. One could interpret these numbers as saying that the demand for skilled / educated labor within the country is still substantial enough to reward a professional interest in the country.

Out of the three incremental "waves" of migrant labor to have appeared in the country, the latest wave - initiated by a sense of competition between Abu Dhabi and Dubai over mega-development projects - briefly resulted in a state where "even laborers were in short supply". Though there is some argument as to whether this construction and development wave has crested, the UAE may still present an attractive option to adventurous professionals with future-building aspirations.   more ...

The world has been hit by huge financial problems in recent years, but the numbers of professionals flocking to live and work in the UAE have increased. Dubai tends to be the place of choice for expats, due to the high standard of living and safety, as well as a cosmopolitan feel and of course the tax free income. However, there are alternative choices available in the UAE for working professionals other than the world-famous city of Dubai.

The UAE consists of seven emirates (the equivalent of principalities), namely Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al-Quwain. This article is going to take a look at two alternative options for you to consider if you are investigating the possibility of living in the UAE as an expatriate.   more ...

The United Arab Emirates [hereinafter UAE] are a federation of seven different principalities each governed by its own emir: Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm al-Quwain, Ras al-Khaimah and Fujairah. Since the early 1960’s, these federated states have advanced in prosperity largely on account of their oil exportation. Abu Dhabi, which led the charge among the emirates in this respect, came to share the wealth with the surrounding area, and some 50 years later the CIA World Factbook has listed the UAE as having the 10th largest per capita GDP in the world (this places it, impressively, above the significantly larger nation of Canada, and a full fifteen places ahead of the United Kingdom, although more recent estimates have seen the UAE's ranking drop to 13th.)   more ...

For those with an eye and ear on international affairs, the very word 'Dubai' can conjure up images of an extravagant, hyper-modern dreamworld, defined by its bold "science fiction now" innovations in architecture and landscaping. Of course, there are certain lightning rods for attention, like the new underwater Water Discus hotel being developed by the state-owned Dubai World holding company, as well as the notorious Burj Al Arab hotel, which help to fuel this preconception: the latter hotel is often touted as "the world's only 7-star hotel" (despite "5 star deluxe" being the highest official rating given by the hospitality industry), boasting suites of two floors each.

Other much-discussed features of the local landscape include the manmade Palm Islands archipelago, in the midst of which another archipelago is designed to appear like a microcosm of the globe's continental land masses. With items like these in mind, it's understandable why many expect the whole of Dubai, including its residential areas, to live up to this standard of novelty and luxury.   more ...