Dubai seems to be the dateline for many of the planet’s extremes. Biggest, tallest, longest, widest. Including, it would seem, some of the most egregious examples of food wastage.

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We return now to the Middle East, and particularly the Gulf, where are located some of the most prominent members of Opec — the Organization of Petroeum Exporting Countries. Saudi Arabi, Qatar and the UAE among them. Opec’s collective position in setting prices and regulating the flow of oil has been part of international business […]

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So, back in the U.S. with a chance to peruse what is left of American daily print journalism. It is a melancholy activity, indeed. Measured against the sweep of history, the nosedive of U.S. print was an accelerated affair. A decade ago, American newspapers were still making a lot of money and, collectively, were probably […]

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Thanks to a reader from Hawaii for spotting this one, in the Los Angeles Times, of all places. A “mixologist” in Abu Dhabi is producing camel milk shakes, as well as latte. And he is at the new Ritz-Carlton, which is no more than 10 minutes from where we live. I have a confession to […]

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Andy Murray won the “gentlemen’s” singles championship at Wimbledon today, the first Briton to do so since Fred Perry in 1936. Yes. Seventy-seven years ago. And there went another great losing streak. I am on record expressing support for the continuation of all prominent losing streaks. They give context and shape to teams, people and […]

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Since moving to Abu Dhabi, nearly four years ago, I have returned to the U.S. on three occasions. Each of those three times … I saw a baseball game within a few days of clearing customs at LAX. In this case, the Angels and Red Sox, at Anaheim Stadium. As usual, I found it a […]

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I never really believed Dwight Howard would leave the Lakers. Right up till it leaked today that he would do just that. Who leaves the Lakers? Especially when leaving them means walking away from the extra $31 million in guaranteed money the Lakers could pay? But I also never thought committing $118 million to the […]

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If I were to rank the American holidays that seem emptiest/saddest/most pathetic outside the borders of the U.S., two of the top three would be Thanksgiving and Christmas. (Though the latter is certainly not specific to the U.S., even if many of its States-side traditions are.) The third “sad Yank holiday overseas”, ranking behind only […]

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Traveling from the UAE to California is not a journey to be entered into lightly. One is divided from the other by 11 time zones. (Twelve time zones in the winter, when California goes off daylight savings time.) Only one nonstop exists from the UAE to California. (Emirates, from Dubai to Los Angeles, for 16 […]

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It is that time of year. School is over, summer has seized the country by the throat, Ramadan is on the way … and seemingly half the people in the UAE are headed for an airport. We at The National did a story this week about a rise in airline bookings this summer — up […]

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