Grand Hyatt Lobby

You are lucky, the occassional series on my favourite hotel lobbies in Dubai gets a new instalment already. Today it's the mysteriously shaped Grand Hyatt hotel.

I mean to visit the Grand Hyatt every time I pass it on the way to the airport, or anyplace else that requires me to cross Garhoud bridge. The Hyatt's location on the edge of the creek means it straddles two areas of Dubai: Old Dubai, centred on the creek, with its abbras and trade port, souks and once-glamorous office blocks; and New Dubai on Sheik Zayed Rd (about to be overtaken by New New Dubai with Marina and sprawling developments). But there is nothing split-personality about this place, it exudes wealth and conspicuous consumption.

Unlike the Fairmont lobby's warren of dim rooms this is an open space, almost outdoorsy. This is mainly due to the tropical paradise that form the centre of its space, with tall palm trees and lush climbers, expansive ferns and bushy shrubs grouped around pools, streams and waterfalls. All the foliage is real, not of the ever-lasting plastic variety, unlike the boulders carved from dyed concrete to give that jungle look. Still the Koi carp don't seem to mind, and all that's missing is some parrots and the noise of growling panthers over the loudspeaker.

Light fittings galore

There is also a noticeable investment in strange light fittings, such as the oversized pineapple dangling from a UFO-shaped crystal chandelier, as well as four dhow hulls suspended from the ceiling above the aforementioned jungle. Oh, and then there is the pair of light panels on either side of the stairs covered in what seems to be the output of a Murano Glass Blowing for Beginners course, a mass of curled and twisted glass pieces in blue, red, turquoise and white. Quite stunning in size and sheer design nerve. All in all the quiet place, and if you like jungle, it's a must.

As to the mysterious shape of the hotel, the irregularly curved buildings describe the shape of the word 'Dubai' in Arabic when viewed from the air.

DIFX Launch

Who would have thought it, after all the long hours, crisis and continent-crossing efforts, the Dubai International Financial Centre actually launched on time.

Since Dubai may not be the inventor of the Soft Launch, but certainly a big fan, DIFX took a leaf out of that particular book and started operations on a small scale on Monday. The building contractors, who had been putting in a lot of hours to get the building finished on time for the start of trading, pulled out all the stops to get everything cleaned up and smartened up for the press conference. This included laying a large area of turf, which has already started to go brown because the sprinkler system that usually goes into the ground before the planting hadn't been completed. Such is the desire to make it look nice, specially as there was a rumour that Sheik Mohammed may attend.

Last minute efforts to beautify the exchange

Still, in the end it all went well, and then it was the party in the evening that was the thing. Everyone met at Lotus One at the Novotel, where champagne flowed freely and the waiters distributed delicious snacks. After that some of us retired to the Kasbar (as in "Rock the..."), my first clubbing experience in Dubai.

There is still a lot to do at the exchange, with IPO's promised to be happening thick and fast and new members joining every week. For now I think everyone is just glad that trading is happening after such an intense effort by everyone.

New Developments on the Labour Front

More protests have taken place in Dubai by workers who were demanding their overdue wages.

This time they were 100 Egyptian labourers working for Kuwait Control Company who hadn't been paid for three months. They staged a sit-in in Al Ghusais, an industrial part of town, and were paid eventually.

The late payment and bad treatment of workers has suddenly become a hot topic, with opinion pieces calling for fair treatment and the Ministry of Labour finally getting beyond merely repeating that they will consider all complaints, but then requiring formalities (and payments for form-filling and submission) and only considering a claim if the wages are two months overdue.

What seems to be exciting most criticism is the fact that not paying workers on time makes the UAE look bad to the world. The country's reputation is at stake, therefore something must be done. The fact that these workers are housed in shacks and paid a pittance is curiously not the issue nearly as much as the idea that a local company lessens the credibility of the country as a whole in the eyes of the global community. As long is something changes, I suppose...