A characteristic of weather in the UAE, and this part of the world, is that it is relentlessly hot in the summer — as well as the four extra “shoulder” months, two before and two after summer, proper. It was every-single-day, uniformly hot from, let’s say, mid-April, until today, when it the high temperature did […]

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Like most individual sports, golf benefits from a rivalry at the top. Hogan versus Snead. Palmer versus Nicklaus. Woods versus Mickelson — which is not as lopsided as one might think. The next great rivalry? Looks like it will be between Jordan Spieth, the 22-year-old Texan, and Rory McIlroy, the 26-year-old Northern Irishman. And it […]

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This photo gallery is put up by one of those sites who live for photo galleries, then bombard you with ads and links (and slow response times) as you drew to negotiate the photos. So, fair warning. But this one alleges to represent 19 photos that could have been taken only in Dubai. After six […]

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A curious reality concerning the 11th arrondissement, where we are staying: It is the most densely populated quartier in Paris but it has very few major … anythings. Landmarks, stores, parks. So, if you want a bit of greenery on a cool cloud-covered afternoon, you very likely will make a zig-zagging trek up into the […]

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So, some time off, and we wanted to go to Europe and be somewhere with a bit of light and sun, and here we are on the coast of Spain. It may not be the smartest choice, this time of year, given that the UAE finally is cooling off. But everyone in Abu Dhabi knows […]

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This has been something of a flashback for me. The first Abu Dhabi Tour … the first Redlands Bicycle Classic. What do they have in common? Two-wheel bikes, whippet lean men, strange terminology and the same sports editor covering each debut, albeit 30 years apart. Abu Dhabi being Abu Dhabi, it started its bike race […]

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Fast-food outlets are as common as gas stations in the UAE, in part because a Burger King or a Hardees or a Pizza Hut typically is part of the 7-Eleven style retail area a few feet from the pumps. We try to avoid fast food here for the same reasons we would back home — […]

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Jennifer Aniston, still a celebrity after all these years, has been paid $5 million to be part of an advertising campaign for the Dubai-owned carrier Emirates, the New York Post has reported. The first ad came out this week, a piece of video that shows Aniston caught in the nightmare that is flying without a […]

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The UAE is taking a shine to the concept of bicycles. Riding them. Buying them. Watching others ride them, especially professionals. The issue here is that this country is remarkably flat, most of it. Conditions which generally make for boring races, among cyclists. The pros? They will get in a huge pack and this or […]

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This was the mind-boggling score of the weekend. Actually, of the season, so far. Maybe the decade, to date. A team from a hamlet, really, of the northern UAE outback that is Fujairah, scoring four on Al Jazira, the big, proud club smack in the middle of the 1 million people on Abu Dhabi Island. […]

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