So I’ve been living in Dubai since last summer. Not because I like the city — I don't — but because my girlfriend lived there when we met and she wasn't quite ready to leave yet. Admittedly the tax benefit is nice too.
Earlier this week we decided to get out however, at least for a couple of weeks, to see how the situation develops without being in the middle of it. The uncertainty of it all and potential for escalation is just not a comfortable situation to be in.
With that said, daily life in Dubai was in fact quite normal still when we left— just a bit more quiet. The Starbucks is open, the sports bar serves cold Guinness, and Domino’s is delivering to your doorstep.
There were missile alerts on our phones maybe once a day, and we could sometimes hear the sound of an explosion, mostly from interceptions I believe. But other than that, if you wouldn't watch the news, you may not even know something was going on.
I’ve seen reports on reputable international news media suggesting that influencers are required to convey a positive image of Dubai in these times— and are being barred from posting anything negative about what’s going on. I don’t know to what extent that’s true — I wouldn’t put it past the local authorities — but I do know that I am myself not some Dubai propagandist or Emir simp, yet I also got the impression that the UAE government is dealing with the attacks quite well, so far at least.
Also on the topic of influencers, I have seen a good amount of schadenfreude on social media etc. with people mocking the "influencer class" that now finds itself in the middle of rocket fire. I get it and part of me even feels the same way. But you know, most people in Dubai aren't influencers.
In fact, most people in Dubai are actually guest workers from places like South and Southeast Asia that work in the UAE to send money back to their family. And if shit really would hit the fan, guess who'll actually be most likely to get stuck there without an easy way home? Yeah probably not the influencer class.
If things in Dubai do take a turn for the worse from here and we don't return, I won't miss the city personally— but I will feel bad for these millions of people that were just living their lives peacefully until the jihadist regime across the sea decided to drag them into a war none of them had anything to do with, and no one wanted to be part of.
