Through the Night coffee. Some Thoughts on the Rich and the Poor in Dubai Marina

Dubai, what a great city. It's safe, modern, welcoming.  And it seems sleepless too.  The serviced apartment where I'm staying here in the Marina area, is so full of tourists hotels and restaurants that even at 10 PM people are still doing their jogging and sipping coffee.  And January is just the perfect season of the year to do so.  Averagely 16-26 degree Celsius, it's cool and pleasantly breezy during the cool season, whereas in summer it's still 30-35 degree Celsius even at night .  Hence the Emiratis and tourists alike, here in this cafe/restaurant-studded area, altogether share a light-hearted night time of breeze, chat, and affluence of culture and materialism.

But of course, the majority of foreign workers from Pakistan, India, Philippine and Sri Lanka and others are excluded in the celebration of leisure.  Some of them are still busy driving taxis around the hustling city till late, while others are already transported back to their dormitories.  Such different lives from the rich, and yet each individual has different story to tell, just like their fellow countrymen in every other cosmopolitan city.

Maybe I sound like a half-baked observer, but I surely give due respect to those who work hard to make my life more convenient.  'Thank You' is a must to whoever helps me, and whenever there's a chance I do not hesitate to give my tips or share to the donation box.  And the city itself is not totally unaware of the contributors to its prosperity either.  From time to time there are campaigns that fund either money or materials for workers, and people are encouraged to donate goods (new sets of basic toiletry that includes toothbrush and paste, shaving kits etc, are available at stores specifically for donation) for the hardworking workers.  This is a city in many ways looking after its dwellers far better than many other great cities.  And I'm glad to be part of it.