I have just returned from Dubai visiting friends working in construction out there. All I can say is the construction is unlike anything I have ever witnessed in my life(I counted 74 tower cranes from my M8’s garden and thats just the tip of the iceberg).
With construction comes trucks blooming thousands of them lined up waiting to come in at night(trying to get the pictures out of my phone). We stopped one evening in a small shop to grab a drink and ended up sitting outside talking to some indian truck drivers most of who spoke excellent english. Most work 6 month shifts with one day off a week and 16 hour days, they also stay in the cab for the entire time they are out there. One guy was an O/D and he had been working in Dubai for 2 years only returning to india for 3 weeks in that time to see his family(apparently he’s minted at home). After they had finished their moans about living in a sleeper cab for months they pointed out the 8 legger tipper drivers in day cabs (yes home for 6 months)and laughed apparently the class1 class2 divide exsists all over th world .
If it manages to hit 25degs this summer in the UK rather then moan I think I’ll just remember these boys working in over 50degs most with no aircon and feel alot better, hell I might even turn the aircon down!!!
N2N spent a week there last year it’s an unreal out there, driving out there make’s london rush hour driving seem like a day in the countryside…
did you go to the emirates mall? with the indoor ski slope and real snow.
the weirdest thing i saw was an 80 floor tower they were still building with a tower crane still on the top, taxi driver said it was going to be the tallest building in the world.
yes we did the mall and the ski slopes, funny experience isn’t it.
The building you are talking about is the Burj and is at 160 floors now and still rising. I have included a link for anyone interested in buying a place on the 180th floor and 2.4kms from the ground
Here is a photo of the Burj on the skyline (for reference the buildins around it average 70-80 floors. (taken from M8’s boat in the gulf)
newmercman:
How long does it take for the crane driver to get to work I wonder
he starts as an apprentice at the bottom when he has walked to the top he is near retirement age its a long walk back for your sarnies, fancy having your cigs and forgetting a lighter
.
