Dubai : After dishing out free meals to the jobless, a Dubai hotel recently served lunch to hundreds of the city's taxi drivers.
Arabian Park Hotel fed around 600 cabbies early this week "as a big ‘thank you' for all their hard work", Arturo Cairel, a hotel manager, said.
The hotel had previously organised a food fest for those who had lost their jobs in the economic downturn.
Cairel said the practice has become a tradition at Arabian Park. "We do this every year, try to help others. In the spirit of Ramadan, we wanted to do something nice, as a big thank you to the community," he said.
Helpful cabbies
"Taxi drivers help visitors who don't know their way about town by bringing them to the right place," he added.
On Monday, hotel staff headed out to a Dubai Taxi parking area behind Dubai International Airport's Terminal 1. Tens of drivers lined up in the midday heat to get their share of biryani, cold water, chilled soft drinks, fresh fruit and dessert.
"It feels good to know there are people who appreciate us," said Pakistani taxi driver Saqib Zia.
