Always on the move

We all have our days, good, bad or indifferent. We speak to men and women across the UAE and ask them about their kind of day. What do they do? What do they think? They tell us, in their own words Today: Dr Nikolas Gaboriaud-Ravel, Regional Consular for Health and School Affairs in the Middle East for the French government

My day starts at 7.00am, when I wake up. Take my shower, eat breakfast including a cup of tea with brioche and jam. I then drive to the French Embassy, where my office is located, and work starts at 8.00am.

I live in Abu Dhabi and the drive is relatively short to work. My daily schedule is highly variable and depends on a number of meetings. So the first thing I do in office is switch on my computer and check on all my e-mails. Depending on the various engagements, I discuss with my secretary how the day should pan out.

My work involves ensuring bilateral and institutional co-operation between the six Gulf Co-operation Council countries including the UAE, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, along with Iran and Iraq - in the field of health and social affairs.

So most of the time I am meeting health officials, ministers, undersecretaries, medical professionals and other relevant people. We discuss their activities and requirements to run various projects and programmes.

I then get in touch with their French counterpart to set up projects of co-operation between countries. I organise French missions to the eight countries and vice versa. I also work on agreements between governments, as a result of which I tend to travel a lot.

Nearly 60 per cent of my time is spent in Abu Dhabi, the rest is spent in the other seven countries doing the same work.

Coming back to my mornings at the office, by 9.00am I meet with people involved in my field of work, followed by meetings with officials from the Ministry of Health and health workers. I may have lunch with them or have a light meal by myself. If I am not hungry I try and desist from eating. I love French, Lebanese and Asian food, I like to experience new dishes.

At around 2.00pm, I go home for a nap until 4.00pm. I need it to go on through the rest of the day.

I come back into office by 4.15pm, which I then spend catching up on my mails, returning calls, scheduling meetings and catching up on the paperwork. I then surf the Internet to get news on latest developments in my field of medicine, which is oncology, along with reading the French and local newspapers to be up to date on news and developments.

I also have tea around that time. The evening ends by around 7.00pm. After that I mostly end up going out on official receptions and social engagements. It can get quite hectic.

On my free evenings, I like to attend music concerts. I play classical European music including works by Liszt, Beethoven, Chopin and Brahms on my piano every evening, for at least an hour. It is very important as it helps me relax and unwind.

I also exercise from 7.00pm to 8.30pm, by going for a run. I enjoy the feel of the wind on my face and it helps keep me healthy, a necessary pleasure.

I then go out for a meal with my friends or stay in and cook. I am not a great cook but can manage a meal. By 11.00pm, I usually end my day and go to sleep. I try and read a little before sleeping including social, political and economic works - food for the mind.