Christmas shopping can be a daunting task for many

Abu Dhabi: Christmas shopping is a double edged sword because buying gifts for dear ones is a pleasure and a bother as well, said Faris Saddi, a long term Abu Dhabi resident.

"Selecting a suitable gift is a herculean task because what to give to people who have everything?" asks Saddi, a Syrian national who has been living in Abu Dhabi since 1982.

"Still it always ends up with pleasure only…when you put all the gifts under the Christmas tree in the family gathering on Christmas eve...," said Saddi who is a general manager of a contracting and general maintenance company in the capital.

He found that Christmas gifts have become cheaper this year. He finished the shopping by Tuesday. "Every year, I give gifts to about 30 people," said Saddi who lives with wife and five children in Abu Dhabi but two of his children are studying in Australia.

Samji Mathew, 58, an Indian Insurance Consultant who has been living in Abu Dhabi for past 30 years said he has not done much Christmas shopping in recent years.

"I feel the celebrations have lost the warmth because of commercialisation." He said he has not sent Christmas greeting cards or given gifts for the past five years.

Some of the retailers said Christmas gifts have been focused on toys this year.

Many people have been purchasing toys and electronic gadgets like MP3 players as gifts, according to the spokesman of Lulu hyper markets.

"We flew in fresh halal turkeys from the UK by Tuesday and we are selling them at promotional prices. So many people had already booked it in advance," said.

V. Nandakumar, Corporate Communication Manager of Emke Group which runs Lulu hypermarkets said: "We expect to sell about 50,000 turkeys — both frozen and fresh in two weeks across the UAE."

Travel woes

School principal Eric Webb did not expect a family reunion in Dubai for Christmas would be so stressful and send his elderly mother to various snowed-in airports across the US and Europe.

Lois, 79, was to take a direct Emirates flight from Washington to Dubai with her granddaughter Victoria, but that airport was closed. She then went to Indianapolis on Tuesday, was shunted to Chicago and then to Frankfurt, with eight hour stops at each airport. "The trip could have been better," said Victoria, who was flying for the first time.

Eric's son and his wife, coming from Wisconsin, finally arrived here yesterday after having lost a half-day at Frankfurt.

"I am sure other families here faced the same problems," said Eric and hoped they too had a happy ending like them. "It's a treat to be in Dubai," said Lois.