First for many
I am delighted with the opening of the tram service in Dubai (‘Mohammad to flag off Dubai Tram,’ Gulf News, November 11). It is the talk of the town. I am eager to ride in the ultra-modern carriage, as I recollect nostalgic memories of travelling in the trams of Kolkata and San Francisco. Dubai has been the first in many areas, and I think now they should look into a connection to the Capital with a bullet train to enhance the movement of the public between the emirates. I salute the Dubai authorities and the vision of our Rulers for creating this wonderful world.
From Mr Hemanth
Abu Dhabi
World class system
Dubai is growing very fast, compared to other cities. Like the Dubai Metro service, I think the tram will also become a great success. Dubai is maintaining a world class public service system.
From Mr S. Krishnan
Dubai
Website comment
Bittersweet
We are very happy to see the Dubai Tram, but traffic woes of the common man near Al Nahda area have not been solved still. Plus, they have increased the price of tickets. The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) should think about middle class expatriates who stay near the Dubai border for efficient and fast transit modes.
From Mr Mavin
Dubai
Website comment
Affecting travel
Good to see Dubai is developing faster, and I wish all the best for the tram’s success, but I am not very happy with the hike in the price for the Metro and buses. Usually, we are not going to travel every day by tram, but it does affect our daily travel now.
From Mr Muiz Shaikh
Dubai
Adjusting my mood
On Fridays we mostly travel from Ajman to Dubai and then back, and every time we get stuck in traffic, my way to pass the time is to have a translated audiobook of the Quran in my native language (‘Stuck in UAE traffic? Find out how you can cope,’ Gulf News, November 11). I always listen to it while I am driving. When listening to the Quran, you think differently. You don’t have to worry about getting bored or getting frustrated in traffic.
From Mr Ijaz
Ajman
Website comment
I become thankful
I look around when stuck in traffic and think that all these people including myself should thank God that we are still better off than millions of others around the world. There are people on this earth who die out of hunger or lack of medical care and we complain about being stuck in traffic in our air conditioned cars.
From Mr Minhaj
Dubai
Website comment
Memory games
I found that this was an interesting read, especially the various fun techniques adopted by motorists to eliminate boredom! I always play a game of memorising the plate number of the vehicle immediately in front of me. If we observe closely, a lot of those five digit numbers can be read in different ways to let them be stored in our memory easily. For example, the number 48538, if read as forty eight, five, thirty eight can be easily memorised. Another one like, 20147, can be read as two thousand fourteen, seven. It is also quite fun trying to group them in rhyming patterns, thereby aiding memory and avoiding boredom!
From Mr K. George
Dubai
Another failing campaign
While assuming power and in the election campaign, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) slogan was “minimum government, maximum governance” (‘India cabinet struggles to uphold clean image,’ Gulf News, November 11). This lasted for only four months. Within this short period, the ministry has expanded into a jumbo 66-member cabinet. The BJP’s ‘double speak’ is once again on public display. One third of the present cabinet members are facing criminal charges in various Indian courts, so transparency by the prime minister’s team is not there. We can hear only slogans and media coverage about the government and the main focus is the Prime Minister’s image.
From Mr Eappen Elias
Dubai
Completely agree!
The author of this article, Linda S. Heard, is so right and she understands the problems faced by Egyptian President Abdul Fattah Al Sissi (‘Al Sissi unfazed by Egypt’s challenges,’ Gulf News, November 11). Every word of this article is very true and right to the point. I wish there were many others writing like this. Thank God for Al Sissi, who has kept Egypt safe from falling into the abyss. I think that Egyptians should be grateful Al Sissi is steering the ship through these troubled waters.
From Mr Fred Zylva
Canada
Website comment
A serious concern
The shocking video has really proved the callousness on the part of the Israeli police force (‘Palestinians go on strike over murder of Hamdan’, November 10). The intention of demanding a detailed investigation into the tragic incident is understandable, and I think that strong corrective action should be expected. The spreading of violence following the incident is further escalating the situation, as the video has become clear proof of violating basics rights. It shows the lack of discipline and dignity practiced when treating the protesting community. In the ethical framework, it is a serious matter of concern and also questioning the freedom of choice to protest against the irregularities on the part of authorities.
From Mr Ramachandran Nair
Oman
A much needed initiative!
The implementation of putting inspection reviews of restaurants in their front window is a perfect move by the Dubai Municipality (‘Name and Fame’ for Dubai restaurants,’ Gulf News, November 10). There seems to be much room for improvement in the restaurant industry, as too many low-graded restaurants try to price tag their food similar to five-star restaurants. With this initiative, they will need to think twice before fooling people with this initiative. Hopefully the Dubai authorities begin controlling prices based on grades.
From Mr Ahmad
Dubai
Website comment
Mislabelling menus
This is a good initiative by the municipality. On the whole I feel that restaurants in the UAE are of good standard and I have never faced any problems with food quality, but I would like to share my experience with the juices being served in some restaurants. Recently, I ordered a fresh pomegranate juice. By looking at it, anyone would have said that it was not freshly squeezed, and it tasted just like sugar syrup. Without creating a scene, we moved out and decided not to go there again. I would like to request a thorough check on menus. If something is being labelled as “fresh”, restaurants should stick to it. As far as grading from A to E is considered, it is a good move to keep a check on the food quality, but I feel that it is not a very good idea to put it up at the entrance. What if a person is not able to afford an A or B grade restaurant? How would he ever invite his guests to a C or D restaurant?
From Ms Shikha Dixit
UAE
Hygiene standards
I would also like to know how and where we can complain about restaurants serving unhygienic food? Two months ago, we went to a popular restaurant when the customers at the next table found a cockroach in the food. I think more is needed to check such incidents.
From Ms Vandita Kumar
UAE
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