Journal Recalls A Fourth Of July In Dubai
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John Nelson graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, New York in 1965 and enjoyed a long career at sea on commercial and military support ships. After retiring from his seagoing career, he continued working in various capacities in the maritime industry until a final retirement in 2012. Since then he has been active in researching local history and restoring and operating steam engines and antique mills.
He lives in neighboring Panola County and is a long-time member of the Yalobusha Historical Society. He writes about his experiences in the Panolian, Oxford Eagle and Herald. He is also the uncle of Herald publisher David Howell.
An old journal reminds me that I was in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on the 4th of July of 1998. It was my second year to spend most of my time there while supporting a squadron of ships loaded with army equipment that was stationed in the Persian Gulf.
There was nothing noteworthy about the day. I spent most of it communicating with the Carrier Corporation’s UK office in trying to get a technician flown in to correct a control system error that the ship’s engineers had not been able to fix. With the entire ship’s cargo space climate controlled to protect the military hardware stowed there, air conditioning and humidity controls had to work properly.
That evening, crew members from my ships, a couple of surveyors from the American Bureau of Shipping, and some other assorted Americans congregated at the Seamen’s Club to celebrate the holiday.
Reading through other log pages reminded me that my time in the UAE had been quite pleasant. The summers were very hot, but winter months were cool enough to require light jackets in the evenings.
My biggest headache was the complicated system for writing and documenting government contracts for ship repairs beyond the capabilities of the small crews. The system required a chain of paperwork from me to my home office in New Jersey and to contractors in the Emirates. With Friday being the holy day in the Middle East and Americans off on the weekends, there were three straight days when some key players were unavailable to return signed faxes.
My journal reminded me that early July of 98 was particularly disruptive to my paperwork flow since July Fourth set up a long weekend in the U.S., and Prophet’s Day (Mohammed’s birthday) fell on July 6 in the UAE.
Since leaving for the last time in 2000, I have tried to keep up with developments there, and though I considered the UAE quite advanced at the time, I’ve been astonished by the rapid growth that has taken place since.
Back in May when President Donald Trump visited Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE, and Doha, Qatar’s capital, I watched the news videos closely hoping to catch a glimpse of places remembered.
Though based in Dubai, I conducted business in several of the seven emirates and sometimes made the drive to Abu Dhabi. UAE’s abundant oil provides unlimited power to operate reverse osmosis fresh water generating plants, and the city seemed to rise up out of the desert like a giant oasis. When driving in on Sheikh Zayed road, I would often have to turn on my windshield wipers when the automatic sprinklers activated.
In Abu Dhabi, Trump met with Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, ruler of Abu Dhabi, and president of the UAE. Though president, his power is somewhat limited as the individual emirates are governed by sheikhs and thus remain largely autonomous.
For instance, the ruler of Sharjah, the emirate bordering Dubai on the northeast, forbids the serving of alcohol there, so Sharjah has no five-star hotels nor does it host international trade shows. It does offer a lower cost of living, so that emirate has become something of a bedroom community for Dubai.
Caterpillar and Radio Holland were two regular contractors I visited in Sharjah, and I soon learned to make that drive in the morning when most motorists were headed the other way into Dubai and to get out before they returned.
I never had any business in Doha but went there a number of times when my three-month visas expired. To get an extension, one had to leave the UAE and return, and Emirates Airlines offered roundtrip flights tailored for that purpose. One could depart Dubai in the evening, arrive in Doha, get stamped into Qatar, and get a visa to reenter the UAE without leaving the airport. The whole process could be completed in time to be back in Dubai in the wee morning hours.
It was only on one occasion that I scheduled enough time to take a look at Doha, and it was so much like Dubai that I didn’t bother to do that again.
The economic downturn in Russia following the breakup of the old Soviet Union sent a number of Russians to the UAE in the 1990’s. Some were looking for jobs in the developing Emirates, and others with capital in Russia were looking for a more stable economy for investing.
The Russians usually added some merriment to the visa flights since they always seemed to be in high spirits. They tended to ignore flight safety regulations, and since the short flights didn’t allow time for the stewardess to serve alcoholic beverages, they brought their own in carry-ons.
The journal brought back many memories of things that I’m not likely to experience again – except for hot summer months that I can always experience right here in Mississippi.
