Expo2020 Dubai… Great opportunity to meet the world

The premier event of these year to showcase Dubai to the world and also showcase the world to Dubai is the expo. The event started on October 1, 2021 and will be open until March 31, 2002, it was suspended last year due to the COVID outbreak and the organizers move it for one year (right decision to go ahead). A world expo is an international event where the nations can showcase their achievements, their vision, and how they want to continue contributing to earth development

Just get your passport and fill it with memories

In the event you have participation from 192 countries, each pavilion has a theme usually based on their culture and customs bringing the best they have to offer and sharing it with the audience in a interactive way. In many of them you also have representation of their foods, and flavors with smalls cafes/restaurants offering their best of home recipes. One important part also are advancements on technology, education and sustainability, in this area you see current projects or ideas to build a safer and connected world.

Very wide spaces for you to walk, also many places to sit around the expo… You will walk a lot!!!

The expo has and area of 438 hectares (equal to 1,081 football fields), divided into 3 big themes (areas): Sustainability, Mobility, and Opportunity. In addition to the country pavilions each area has parks, theaters, restaurants, and stores with full day activities makes making multiple trips to the expo necessary. Every day a country is selected to have special events in the main plazas, great opportunity to drive their message even stronger.

You will find music in any corner… great to learn a little of their music…

In the first month I have been able to see 67 country pavilions, want to get to all of them but takes time because it is also about connecting with the people that work there and are very happy when you ask about their countries. People have shared great stories about their countries for example the story of Lucy in Ethiopia a human fossil that has 3.2 million years, how some Islands in the pacific have citizenship programs to drive investments to their government or the vision of Indonesia to become the 5th largest economy by 2050.

Some of the people from around the world I have met!!!! incredible….

The Expo Dubai presents a great balance of fun, education, and business that should not be missed. If you ever want it to visit Dubai, I would say now is a good time. Getting to know this fabulous place and combining it with the opportunity to know the world is something that only Dubai could offer. The place where records are set….

UAE Pavilion is the biggest, great experience inside!!!!

Will continue the updates from the Expo Dubai from time to time as I continue stamping my passport, meeting new people and learning new stories from all over the world. For now if you just read my post, please forward to your friends and sign in to receive our updates; also follow us on Instagram, or Facebook look for #BORICUASLIVINGABROAD . Until next time….

JBR beach and Jumeirah public beach… great places to cooldown in Dubai

Being from Puerto Rico, a beach day was something very regular… As a children you would go with your parents to Isla Verde or Luquillo, these beaches are very close to San Juan. In long weekends go an stay in small hotels at one of the many great beaches that Puerto Rico offer like Flamenco located in Culebra (one of the best beaches in the world) or to the west and stay in Isabela or Rincon and visit one of the many great beaches Puerto Rico has to offer there. So we can certainly appreciate a good beach when we see it.

Dubai Marina is an impressive place, all this buildings are walking distance to the beach

After arriving in Dubai and being in awe from the great architecture, I decided to adventure and get to know some of the beaches Dubai has to offer. There are many across the Dubai coastline, many with easy access and parking making them easy to reach and enjoy. Not only does the beaches are easy to get, but also there are many amenities close to them; you will find retail stores, restaurants, rental of aquatic sports, chairs and umbrellas.

JBR Beach – Awesome Beach… Ain Dubai Ferris Wheel… Dubai Marina buildings

Beaches are well kept, clean and with great signage so you know where to find the different amenities. Rental of Umbrella and Chairs is expensive, but somewhat necessary if you want to enjoy the day. I saw people bringing their own chair and umbrella so you have that option also. You cannot bring alcoholic beverages, but can buy water and soft drinks and have them at the beach.

Jumeirah Public Beach… Great view of the city on the background

My arrival to Dubai was in August where the temperature during the day is extremely hot, so you will see people go very early in the morning or in the afternoon to protect themselves from the sun. Talking with locals they tell me that in October the weather changes and it gets more comfortable, I am really waiting for that weather to get here!!!!

LA MER is a open shopping place with restaurants and retail in Jumeirah Beach

One cool thing about these beaches is that once the sun comes down, there is another dimension to the place. Many restaurants come to life, people arrive for the evening session if you will… you see a transformation with many lights from the restaurants turning on and providing a different perspective on the beaches.

The Beach – Retail offer in the JBR area… Had a great lunch in Operation Falafel restaurant

Will continue the updates from Dubai as I explore more places and their culture here in Dubai. For now if you just read my post, forward to a friend and sign in to receive our updates; also follow us on Instagram, or Facebook look for #BORICUASLIVINGABROAD . Until next time….

DUBAI first impressions… Waoooo

After the long journey from Mexico to Dubai and a good rest to adapt the new time zone (9 hrs ahead of Queretaro), had an initial walk around my new surroundings just to venture a little and get a first glimpse on one of the most visited cities of the world.

UAE Flag… Tons of flags are flying around the city

Dubai is the most populous city of the Emirate of Dubai with a population of around 3.3 million. The city has seen exponential growth in the since late 90´s, and now boast some outstanding records: biggest Shopping Mall (Dubai Mall), Tallest building Burj Khalifa, deepest pool (Deep Dive Dubai) and others that we will talk in other posts.

Inside the Dubai Mall… Huge Fountain.. One of the many shows inside Shopping Malls

In addition to have many Guinness records, Dubai is home to people from more than 200 nationalities. 85% of the people are expatriates and while Arabic is the official language you see people talking in the streets many other languages including English. If you speak English, you can feel comfortable on the street as many people talk it as second language.

English Football is closely followed here, LFC store inside Dubai Mall #YNWA

The views of the city are amazing and with many constructions happening it will only get better, as you move through the city more buildings surface and the different areas of the city. I just only have ventured to a couple of places but there is a lot to see and enjoy during my time here.

Beaches are spectacular… Here Marina Beach… Where you find biggest Ferris Wheel of the world

One of the things that have impressed me is the height of the Burj Khalifa, the closer you get the more imposing it is. It seems unreal the height achieved; with 830 meters It is almost 200 meters higher than the previous record holder. Close to the Dubai Mall that also is impressive in size and shopping options (more details in another post).

Also have explore a couple of beaches around Dubai: Jumeirah Beach and Marina Beach. Both places also look great with a good amount of space to relax and enjoy a Beach day, if you can manage the August weather. I now know that August is one of the most hottest months and will improve as the year goes along ( wohoooo!!!), currently being outside id tough specially during the day, that is why you see people enjoying the city more after 6PM.

Jumeirah Beach… another great place close to the big buildings

Will continue updating from time to time as I explore more in-depth the culture and life here in Dubai. For now if you just read my post, please forward to your friends and sign in to receive our updates; also follow us on Instagram, or Facebook look for #BORICUASLIVINGABROAD . Until next time….

On the path to “normal” … Change of Scenery, Day 1 at Dubai

This pandemic has changed a lot the way we work, vacation, or how we do daily life. When I started writing the blog the idea was to on a monthly basis share some experiences of the many great things Mexico has to offer to the people, it changed drastically since March 2020 when COVID took the world by storm.

Trip back to Puerto Rico after more than 2 years, before I go to Dubai!!!

Vaccination is underway but still we have very low levels of vaccinated people in places where the availability is high and even lower in places where is limited supply. If we want to be back to “normal” and enjoy our life and travel, this need to be priority number one…. So, go now and get vaccinated. We already did.

Happy to get vaccinated… easy and safe… Thanks CVS

Getting back to 2021. Change has come in other forms, after close to 10 years of working for Latin America now I have taken a Global role in the company. This is a great opportunity to continue learning around new cultures and places, you cannot imagine the great people we have across the world. With the new role, a new opportunity of collaborating from a different part of the world has arrived…. Will be working on a special assignment for 6 months based out of UAE in Dubai!!!!

Very excited to not only get to work in the AMEA region, but also to get a first person view of what this great place looks. If you have seen images, it looks unreal…. Biggest building, deepest pool, longest …., etc. etc.

Great Exprience traveling in the Q-Suite from Qatar Airways

I am sharing some of the first pics since my arrival to Dubai, very impressive initial sights. Will continue sharing some insights as I settled and my assignment permits.

As you know the idea of the blog is to share a little bit of how we see Mexico, but now will be shifting to Dubai as I will live for 6 months there. I know you will still enjoy. If you just read it forward to your friends and sign in to receive our updates about how Dubai looks and can be enjoyed. Follow us on Instagram, or Facebook look for #BORICUASLIVINGABROAD . Until next time….