Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

[jpatter666]

GRG55 has commented on how Dubai massively overbuilt in the years before the crash. At least then it was (semi)-useful buildings.

Cue up Round Two.

Buoyed by an economic rebound, Dubai’s appetite for big, brash and bold real estate projects has hit overdrive again.
Already home to the planet’s tallest skyscraper as well as a man-made peninsula, the desert-city now has its eyes on laying claim to the world’s biggest, wait for it, Ferris wheel.
The tourist attraction is part of a $1.6 billion retail, entertainment and residential project announced here late Wednesday. It is to be developed by Meraas Holding.

http://blogs.wsj.com/source/2013/02/...e_EditorsPicks

[ProdigyofZen]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

GRG55 has commented on how Dubai massively overbuilt in the years before the crash. At least then it was (semi)-useful buildings.

Cue up Round Two.

Buoyed by an economic rebound, Dubai’s appetite for big, brash and bold real estate projects has hit overdrive again.
Already home to the planet’s tallest skyscraper as well as a man-made peninsula, the desert-city now has its eyes on laying claim to the world’s biggest, wait for it, Ferris wheel.
The tourist attraction is part of a $1.6 billion retail, entertainment and residential project announced here late Wednesday. It is to be developed by Meraas Holding.

http://blogs.wsj.com/source/2013/02/...e_EditorsPicks

Hum, I wonder why not Nakheel Limited? http://www.nakheel.com/en/developments/palm_jumeirah

Back when I was on the trading desk and Dubai (UAE) had their debt problems from the AFC it was the wild west for UAE companies leveraged with debt.

I sold DP World (one of the largest marine port operators) to one of my clients at 81 cents on the dollar. 3 years later that bond trades at 116.

I tried to tell the clients I had (hedge funds etc) that it was a great trade and there was no fear of default because if the UAE allowed one of their quasi-sovereign companies to default and lose westerners capital then it would set off a sudden stop of FDI flows of their entire economy causing an even bigger problem.

Few listened. "risk profile for us is not right etc etc"

I tried to sell Nakheel Limited debt which was yielding 32% for get this, 1 year paper. A 32% yield for one year then the government paid off the debt at par.

It would have been a slam dunk trade.

[lektrode]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

32% for 1 year, eh?

why not....

but this is interesting....

GRG55 has commented on how Dubai massively overbuilt in the years before the crash. At least then it was (semi)-useful buildings.

Cue up Round Two.

WHEEeeeeeeeeee!!!!

boy i tell ya.... aint this fun?

Dubai. Ltd.

they can offer free limo rides over to this 'shopping mall' - talk about fun for the jet set:


Ski Dubai has 5 runs that vary in difficulty, height and steepness. The longest run being 400 meters with a fall of over 60 meters, making it the world’s first indoor black run. Skiers and snowboarders of all skill levels will enjoy these various slopes and snowboarders can also practice their stunts on the 90-metre long quarter pipe. Kids and parents alike will have fun in the interactive Snow Park which is the largest indoor snow park in the world with 3000 square meters.


the vail crowd will be envious....

and - even google is celebrating, apparently - when i went to look up the skidubai site, lookee what they are/were showing on the search screen:

goog0214.jpg

[don]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

the Arabs are a little people . . .

[ocelotl]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

...and a bit over a third in size, the one that is projected in Puebla...

http://www.coaster101.com/2013/06/25...2/#lightbox/0/

[shiny!]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

For all the billions if not trillions of $$ that have flowed into the ME over the decades, what's the literacy rate? How many schools and universities did they build? How many scientific advancements have come from that part of the world in the last century? It's a crying shame.

[photon555]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

For all the billions if not trillions of $$ that have flowed into the ME over the decades, what's the literacy rate? How many schools and universities did they build? How many scientific advancements have come from that part of the world in the last century? It's a crying shame.

But they'll have the world's biggest Ferris Wheel!! That's got to count for something. Who needs (fill in the blank) if you have all that oil and money and oil, and the World's Biggest Ferris Wheel? Let the good times roll.

[GRG55]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

For all the billions if not trillions of $$ that have flowed into the ME over the decades, what's the literacy rate? How many schools and universities did they build? How many scientific advancements have come from that part of the world in the last century? It's a crying shame.

A great many schools and universities have been built in the Persian Gulf in recent years. Here's a few examples from just one Persian Gulf emirate (all the others have something similar going on):

Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar
Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar
Northwestern University in Qatar
Texas A&M University at Qatar
University College London in Qatar
Cornell Medical College in Qatar


But scientific advancements and other societal progress don't come from shiny new buildings and the latest in laboratory equipment. It comes from the human mind, which is directly related to the quality of the teaching faculty and the quality of the students. And although some of the Arab nations, including Qatar, are trying to raise those standards there are a whole series of barriers, including a cultural predisposition to reject the "western" concepts of competition and meritocracy over the "Asian" preference for collective social harmony. Your status in the Arab world still comes from the family name into which you are born and your wealth, the latter being communicated to others largely by visible display of opulence (and gives rise, at a national level, to things like the world's tallest building and this idiotic ferris wheel project - the engineering of which is unlikely to contain much Arab content).

One way the rejection of meritocracy in Arab society manifests is a lack of development of critical thinking skills in the primary and high school education systems in the region...still too much teaching by rote and an avoidance of questioning conventional wisdom and the authority of those providing it. Even failing a poor student is frowned upon, and can bring negative career consequences to local and expatriate educators, because both the student and the family "lose face" in that event. Not difficult to see where this combination of dynamics leads...

A couple of years ago, on a long flight from North America to Europe, I sat next to a distinguished engineering professor emeritus who was a Board member of Texas A&M University at Qatar on his way to a meeting there. Drawing on my own experiences and observations from living in the Gulf I grilled him about these and other issues, and he confirmed that they were having great trouble getting enough quality Middle East students. They were also having trouble getting quality resident faculty, therefore much of the instruction is delivered via satellite link from the Aggies home base in College Station, Texas. Better than nothing, but not nearly the interactive experience of being in the room or laboratory with the top educators and researchers in a particular field.

The best students want to be taught by the best professors and the best professors generally want to teach the top students...a situation that is unlikely to occur in the Middle East any time soon, despite the enormous amounts of money being poured into education related architecture and infrastructure. Like a lot of other places in the world most of the really talented and capable students in the Arab world will still want to study in the best universities in North America and western Europe, and the very best of those will get snapped up and never go home again. These satellite campuses will probably give more Arab students the opportunity and necessary preparation to do that.

In the meantime, as an example, if you wish to hire a very good junior petroleum engineer (Arab or otherwise) your chances are much, much greater in College Station, Texas than they are in the oil rich Persian Gulf.

[shiny!]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

But scientific advancements and other societal progress don't come from shiny new buildings and the latest in laboratory equipment. It comes from the human mind, which is directly related to the quality of the teaching faculty and the quality of the students. And although some of the Arab nations, including Qatar, are trying to raise those standards there are a whole series of barriers, including a cultural predisposition to reject the "western" concepts of competition and meritocracy over the "Asian" preference for collective social harmony. Your status in the Arab world still comes from the family name into which you are born and your wealth, the latter being communicated to others largely by visible display of opulence (and gives rise, at a national level, to things like the world's tallest building and this idiotic ferris wheel project - the engineering of which is unlikely to contain much Arab content).

One way the rejection of meritocracy in Arab society manifests is a lack of development of critical thinking skills in the primary and high school education systems in the region...still too much teaching by rote and an avoidance of questioning conventional wisdom and the authority of those providing it. Even failing a poor student is frowned upon, and can bring negative career consequences to local and expatriate educators, because both the student and the family "lose face" in that event. Not difficult to see where this combination of dynamics leads...

Thank you for sharing your insights. I've seen this myself when I worked with a Moroccan couple for several years. They were the most emotional people I have ever known. Upholding traditions, appearance and social status were everything to them. The woman always wore a ton of gold jewelry and tottered about on high heels; we all worried that she would get mugged some day.

Both she and her husband had a hard time when presented with new information that contradicted old ways of thought. They would respond with "I don't believe that!" and nothing you could say would convince them otherwise.

They had never heard of things like autoimmune illnesses or learning disorders while growing up. So when a co-worker came down with Lupus, they refused to believe he was really sick. When their daughter was diagnosed with dyslexia, they refused to believe it. Having a special needs child was a disgrace to the family so they wouldn't allow the school to help her, insisting that she just needed to try harder.

Thanks to your post, I now understand that this was their cultural norm.

[lakedaemonian]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

A great many schools and universities have been built in the Persian Gulf in recent years. Here's a few examples from just one Persian Gulf emirate (all the others have something similar going on):

Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar
Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar
Northwestern University in Qatar
Texas A&M University at Qatar
University College London in Qatar
Cornell Medical College in Qatar


But scientific advancements and other societal progress don't come from shiny new buildings and the latest in laboratory equipment. It comes from the human mind, which is directly related to the quality of the teaching faculty and the quality of the students. And although some of the Arab nations, including Qatar, are trying to raise those standards there are a whole series of barriers, including a cultural predisposition to reject the "western" concepts of competition and meritocracy over the "Asian" preference for collective social harmony. Your status in the Arab world still comes from the family name into which you are born and your wealth, the latter being communicated to others largely by visible display of opulence (and gives rise, at a national level, to things like the world's tallest building and this idiotic ferris wheel project - the engineering of which is unlikely to contain much Arab content).

One way the rejection of meritocracy in Arab society manifests is a lack of development of critical thinking skills in the primary and high school education systems in the region...still too much teaching by rote and an avoidance of questioning conventional wisdom and the authority of those providing it. Even failing a poor student is frowned upon, and can bring negative career consequences to local and expatriate educators, because both the student and the family "lose face" in that event. Not difficult to see where this combination of dynamics leads...

A couple of years ago, on a long flight from North America to Europe, I sat next to a distinguished engineering professor emeritus who was a Board member of Texas A&M University at Qatar on his way to a meeting there. Drawing on my own experiences and observations from living in the Gulf I grilled him about these and other issues, and he confirmed that they were having great trouble getting enough quality Middle East students. They were also having trouble getting quality resident faculty, therefore much of the instruction is delivered via satellite link from the Aggies home base in College Station, Texas. Better than nothing, but not nearly the interactive experience of being in the room or laboratory with the top educators and researchers in a particular field.

The best students want to be taught by the best professors and the best professors generally want to teach the top students...a situation that is unlikely to occur in the Middle East any time soon, despite the enormous amounts of money being poured into education related architecture and infrastructure. Like a lot of other places in the world most of the really talented and capable students in the Arab world will still want to study in the best universities in North America and western Europe, and the very best of those will get snapped up and never go home again. These satellite campuses will probably give more Arab students the opportunity and necessary preparation to do that.

In the meantime, as an example, if you wish to hire a very good junior petroleum engineer (Arab or otherwise) your chances are much, much greater in College Station, Texas than they are in the oil rich Persian Gulf.

3 things come to mind when I read this post:

1)I've heard 1st hand anecdotes about the children of GCC leadership at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst that comically parallels your post

2)On the other side of the coin, I've had the opportunity to meet one of the sharpest strategic thinkers I've ever had the privilege of meeting earlier this year in the region that gives me some hope.....but 1 is not a million.

3)Is this an anomaly, a glimmer of hope, or something else entirely:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/ar...ectid=10891907

"Sheikh Ali Bin Jassim Al Thani, who is Qatar's Ambassador to Belgium and a co-owner of Gympanzee; Iman Al-Kuwari, daughter of Qatar's culture minister and a co-owner and manager of Gympanzee; Tzoulios Tzouliou, Villaggio's manager; and Abdul Aziz Mohammed Al-Rabban, Villaggio's chairman, were given the maximum sentence of six years in jail for involuntary manslaughter, Doha News reported."

[GRG55]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

3 things come to mind when I read this post:

1)I've heard 1st hand anecdotes about the children of GCC leadership at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst that comically parallels your post

2)On the other side of the coin, I've had the opportunity to meet one of the sharpest strategic thinkers I've ever had the privilege of meeting earlier this year in the region that gives me some hope.....but 1 is not a million.

3)Is this an anomaly, a glimmer of hope, or something else entirely:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/ar...ectid=10891907

"Sheikh Ali Bin Jassim Al Thani, who is Qatar's Ambassador to Belgium and a co-owner of Gympanzee; Iman Al-Kuwari, daughter of Qatar's culture minister and a co-owner and manager of Gympanzee; Tzoulios Tzouliou, Villaggio's manager; and Abdul Aziz Mohammed Al-Rabban, Villaggio's chairman, were given the maximum sentence of six years in jail for involuntary manslaughter, Doha News reported."

Everywhere I have worked and done business in the world there are always some very good and very talented people. Egypt, India, the Arab Gulf States, Central Asia...everywhere. The problem is the system they have to work in. In many of these countries few of the very best stay, unless they cannot leave due to family obligations. Ruling Family members fall into that latter category, of course.

As for the Qatar news, I think a sign of change. But being sentenced and doing the time are two entirely different matters. We are unlilkely to ever know for certain whether these very senior people actually do any jail time (I am skeptical), but just the public disclosure of a guilty verdict is a seriously shameful event in their lives in that society.

[shiny!]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

3)Is this an anomaly, a glimmer of hope, or something else entirely:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/ar...ectid=10891907

"Sheikh Ali Bin Jassim Al Thani, who is Qatar's Ambassador to Belgium and a co-owner of Gympanzee; Iman Al-Kuwari, daughter of Qatar's culture minister and a co-owner and manager of Gympanzee; Tzoulios Tzouliou, Villaggio's manager; and Abdul Aziz Mohammed Al-Rabban, Villaggio's chairman, were given the maximum sentence of six years in jail for involuntary manslaughter, Doha News reported."

What a tragedy for all the families who lost loved ones. There must have been some serious negligence on the part of the mall owners. I can't even imagine how those parents feel, losing triplets.

[GRG55]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

What a tragedy for all the families who lost loved ones. There must have been some serious negligence on the part of the mall owners. I can't even imagine how those parents feel, losing triplets.

Heads up folks. If you are planning to go to any of these countries, for example a winter vacation in Dubai, please understand that these are all still third world countries with a very thin first-world veneer. Such things as building codes, public safety standards, emergency fire response, ambulance services, and so forth are not equivalent to what we are accustomed to in North America or western Europe. There are high levels of corruption and other factors that also contribute to this situation.

Flying on Emirates or Gulf Air may not be quite as exciting as flying on Asiana Airlines, but it is NOT the same as flying on Lufthansa, British Airways or United...even though the airplanes may appear quite luxurious, you are taking a somewhat greater risk, and you need to understand that when you make your choices if you live or travel in these regions. If you find there are no smoke detectors in your hotel, even though it is packed with every modern convenience known to man, don't be surprised. It's also best to assume the sprinkler system doesn't have enough water supply or pressure to put out a cigar (unless the hotel is managed by one of the reputable western firms like Four Seasons, Fairmont or Intercontinental).

All the time I lived overseas I was constantly amazed at how naive and sometime utterly foolish many people can be. The Gulf is filled with expatriates and travelers who seem surprised that things aren't just like back home in Des Moines or Orillia, especially when they are completely unprepared for the periodic violence (Gulf War 2, Arab Spring) that erupts in that ever volatile region.

The world is an extraordinarily interesting place, and by no means should one avoid experiencing as much of its diversity as you can fit into your life, but understand the comparative risks of your choices. Leaving your kids in a mall daycare, or any other public venue in a third world country is not the same as leaving them in a similar facility in the USA, Canada, Australia, NZ, etc.

[lakedaemonian]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

What a tragedy for all the families who lost loved ones. There must have been some serious negligence on the part of the mall owners. I can't even imagine how those parents feel, losing triplets.

The couple that lost their triplets just had twins.

[lakedaemonian]

Re: Dubai to build world's biggest ferris wheel

Everywhere I have worked and done business in the world there are always some very good and very talented people. Egypt, India, the Arab Gulf States, Central Asia...everywhere. The problem is the system they have to work in. In many of these countries few of the very best stay, unless they cannot leave due to family obligations. Ruling Family members fall into that latter category, of course.

I get the sense that with at least part of the core of families with real influence/control in the GCC there is a genuine effort to try to instill some intellectual rigor and skillset development to go along with the surprising chunks of wisdom I found there. Albeit from an insanely entitled perspective.

The sense I got was the average locals are like welfare recipients in a world of seemingly unlimited resources.

And that the folks higher up the food chain are like legitimized Kennedy/Mafia family hybrids, where failure is a prison or a bullet.

As for the Qatar news, I think a sign of change. But being sentenced and doing the time are two entirely different matters. We are unlilkely to ever know for certain whether these very senior people actually do any jail time (I am skeptical), but just the public disclosure of a guilty verdict is a seriously shameful event in their lives in that society.

Ahh....didn't consider the possibility of the Pablo Escobar "prison" sentence.

But it is the first time I've read of seemingly very well connected(but maybe out of favour?) GCC folks publicly "sacrificed".