With temperatures rising, it feels like it’s almost time to trade the playground for the air-conditioned comfort of indoor play zones. Happily, there are plenty in the UAE for children to explore, including some new options for this year. We check some of them out.
Orange Wheels and Orange Spin
Located at Al Wahda Mall, Abu Dhabi, Orange Wheels is where children, and their imaginations, can really run riot. In the fairy tale-like mini village, they can shop for bread at the market, do each other’s hair at the barber’s, dress up as firefighters and even play at driving a life-size fire engine.
There’s a whole range of climbing walls, the most popular of which has light-up buttons kids can press as they climb. The play-gym has a trampoline and spongy shapes to build dens in. There’s even a real salon and spa, (as well as a children’s pretend one), and we recommend the flatbread pizzas at the cafe. The only downside is trying to drag the kids out when their time is up.
Two floors-up in the newly opened Orange Spin (owned by the same company), the flashing lights of games take pride of place, including vintage favourites like Pac-Man and pinball machines.
This playzone has more for those ages 10 and over, with a two-lane mini-bowling alley and a car racing simulator. There’s also a spy mission-themed laser tag arena, where kids run around in the dark wearing luminescent packs, shooting at each other.
• Al Wahda Mall, Abu Dhabi. Details www.orange-spin.com and www.orangewheels.com
Cheeky Monkeys, Al Forsan
This popular children’s play company, which has been around in Dubai for many years, has now arrived in Abu Dhabi.
Its cute playzone ticks off most items on a parent’s checklist – free Wi-Fi in the cafe, a playhouse with its own kitchen, lounge and toy room for role-playing, a soft play area and open gym (where puppet shows are also held) for letting off steam, and a craft zone for getting creative.
• Al Forsan, Khalifa City and seven other locations in the UAE.Dh50 first hour, Dh30 for more. Details 02 449 3555 and www.cheekymonkeys.com
Action Zone
The latest Action Zone to launch in the UAE is in Capital Mall, Mohammed bin Zayed City,
This 3,000-square-metre electronic wonderland includes a PlayStation 4 lounge, video games and a virtual reality booth where children can enjoy 3-D simulations with Oculus headsets. Even the toddlers get playtime ramped up with the latest technology. At the colouring station, artwork can be projected onto the wall and turned into an animation, using augmented reality. For more old-fashioned fun, there’s a trampoline park and a soft play area.
Action Zone is also hosting a gamer event during Ramadan, in which Ahmed Al Nasheet will attempt to break three Guinness World Records on Fifa 17 for charity.
• First floor of Capital Mall, Mohammed bin Zayed City, plus branches at Al Ain Mall and Shams Boutik Mall on Reem Island. Details 02 672 0303.
BEEhive
Everything in the design of this hive of activity is bee-themed, from the honeycomb-shaped reading nooks to the bee-inspired climbing frame that will have little ones buzzing with excitement.
This centre is made up of six hive-like rooms, each one focusing on a different type of play. In the ‘bee creative’ hive, children can create a purse using sewing machines (with help at hand), practise hairstyling with a range of funky wigs, and build with Lego or Meccano engineering sets. In the art room, painting or junk modelling is on offer. The biggest hit in the music room is the karaoke machine, but there’s also an electric piano, guitars and drums. It almost seems as though the only thing kids can’t do here is produce honey.
BEEhive was set up by mother of three Shahdan ElKhatib in January. “The kids get to tap into new activities they might not have tried before, but which typically our generation used to do when we were kids,” she says. “It’s an electronic-free environment, which helps detach kids from their addiction to devices and gives them time to self-reflect.”
• Ground floor of Blue Bay Tower (next to Steigenberger Hotel), Business Bay. For 1-5 year olds, the first hour is Dh45, Dh25 after; for 6-12 year olds Dh65 and then Dh30. Details 04 431 0347 or www.facebook.com/TheBEEhiveUAE/
Jumanji, Escape Reality
Escape Reality, which opened a month ago, is the latest contender in the UAE’s burgeoning escape-gaming scene. Most of the eight escape experiences on offer are somewhat grisly, and could prove traumatic to younger minds (unless they like the sound of escaping from serial killers, vampires, cannibals or Frankenstein-esque robots). But one game is pitched more to the younger crowd.
In Jungala, based on the children’s film Jumanji, teams of two to six discover an old board game in an attic. Once they open it, they’re transported into an alternative realm and given 60-minutes to play the game and escape from the locked room. Each time they roll the dice, a new challenge arises, which is conquered through teamwork, problem-solving and communication skills. “Hints” appear using augmented reality technology, to help players along the way. Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult.
• Indigo Sky, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai. In Ramadan, booking one game room for four players and two more can join in for free. Call 04 332 7777 or visit www.escapereality.com/dubai
Fabyland, Dubai Festival City
When the kids want to go to a theme park but you’re baulking at prices, Fabyland is a less-expensive alternative. With all it’s stomach-churning spinning rides, Fabyland is like a bite-size theme park at a fraction of the price.
Children can be blasted up and down a tower, shoot zombies in the 3-D theatre, take an acrobatic flight or simply enjoy crashing into each other in the bumper cars. There are also some next-generation gaming machines, like Typhoon, a 4-D ride that takes you on an Indiana Jones-style rickety rollercoaster train, or Jurassic Park in which you get to see who can shoot the most dinosaurs.
The other Fabyland branch, at Deerfields Mall in Abu Dhabi, has recently added new attractions which include an interactive carousel and a soft play area.
A Dh250 card (which gives you 80 credits free) will keep two lively children occupied for an afternoon.
• First floor, Dubai Festival City. Details 04 288 1490 or www.fabyland.ae
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
New process leads to panic among jobseekers
As a UAE-based travel agent who processes tourist visas from the Philippines, Jennifer Pacia Gado is fielding a lot of calls from concerned travellers just now. And they are all asking the same question.
“My clients are mostly Filipinos, and they [all want to know] about good conduct certificates,” says the 34-year-old Filipina, who has lived in the UAE for five years.
Ms Gado contacted the Philippines Embassy to get more information on the certificate so she can share it with her clients. She says many are worried about the process and associated costs – which could be as high as Dh500 to obtain and attest a good conduct certificate from the Philippines for jobseekers already living in the UAE.
“They are worried about this because when they arrive here without the NBI [National Bureau of Investigation] clearance, it is a hassle because it takes time,” she says.
“They need to go first to the embassy to apply for the application of the NBI clearance. After that they have go to the police station [in the UAE] for the fingerprints. And then they will apply for the special power of attorney so that someone can finish the process in the Philippines. So it is a long process and more expensive if you are doing it from here.”
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Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
PRESIDENTS CUP
Draw for Presidents Cup fourball matches on Thursday (Internationals first mention). All times UAE:
02.32am (Thursday): Marc Leishman/Joaquin Niemann v Tiger Woods/Justin Thomas
02.47am (Thursday): Adam Hadwin/Im Sung-jae v Xander Schauffele/Patrick Cantlay
03.02am (Thursday): Adam Scott/An Byeong-hun v Bryson DeChambeau/Tony Finau
03.17am (Thursday): Hideki Matsuyama/CT Pan v Webb Simpson/Patrick Reed
03.32am (Thursday): Abraham Ancer/Louis Oosthuizen v Dustin Johnson/Gary Woodland
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
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Race card:
6.30pm: Maiden; Dh165,000; 2,000m
7.05pm: Handicap; Dh165,000; 2,200m
7.40pm: Conditions; Dh240,000; 1,600m
8.15pm: Handicap; Dh190,000; 2,000m
8.50pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed; Dh265,000; 1,200m
9.25pm: Handicap; Dh170,000; 1,600m
10pm: Handicap; Dh190,000; 1,400m
THE DRAFT
The final phase of player recruitment for the T10 League has taken place, with UAE and Indian players being drafted to each of the eight teams.
Bengal Tigers
UAE players: Chirag Suri, Mohammed Usman
Indian: Zaheer Khan
Karachians
UAE players: Ahmed Raza, Ghulam Shabber
Indian: Pravin Tambe
Kerala Kings
UAE players: Mohammed Naveed, Abdul Shakoor
Indian: RS Sodhi
Maratha Arabians
UAE players: Zahoor Khan, Amir Hayat
Indian: S Badrinath
Northern Warriors
UAE players: Imran Haider, Rahul Bhatia
Indian: Amitoze Singh
Pakhtoons
UAE players: Hafiz Kaleem, Sheer Walli
Indian: RP Singh
Punjabi Legends
UAE players: Shaiman Anwar, Sandy Singh
Indian: Praveen Kumar
Rajputs
UAE players: Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed
Indian: Munaf Patel
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BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (All UAE kick-off times)
Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt (11.30pm)
Saturday
Union Berlin v Bayer Leverkusen (6.30pm)
FA Augsburg v SC Freiburg (6.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Werder Bremen (6.30pm)
SC Paderborn v Hertha Berlin (6.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Wolfsburg (6.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Borussia Monchengladbach (9.30pm)
Sunday
Cologne v Bayern Munich (6.30pm)
Mainz v FC Schalke (9pm)
The line up
Friday: Giggs, Sho Madjozi and Masego
Saturday: Nas, Lion Bbae, Roxanne Shante and DaniLeigh
Sole DXB runs from December 6 to 8 at Dubai Design District. Weekend pass is Dh295 while a one day pass is Dh195. Tickets are available from www.soledxb.com
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
MATCH INFO
England 241-3 (20 ovs)
Malan 130 no, Morgan 91
New Zealand 165 all out (16.5ovs)
Southee 39, Parkinson 4-47
England win by 76 runs
Series level at 2-2
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
