Khamis Al Mazrouei was watching a film with his children when he saw his dream car. "I wanted to own that car one way or another," he said. Today, he can't even remember the film, but he never forgot the car so, two years ago, the 33-year-old decided he needed to do something about it.
Al Mazrouei hunted down a 1994 Mini Cooper, which he believes is eye-catching and different. "You don't find this kind of car in the UAE," he said.
The Emirati ordered the car online and it was delivered to him from the United Kingdom. The only problem was that Britain drives on the left, so finding a Mini there with the steering wheel on the left was a tough job. "It is rare to find," he said. "And that is what made me work hard to get it."
Outside, it's distinctive by its diminutive size; inside, it's not exactly what you'd call luxurious. Originally, the car had no radio or air conditioning, but as A/C is a necessity if you're going to drive a car all year here, Al Mazrouei had it added afterwards. He also added accessories such as flashy Xenon lights and alloy wheels.
"Its frame attracts people quickly," he said. "Every time you ride in the car you attract attention."
Al Mazrouei, a mechanical technician at Takreer Refinery, surprised his family with the car, and they were all excited when they saw it for the first time. Now, his children always want to ride in it.
Daughters Maryam, 6, and five-year-old Mahrah get excited every time they ride in it, and they especially like riding it to school.
"They feel like big shots," Al Mazrouei said. His son Abdulla, 8, wants to learn how to drive the car so he can one day drive his father around. "The car is small and my son is young - their sizes fit," Al Mazrouei said.
At work, the little car was a hit with his colleagues, too. Many wanted to own one and asked him for his retailer; others made jokes about it, but almost everyone wanted to take a ride in it.
"It is artistic, classic and tiny," he said. "Everyone wants one of these."
Al Mazrouei said anywhere he goes, people stop and stare, and many strangers even ask him for a ride.
But he loves that the car attracts such attention and, to him, it's all about fun, a trait that reflects his own attitude to life. "In this car you will laugh to the extreme," he said.
Al Mazrouei thought it would be funny to have a sticker that read "Beware: truck ahead" on the car but the joke soon went wrong.
He was pulled over by two policemen who told him he was in trouble for having the sticker as he did not have a permit.
"I told them it was a joke and they started laughing," Al Mazrouei said. "They said they were joking around as well."
"They even told me to make [the sticker] a bit bigger," Al Mazrouei said, laughing.
The only problem with this car, according to Al Mazrouei, is that the spare parts are extremely hard to find, and very expensive.
Al Mazrouei recalled once when he was driving back from Dubai late at night the car gave up on him. He ended up having to wait nearly four months to find the parts required. He found many retailers in the UAE but the parts were almost double the price from outside the country, so he ordered online from retailers around the world, mostly from the UK.
"I was, and still am, looking for authentic pieces for the car," Al Mazrouei said.
He mentioned that Dh30 is enough to fill the tank with petrol, and the car would take you around Abu Dhabi for an entire week. "That's a lot, isn't it?" he said jokingly.
Al Mazrouei drives the car to Dubai regularly, but he says it's a bit too slow. "If you have an appointment at 7am, make sure you are on the road by 3am," he said.
Al Mazrouei loves this car but he still dreams of another car - an extreme opposite to the Mini. "The car is an indivisible part of me," he said. "But I wish to own a Mercedes G55." This would add to his existing E-Class Merc and Infinity FX.
A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
How to help
Call the hotline on 0502955999 or send "thenational" to the following numbers:
2289 - Dh10
2252 - Dh50
6025 - Dh20
6027 - Dh100
6026 - Dh200
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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Bio:
Favourite Quote: Prophet Mohammad's quotes There is reward for kindness to every living thing and A good man treats women with honour
Favourite Hobby: Serving poor people
Favourite Book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite food: Fish and vegetables
Favourite place to visit: London
Six things you need to know about UAE Women’s Special Olympics football team
Several girls started playing football at age four
They describe sport as their passion
The girls don’t dwell on their condition
They just say they may need to work a little harder than others
When not in training, they play football with their brothers and sisters
The girls want to inspire others to join the UAE Special Olympics teams
Company%20Profile
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What is Diwali?
The Hindu festival is at once a celebration of the autumn harvest and the triumph of good over evil, as outlined in the Ramayana.
According to the Sanskrit epic, penned by the sage Valmiki, Diwali marks the time that the exiled king Rama – a mortal with superhuman powers – returned home to the city of Ayodhya with his wife Sita and brother Lakshman, after vanquishing the 10-headed demon Ravana and conquering his kingdom of Lanka. The people of Ayodhya are believed to have lit thousands of earthen lamps to illuminate the city and to guide the royal family home.
In its current iteration, Diwali is celebrated with a puja to welcome the goodness of prosperity Lakshmi (an incarnation of Sita) into the home, which is decorated with diyas (oil lamps) or fairy lights and rangoli designs with coloured powder. Fireworks light up the sky in some parts of the word, and sweetmeats are made (or bought) by most households. It is customary to get new clothes stitched, and visit friends and family to exchange gifts and greetings.
Leap of Faith
Michael J Mazarr
Public Affairs
Dh67
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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Women%E2%80%99s%20Asia%20Cup
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Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group F
Manchester City v Hoffenheim, midnight (Wednesday, UAE)
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Ticket prices
- Golden circle - Dh995
- Floor Standing - Dh495
- Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
- Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
- Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
- Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
- Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
- Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
Honeymoonish
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Harry%20%26%20Meghan
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Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
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TOURNAMENT INFO
Fixtures
Sunday January 5 - Oman v UAE
Monday January 6 - UAE v Namibia
Wednesday January 8 - Oman v Namibia
Thursday January 9 - Oman v UAE
Saturday January 11 - UAE v Namibia
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Waheed Ahmed, Zawar Farid, Darius D’Silva, Karthik Meiyappan, Jonathan Figy, Vriitya Aravind, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Chirag Suri
TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
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