Embassies &
Consulates
Generally speaking, an
embassy will not be much
help in emergencies if the
trouble you’re in is your own
fault� Remember that you
are bound by the laws of the
uAE� Your embassy will not
be very sympathetic if you
end up in jail after commit-
ting a crime locally, even if
your actions are legal in your
own country�
In genuine emergencies
you might get some assist-
ance, but only if other chan-
nels have been exhausted�
For example, if you need to
get home urgently a free
flight is exceedingly un likely –
the embassy would expect
you to have insurance� If you
have all your money and doc-
uments stolen, it might assist
with getting a new passport,
but a loan for onward travel is
out of the question�
Most countries have dip-
lomatic representation in the
uAE, including the following:
australia (%04-508 7100;
http://www.uae.embassy.gov.au;
25th fl, burJuman business
Tower, Trade Centre rd, bur
Dubai; h8am-1pm & 1.30-
4.30pm Sun-Thu)
canada (%04-314 5555;
[email protected];
7th fl, bank St bldg, khalid bin
al-Waleed rd, next to Citibank,
bur Dubai; h8am-4pm
Sun-Thu)
france (%04-332 9040;
http://consulfrance-dubai
.org; 18th fl, api World Tower,
Sheikh Zayed rd, Trade Centre
District; h8am-1pm Sat-Thu)
Germany (%04-397 2333;
http://www.dubai.diplo.de; 1st fl,
Sharaf bldg, khalid bin al-
Waleed rd, opposite burJuman
Centre, bur Dubai; h8-11am
Sun-Thu)
netherlands (%04-352
8700; http://www.netherlands.ae;
5th fl, royal bank of Scotland
bldg, khalid bin al-Waleed rd,Mankhool, bur Dubai; h9am-
noon Sat-Thu)
oman (%04-397 1000; www
.ocodubai.com; Consulate
Zone, near khalid bin al-Waleed
rd, umm hurair; h7.30am-
2.30pm Sun-Thu)
uK (%04-309 4444;
http://ukinuae.fco.gov.uk/
en; Consulate Zone, al-Seef
rd, umm hurair; h7.30am-
2.30pm Sun-Thu)
usa (%04-309 4000;
http://dubai.usconsulate.gov;
Consulate General Compound,
cnr al-Seef rd & Sheikh kha-
lifa bin Zayed rd, bur Dubai;
h12.30-3pm Sun-Thu)Emergency
police (emergency %999,
headquarters %04-229 2222)
fire department (%997)
ambulance (%998/999)Gay & Lesbian
Travellers
While Dubai and Abu Dhabi
are certainly not ‘gay’ des-
tinations along the lines of
Berlin, Sitjes or Amsterdam,
same-sex couples are un-
likely to encounter problems
as long as they respect local
customs� Open displays of
affection are likely to land
you in trouble (the same
goes for heterosexuals, of
course) but sharing a room
will barely raise an eyebrow�
Homosexual acts are
illegal under uAE law and can
incur a jail term� You will see
men walking hand in hand,
but that’s a sign of friendship
and no indication of sexual
orientation� Although no
bars, clubs or cafes would
dare identify themselves as
gay-friendly for fear of being
raided and shut down, there
are venues in the city that
attract a sizeable gay and
lesbian crowd� It is some-
times possible to get info on
these venues from websites,
but you can’t access gay-and lesbian-interest websites
from inside the uAE�
For more on the subject,
an interesting read is Gay
Travels in the Muslim World
by Michael Luongo� You can
also check the www�al-bab
�com Middle East gay news
website for any changes in
the law�Internet Access
Dubai and Abu Dhabi are
extremely well wired and you
should have no trouble get-
ting online�banned Websites
The internet is accessed
through a proxy server that
blocks pornography, gay-
interest sites, websites con-
sidered critical of Islam or
the uAE’s leaders, dating and
gambling sites, drug-related
material and the entire Israeli
domain� To the irritation of
the country’s huge foreign
workforce, peer-to-peer and
voice over Internet Protocol
(voIP) software such as
Skype is banned in the uAE,
although if the programs
are already installed on your
computer before you arrive
you should be able to use
them with no problem�internet access
Nearly every hotel and hotel
apartment offers in-room
internet access, either broad-
band or wireless, although
rates are usually extortionate
(Dh40 to Dh60 per hour is
not uncommon)� Sometimes
it’s more economical to pre-
pay for 24 hours�
A cheaper way to con-
nect is through Etisalat
Hotspots, which are available
at all branches of Starbucks,
Barista and Coffee Bean &
Tea Leaf, as well as at major
shopping malls and various
restaurants and cafes (see
www�etisalat�ae for the full
list)� You gain access by
buying a prepaid card from
the venue itself, or by using
your credit card� Enter your
card number and mobiled
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