Blogger on a roll :: Secret Dubai diary

o A man's home is his car-stle: "Closer inspection revealed that this man, apparently a Russian, had been living in the car for months. It was filled with clothes, papers, old junk food cartons, and - most sinisterly - several bottles of unlabelled, odourless brown liquid on the back seat."

o Gulf News has been running a regular campaign against the illegal retaining of passports by employers: "And now we learn that Gulf News itself has become one of the worst offenders. It is forcing expatriate staff to hand over their passports, threatening to withold their salaries if they don't comply."

o The Economist has published an online city guide to Dubai: "which makes some interesting and pertinent comments, in particular on the disappointing Dubai media."