Chris Saul's Blog

Tuesday March 24, 2009

Clarkson rates the Rangie

Jeremy Clarkson has a great review of a 2006 Range Rover here.

He loves the car - as well he should. The secondhand price seems to appeal to him as well, even if that resale value irritates those who bought new.

I'll be interested to see if he refers to his experiences with his new love over time - let's see what he comes up against in terms of reliability and service costs!

Range Rovers and new Discoveries were in strong evidence when I was in Lagos last week, much to my surprise. Whilst I can't think of a better car to drive around that city in, I cringe at the money their owners must have spent on buying them, let alone on keeping them going.

Peering through the window of a new Discovery, I noticed that Land Rover have, astonishingly, used a coating on the steering wheel and electric window control area that doesn't look like it'll peel off after three days. The new Range Rovers also don't have split headlight covers that allow sand to clog up around the lamps, either. Even more astonishing, it looks like the door handles won't - gasp - start discolouring after being opened twice!

I would love to know who came up with these astonishingly good ideas. I would also like to know who lost their job for making such idiotic decisions in the first place, because, quite frankly, whoever signed off on those design details was a complete buffoon. The decrepit Toyota Cressidas on the streets of Sana'a appear to have dashboards and doorhandles that age better than most 2003+ model Range Rovers, something which is a crime against car design.

This is good news, if I am ever in the unlikely position of being able to afford a secondhand version of the current model myself. Word has it that they are much more reliable as well...

Sharia law in SWAT

There's an interesting article here from the BBC talking about the new implementation of Sharia law in the SWAT region of Pakistan.

Not too long ago there was something of a brouhaha about Sharia law and its use in the UK.

When reading these sorts of articles, the main reasons for certain people wanting Sharia law seem to have less to do with religion and more to do with wanting speedy, fair and cost-effective justice. They effectively want judicial reform more than anything else.

I don't expect to see Sharia law implemented in the UK any time soon, but I can understand the wish for common disputes to be dealt with quickly and fairly. My suspicion is that the system in SWAT will soon stagnate with time, just as its predecessor did. The same would properly happen elsewhere for cases that are even slightly complex - justice can't always be quickly doled out, unless the case is reasonably clear cut, regardless of the legal reasoning being applied.

Still, it's great to see the Taleban getting a taste of their own medicine.

Phrases I must delearn

I'm finding myself always slipping into speaking 'Dubai' speak, or put better, simplified English that's more readily understood by non-native speakers, particularly in the service industry.

Some friends pulled me up on this during a recent visit to London. When ordering food at a Thai restaurant, I spoke c l e a r l y and s l o w l y to the Thai waitress, as I would do in Dubai. I wasn't speaking like that to be condescending or superior, I was just making sure what I said was easy to understand. Of course, in this situation, the waitress had probably been living in Earlsfield for years, if not her whole life, which meant her English was flawless. This made me look like a bit of a twit.

When I'm home in the summer, I will have to stop saying things like -

- Since long time I am here.

- What time you will bring it?

- When this thing it will be ready?

- Signal straight, signal straight, then circle left. (Go through the next two sets of lights, then turn left at the roundabout.)

- What you are doing?

- Too much traffic, this!

- Two big bottle water, one copy The Times newspaper, 6 can soda water.

- When you will come? English five minutes or Dubai five minutes?

- You come now visitors' parking.

- What my special discount? You give me best price, my friend.

- Lo, my postillion has been struck by lightning. (Ok, this last one was made up).

In a similar vein, I have discovered a customer service person at my property company who writes excellent English. This allows me to write devastatingly witty emails back, pointing out the various flaws I am complaining about in a hilariously subtle and amusing manner. Ultimately pointless, but it makes me feel a lot better.

Dubai travel advice attacked

Interesting article here covering comments made by a British MP on the travel advice the Foreign Office gives British visitors to the UAE.

You never really know what's going on, but I've often thought that the FO's advice for Dubai visitors was a wee bit over the top. I can certainly imagine it deterring would be British tourists.