Out in the Arabian Gulf, just off of Saadiyat Island, there is a small island called
Nurai
(site
) that will one day be a destination for some of the world's richest people. About 67 homes - some built on stilts over the water and others on the main island - will set back a buyer between Dh55m to Dh100m, which makes the project among the most expensive in the UAE.
But to get those homes (and a hotel) up and running, you need construction workers. Currently, there are 200 of them there, living in trailers and spending their leisure time playing soccer on a small green pitch. In a few months, there will be 400 workers there. When I visited the island yesterday, it struck me that these workers must have a surreal view of the world from Nurai. They came here from places such as China, India and Indonesia to spend their days constructing a project of such luxury and extravagance it is other worldly.
The island is oddly quiet, except for the sound of a small concrete batching plant and the cranes and hammers you find at a construction site. When I saw the first and only estate built on the island so far, I thought of the
Invention of Morel
, a novella by
Adolfo Bioy Casares
. The clean, modern designs seemed out of a James Bond film and could be the perfect setting for a subtle sci-fi, adventure story. Or a secluded life of luxury.
More photos can be found on Crane Country's photo stream
. Feel free to submit your construction updates and other property-related photos and we'll put them up! Here is interview with
Nadia Zaal
, chief executive of
Zaya
,
.
Map of the island after the jump ...
View Abu Dhabi Projects 2 in a larger map
