• Australian migrants tell their 'welcome stories' through visual installations at the pavilion. All photos: Pawan Singh / The National
    Australian migrants tell their 'welcome stories' through visual installations at the pavilion. All photos: Pawan Singh / The National
  • The Australia Pavilion is located at the Mobility District at Expo 2020 Dubai
    The Australia Pavilion is located at the Mobility District at Expo 2020 Dubai
  • Visitors watch an audio-visual show at the Australia Pavilion at the Expo site in Dubai
    Visitors watch an audio-visual show at the Australia Pavilion at the Expo site in Dubai
  • The audio-visual displays are a major feature of the Australia Pavilion in Expo 2020 Dubai
    The audio-visual displays are a major feature of the Australia Pavilion in Expo 2020 Dubai
  • Australian migrants tell their 'welcome stories' through visual installations at the pavilion
    Australian migrants tell their 'welcome stories' through visual installations at the pavilion
  • It is a tech-savvy pavilion
    It is a tech-savvy pavilion
  • The souvenir shop at the Australia Pavilion
    The souvenir shop at the Australia Pavilion
  • Visitors to the Australia Pavilion enjoy the audio-visual show
    Visitors to the Australia Pavilion enjoy the audio-visual show
  • Time for refreshments at the cafe at the Australia Pavilion
    Time for refreshments at the cafe at the Australia Pavilion

My Expo pavilion: 'This feels like Australia as much as the UAE'


Saeed Saeed
  • English
  • Arabic

Going to an Australian showcase at international events is often a disconcerting experience.

As a citizen of Down Under for a little under 30 years, this is something I've noticed goes against the grain of the Australian character.

We are not really big on self-celebration, patting ourselves on the back or standing out.

LIVE BLOG: Updates and live coverage from Expo 2020 Dubai

It is a belief that was crystallised by a friend, a notable Aussie cultural figure in the UAE, upon leaving the Australia Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai this week.

“Well, is that it?” she said, with a grin.

This was more a colloquialism than a flippant mark.

We are a great host nation (from two Olympic Games to several Hollywood films including The Matrix) but never comfortable with taking centre stage.

My mate’s remark is so accurate.

A country under construction

The tech and eco-savvy pavilion, located at the Mobility District, does a fine job of capturing a country under construction.

It is one being built on the back of a startlingly multicultural population and based on the blue-print laid by the country’s diverse indigenous population thousands of years before European settlers arrived at the turn of the 19th century.

It is also a reminder that, despite its growing pains, Australia provided many of us with a generous platform to be the best we can be.

The fact it stands beside the Malaysian pavilion and an international constellation of others, from Croatia and France to Thailand, is sentimentally apt.

From Abu Dhabi to Australia

Four decades ago, I was born in Abu Dhabi, as part of the city's small Eritrean community. At that time, a lot of us took opportunities to resettle abroad for education and citizenship.

A few of my childhood friends left the UAE in their late teens for Kuala Lumpur to get university degrees. I went to Australia when I was much younger.

It's a cosmopolitan country, especially in Melbourne, where I first arrived as a nine-year-old. It gave me my first insight into European and Asian cultures, through world-leading arts and culture festivals often organised by migrants from those communities.

Australian migrants tell their 'welcome stories' through visual installations at the pavilion. Antonie Robertson / The National
Australian migrants tell their 'welcome stories' through visual installations at the pavilion. Antonie Robertson / The National

It is an aspect digitised in the first of three sections of the pavilion: a neon-lit corridor with visual installations of migrants, young and old, describing their arrival in Australia.

It's a moving exhibition, for it reminds me of the story of a spirited African woman arriving in Australia in 1990 as a single parent with three children. Her name is Zahra Baho, my mother, and she told her story at an exhibition at Melbourne’s Immigration Museum in 2017.

Under the guidance of stars

The pavilion's centrepiece is the Star Dreaming Gallery, essentially a planetarium illustrating how Australia's indigenous communities were among the world's first astronomers.

Through the observance of their surroundings, they made accurate measurements of stars, galaxies and the changing of the seasons.

The Star Dreaming Gallery shows how Australia's indigenous communities were amoong the world's first astronomers. AFP
The Star Dreaming Gallery shows how Australia's indigenous communities were amoong the world's first astronomers. AFP

As someone who has also lived in the UAE on and off for half of my life, this felt familiar.

After all, this is a region where outer space is looked upon for guidance.

Ramadan is announced through the spotting of the crescent moon, while in late August we receive the welcome news by the Arab Union for Astronomy and Space Sciences that winter is coming with the arrival of the Suhail star, long mentioned in Arab poetry and Bedouin parables, in UAE skies.

A nod to the future

More synergy is found in the pavilion’s final showcase, Annika's Journey, a multimedia exhibition following a young girl as she takes us through Australia's various efforts to build a sustainable future by looking after its environment.

Annika's Journey at the Australian pavilion at the Expo 2020 Dubai. AFP
Annika's Journey at the Australian pavilion at the Expo 2020 Dubai. AFP

Some of the featured conservation initiatives, from the Great Barrier Reef to the mountainous terrain of Katherine Gorge in the interior region of the Northern Territory, echo some of the work done by authorities in the UAE, from Al Hefaiyah Mountain Conservation Centre in Sharjah to Abu Dhabi's Jubail Mangrove Park.

The mention of Australia's ongoing efforts to build the world’s largest radio telescope in the country's west also complements the UAE's recent success with the Mars Mission.

That Aussie feeling

While the heady subjects covered are inspiring, I discover that true feeling of “Oz” in the lovely outdoor courtyard area.

Built from Tasmanian cross-laminated timber, the sandy brown structure resembles a mini version of Federation Square in the heart of Melbourne.

Those vibes are further channelled by the city's key attractions: the excellent coffee served in the Melbourne Lane coffee truck, and hip food options such as the sausage bao (Vietnamese sausage buns) from the Local Cafe.

Beef and chicken skewers and sausage bao buns from the Australian Pavilion a Expo 2020. Saeed Saeed / The National
Beef and chicken skewers and sausage bao buns from the Australian Pavilion a Expo 2020. Saeed Saeed / The National

“No, this is it!” I tell my friend, as we toast our lattes.

From my bench, I see people of various cultures and religions chatting away while a musician on stage performs a bluesy guitar solo.

This feels like Australia as much as the UAE.

Both feel like home.

WHAT%20IS%20THE%20LICENSING%20PROCESS%20FOR%20VARA%3F
%3Cp%3EVara%20will%20cater%20to%20three%20categories%20of%20companies%20in%20Dubai%20(except%20the%20DIFC)%3A%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECategory%20A%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Minimum%20viable%20product%20(MVP)%20applicants%20that%20are%20currently%20in%20the%20process%20of%20securing%20an%20MVP%20licence%3A%20This%20is%20a%20three-stage%20process%20starting%20with%20%5B1%5D%20a%20provisional%20permit%2C%20graduating%20to%20%5B2%5D%20preparatory%20licence%20and%20concluding%20with%20%5B3%5D%20operational%20licence.%20Applicants%20that%20are%20already%20in%20the%20MVP%20process%20will%20be%20advised%20by%20Vara%20to%20either%20continue%20within%20the%20MVP%20framework%20or%20be%20transitioned%20to%20the%20full%20market%20product%20licensing%20process.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECategory%20B%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Existing%20legacy%20virtual%20asset%20service%20providers%20prior%20to%20February%207%2C%202023%2C%20which%20are%20required%20to%20come%20under%20Vara%20supervision.%20All%20operating%20service%20proviers%20in%20Dubai%20(excluding%20the%20DIFC)%20fall%20under%20Vara%E2%80%99s%20supervision.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECategory%20C%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20New%20applicants%20seeking%20a%20Vara%20licence%20or%20existing%20applicants%20adding%20new%20activities.%20All%20applicants%20that%20do%20not%20fall%20under%20Category%20A%20or%20B%20can%20begin%20the%20application%20process%20through%20their%20current%20or%20prospective%20commercial%20licensor%20%E2%80%94%20the%20DET%20or%20Free%20Zone%20Authority%20%E2%80%94%20or%20directly%20through%20Vara%20in%20the%20instance%20that%20they%20have%20yet%20to%20determine%20the%20commercial%20operating%20zone%20in%20Dubai.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi

Director: Kangana Ranaut, Krish Jagarlamudi

Producer: Zee Studios, Kamal Jain

Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Ankita Lokhande, Danny Denzongpa, Atul Kulkarni

Rating: 2.5/5

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting 

2. Prayer 

3. Hajj 

4. Shahada 

5. Zakat 

The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
  • Power: 640hp
  • Torque: 760nm
  • On sale: 2026
  • Price: Not announced yet
GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900

MATCH INFO

Chelsea 1 (Hudson-Odoi 90 1')

Manchester City 3 (Gundogan 18', Foden 21', De Bruyne 34')

Man of the match: Ilkay Gundogan (Man City)

Griselda
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%C2%A0Andr%C3%A9s%20Baiz%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3ESof%C3%ADa%20Vergara%2C%20Alberto%20Guerra%2C%20Juliana%20Aiden%20Martinez%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Voice of Hind Rajab

Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees

Director: Kaouther Ben Hania

Rating: 4/5

War 2

Director: Ayan Mukerji

Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana

Rating: 2/5

The biog

Age: 32

Qualifications: Diploma in engineering from TSI Technical Institute, bachelor’s degree in accounting from Dubai’s Al Ghurair University, master’s degree in human resources from Abu Dhabi University, currently third years PHD in strategy of human resources.

Favourite mountain range: The Himalayas

Favourite experience: Two months trekking in Alaska

Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

The specs

Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder and 3.6-litre 6-cylinder

Power: 220 and 280 horsepower

Torque: 350 and 360Nm

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Price: from Dh136,521 VAT and Dh166,464 VAT 

On sale: now

The Vile

Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah

Director: Majid Al Ansari

Rating: 4/5

The biog

Age: 30

Position: Senior lab superintendent at Emirates Global Aluminium

Education: Bachelor of science in chemical engineering, post graduate degree in light metal reduction technology

Favourite part of job: The challenge, because it is challenging

Favourite quote: “Be the change you wish to see in the world,” Gandi

Polarised public

31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views

19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views

19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all

Source: YouGov

Trump v Khan

2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US

2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks

2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit

2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”

2022:  Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency

July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”

Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.

Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”

While you're here
Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

Six large-scale objects on show
  • Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
  • The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
  • A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
  • Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
  • A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
  • Torrijos Palace dome
The President's Cake

Director: Hasan Hadi

Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem 

Rating: 4/5

Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
Director: Venkat Prabhu
Rating: 2/5
In numbers: China in Dubai

The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000

Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000

Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent

The specs

Engine: 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 582bhp

Torque: 730Nm

Price: Dh649,000

On sale: now  

What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Rating: 4/5
WOMAN AND CHILD

Director: Saeed Roustaee

Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi

Rating: 4/5

How the bonus system works

The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.

The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.

There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).

All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.

Jetour T1 specs

Engine: 2-litre turbocharged

Power: 254hp

Torque: 390Nm

Price: From Dh126,000

Available: Now

Updated: October 08, 2021, 6:09 AM