Abu Dhabi marks two key development moments this month, one with a bang and the other with a quiet nod to a decade ago.
The sound and the fury will be heard on the Corniche this weekend when the Mina Plaza Towers are finally demolished on Friday to make way for redevelopment. Long-term residents will be familiar with much of the story of the towers: construction on the site began in 2007 but was halted several times over the years.
In February, it was announced they would be demolished to make way for a redevelopment of the neighbourhood’s souqs and a regeneration of the seafront area.
The towers have stood for years as concrete reminders of a future not quite realised and serve as a brooding bookend at one end of the Corniche, far away from the glasswork statement made by the Etihad Towers at the opposite end of the popular coastal road.
If redevelopment should broadly aim to balance preservation and progress, the demolition of the Mina Plaza Towers represents a step forward. Few will mourn the passing of a construction project that never came close to fruition.
The demolition of the Mina Plaza Towers represents a step forward. Few will mourn the passing of a construction project that never came close to fruition. Victor Besa / The National
The new fish market is being built beside the old one. Courtesy: Department of Municipalities / Modon
The entrance to Mina Zayed's new fish market. Courtesy: Department of Municipalities / Modon
Construction is underway to transform Mina Zayed into a top tourist and commercial destination. Courtesy: Department of Municipalities / Modon
Construction is underway to transform Mina Zayed into a top tourist and commercial destination. Courtesy: Department of Municipalities / Modon
At the other end of Abu Dhabi island, the Sheikh Zayed Bridge, a monument of form and function, marks its 10th anniversary this month.
The late Zaha Hadid’s shape-shifting, wave-inspired work was years in the making and opened to traffic in November 2010, the same month Queen Elizabeth II arrived in the UAE on a state visit from the UK.
At a ceremony during her trip, the UK monarch and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, went on to unveil the plans for the Zayed National Museum, designed by Foster and Partners.
Ten years later, that "starchitect" moment – the inelegant portmanteau that is used to describe the world’s most famous architects – framed by the realisation of Hadid’s vision and the announcement of another piece of the huge Saadiyat puzzle, still seems breathtaking.
The bridge was one of the great works of Abu Dhabi’s early 21st-century development, as the city transformed into a destination city, economic powerhouse and cultural hub.
It is easy to underplay the bridge’s agile, weightless beauty now that Hadid’s signature piece is such a regular part of our lives.
Viewed from the roadway it offers commanding views of the channel that runs between Abu Dhabi island and the mainland, leaving most of its workings unseen. The perspective from Maqta Bridge tells another story, revealing Hadid’s futuristic swoops and sculptured curves that stretch over hundred of metres of land, air and water.
Rene Padirayon on top of the main arch in autumn 2009. Work on the Sheikh Zayed Bridge helped thousands of employees build better lives for the families they had left behind to go to work. Courtesy Roy Lengweiler
Construction of Sheikh Zayed Bridge in progress. Roy Lengweiler
Construction of Sheikh Zayed Bridge in progress. Roy Lengweiler
Roy Lengweiler was one of the first employees on site when the project began to be brought to life in January 2003. An engineer by trade, he was there when it opened, too. A career bridge builder, he would always say he was only one part of a much bigger effort to bring Hadid’s drawings into reality. He would, however, end up playing a unique role in the build.
Mr Lengweiler spent around 2,000 days on site, taking a camera with him most of the time to record work in progress, so that he could use those images in meetings convened to discuss this project of intense detail.
By the time I met him in late 2010 he had amassed thousands of images, which detailed every part of the construction process from start to finish. It took a few rounds of cajoling and pleading to persuade him to let us tell his story and to publish his pictures, which were later the subject of a temporary exhibition at a gallery in the city. The images are now held by Akkasah, the New York University Abu Dhabi's collection of regional photographs.
Swiss civil engineer and photographer Roy Lengweiler's 2012 photo exhibition at the Ghaf Gallery in Abu Dhabi was titled 'Sheikh Zayed Bridge – The Human Angle'. Silvia Razgova for The National
If redevelopment should broadly aim to balance preservation and progress, the demolition of the Mina Plaza Towers represents a step forward. Few will mourn the passing of a construction project that never came close to fruition
Looking back, it is not hard to see why his pictures struck a chord. Mr Lengweiler’s images weren’t just snapshots of a work in progress, they also painted a picture of vast human endeavour.
The process of bridge-building became an altogether more lyrical narrative in those frames. As thousands of workers toiled away on a project that was designed to connect people and build a literal pathway between communities, the work itself also helped those same employees build better lives for the families they had left behind to go to work. Each part of the bridge’s structure seemed to support and enhance the next one, just like the photographs themselves.
A call to Mr Lengweiler this week at his home in Switzerland to speak about the bridge and his photographs offered a chance for both of us to catch up. We hadn’t spoken in years. Even today he says Hadid’s work is “unparalleled in complexity”.
Our conversation also served as a chance to reflect and think about the scale of the Sheikh Zayed Bridge and the transformational power of development and progress.
Abu Dhabi residents will be reminded of that power once again on Friday when the Mina Zayed Towers are levelled to make way for the start of another new chapter in the city’s story.
Nick March is an assistant editor-in-chief at The National
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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Uefa Nations League: How it works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
The EU imports 90 per cent of the natural gas used to generate electricity, heat homes and supply industry, with Russia supplying almost 40 per cent of EU gas and a quarter of its oil.
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister. "We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know. “All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.” It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins. Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement. The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
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How to increase your savings
Have a plan for your savings.
Decide on your emergency fund target and once that's achieved, assign your savings to another financial goal such as saving for a house or investing for retirement.
Decide on a financial goal that is important to you and put your savings to work for you.
It's important to have a purpose for your savings as it helps to keep you motivated to continue while also reducing the temptation to spend your savings.
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The biog
Name: Shamsa Hassan Safar
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Degree in emergency medical services at Higher Colleges of Technology
Favourite book: Between two hearts- Arabic novels
Favourite music: Mohammed Abdu and modern Arabic songs
Favourite way to spend time off: Family visits and spending time with friends
Difference between fractional ownership and timeshare
Although similar in its appearance, the concept of a fractional title deed is unlike that of a timeshare, which usually involves multiple investors buying “time” in a property whereby the owner has the right to occupation for a specified period of time in any year, as opposed to the actual real estate, said John Peacock, Head of Indirect Tax and Conveyancing, BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates, a law firm.
