Music festivals are well and truly back this summer.
After a cautious start last year, which saw a number of events held with limited capacity due to Covid-19, the circuit is back on song in 2022, with more than a dozen festivals taking place across Europe and North Africa.
Along with the UK’s Glastonbury, featuring headliners Kendrick Lamar and Billie Eilish, and the EDM haven that is Belgium’s Tomorrowland, there is a growing number of small boutique festivals well worth tuning into.
From reggae music in the forests of Slovakia to jazz and rock in Morocco's Casablanca, here are 10 festivals you won't want to miss.
June 3 to 5: Vestrock
Where: Hulst, Netherlands
Headliners: Editors, Wolfmother, Martin Solveig and The Darkness
Why go? Held on an island in the fortified medieval city of Hulst, a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Amsterdam, the festival is renowned for its intimate vibe, with up to 10,000 people watching more than 50 acts across four stages. The line-up is slanted towards the early 2000s, featuring big rock and indie music acts.
How to get there: Flight time to Amsterdam from Abu Dhabi is 7 hours and 5 minutes. For more information, go to vestrock.nl
June 17 to July 30: Rock in Roma
Where: Rome, Italy
Headliners: Herbie Hancock, Patti Smith, Deep Purple, the Chemical Brothers and Suicidal Tendencies
Why go? Running across three different venues, this festival is the perfect reason to take a summer break in the Italian capital. The line-up is eclectic, with seasoned acts sharing the bill with new talent from Italy and northern Europe.
How to get there: Flight time to Rome from Abu Dhabi is 6 hours and 10 minutes. For more information, go to rockinroma.com
June 24 to 26: Mallorca Live Festival
Where: Mallorca, Spain
Headliners: Muse, Christina Aguilera, Franz Ferdinand and Justice
Why go? Taking place in the Calvia region of Spain, the festival site — a two-hour flight from Barcelona — sits between the lush green hills of the Serra de Tramontane. In addition to attracting big names, the festival has built a reputation as a major tourist attraction, with attendees often extending their stay to hike and explore the stunning surroundings.
How to get there: Flight time to Barcelona from Dubai is 6 hours and 50 minutes. For more information, go to mallorcalivemusic.com
July 1 to 3: Jazzablanca
Where: Casablanca, Morocco
Headliners: Ben Harper, Multatu Astatke, Sean Kuti and Ibrahim Maalouf
Why go? This boutique city festival provides a solid mix of travel and entertainment. Held across two venues, the festival offers both indoor and outdoor shows, and features rock and jazz legends along with breakout stars. Musicians can also attend masterclasses by some of the headlining acts.
How to get there: Flight time to Casablanca from Abu Dhabi is eight hours and 10 minutes. For more details, go to jazzablanca.com
July 1 to 3: Afro Nation
Where: Algarve, Portugal
Headliners: Burna Boy, Chris Brown, Wizkid, Davido and P Square
Why go? The stature of this festival has grown alongside the international appeal of the Afropop and Afrobeats scene. If you are a fan of these sounds, this festival is unmissable as most of the genre's leading stars assemble for a weekend of music in the beach city of Algarve, a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Portugal's capital, Lisbon.
How to get there: Flight time to Lisbon from Dubai is 8 hours and 40 minutes. For more details, go to afronationfestival.com
July 7 to 10: Exit Festival
Where: Novi Sad, Serbia
Headliners: Calvin Harris, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Masked Wolf, Afrojack and Sepultura
Why go? This festival has amassed a growing buzz over recent years because of its dynamic line-up and its setting in an 18th-century Petrovaradin Fortress. The gigs are played over more than two dozen stages located within the fort, which also features moats, trenches and tunnels.
How to get there: Flight time to Belgrade from Abu Dhabi is five hours and 40 minutes. For more festival details, go to exitfest.org
July 15 and 16: Positivus Festival
Where: Riga, Latvia
Headliners: A$AP Rocky, Megan Thee Stallion, Jamie xx, Caribou and Thundercat
Why go? The Positivus Festival is back in a new location in Riga to ensure easier access for international visitors. The event boasts a strong line up of hip-hop and electronic music acts.
How to get there: Flight time to Riga from Dubai, including stopover, is 7 hours and 55 minutes. For more information, go to positivusfestival.com
August 27 and 28: Uprising
Where: Bratislava, Slovakia
Headliners: Morgan Heritage, Max Romeo, Roni Size and Suns of Dub
Why go? Because it's a chance to hear smooth reggae tunes in a beautiful setting. Held in the picturesque lakeside summer resort of Zlate Piesky, Uprising brings together the biggest musical acts from Jamaica, in addition to art and yoga classes and a reggae-inspired street art market.
How do I get there? Flight time to Bratislava from Dubai is six hours and 15 minutes. For more festival details, go to www.uprising.sk
September 3 and 4: Superbloom
Where: Munich, Germany
Headliners: David Guetta, Calvin Harris, Stromae, Megan Thee Stallion and Rita Ora
Why go? Europe’s newest music festival, the inaugural Superbloom will take place in Munich’s Olympic Park across several stages, featuring international and local acts. The festival also has 11 “experience areas”, with themes ranging from fashion and science to sustainability, dance and acrobatics.
How to get there: Flight time to Munich from Abu Dhabi is 6 hours and 25 minutes. For more information, go to superbloom.de
September 7 to 14: Ion Festival
Where: Dhermi, Albania
Headliners: Carl Craig, Jeff Mills, Nina Kraviz and Helena Huff
Why go? This is a tastefully curated electronic music festival, without the large crowds. Located in the quaint coastal village of Dhermi, a three-and-a-half hour drive from the capital Tirana, Ion Festival is held on a beachside festival site. The line-up comprises influential and up-and-coming DJs and producers.
How to get there: Flight time to Tirana from Dubai is 5 hours and 45 minutes. For more information, go to ionalbania.com
The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.
'The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas are Setting up a Generation for Failure'
Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt, Penguin Randomhouse
Seemar’s top six for the Dubai World Cup Carnival:
1. Reynaldothewizard
2. North America
3. Raven’s Corner
4. Hawkesbury
5. New Maharajah
6. Secret Ambition
COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 201hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 320Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.7L/100km
Price: Dh133,900
On sale: now
Best Academy: Ajax and Benfica
Best Agent: Jorge Mendes
Best Club : Liverpool
Best Coach: Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Best Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker
Best Men’s Player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Best Partnership of the Year Award by SportBusiness: Manchester City and SAP
Best Referee: Stephanie Frappart
Best Revelation Player: Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid and Portugal)
Best Sporting Director: Andrea Berta (Atletico Madrid)
Best Women's Player: Lucy Bronze
Best Young Arab Player: Achraf Hakimi
Kooora – Best Arab Club: Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia)
Kooora – Best Arab Player: Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al-Nassr FC, Saudi Arabia)
Player Career Award: Miralem Pjanic and Ryan Giggs
Honeymoonish
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Zimbabwe v UAE, ODI series
All matches at the Harare Sports Club:
1st ODI, Wednesday, April 10
2nd ODI, Friday, April 12
3rd ODI, Sunday, April 14
4th ODI, Tuesday, April 16
UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
2020 Oscars winners: in numbers
- Parasite – 4
- 1917– 3
- Ford v Ferrari – 2
- Joker – 2
- Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood – 2
- American Factory – 1
- Bombshell – 1
- Hair Love – 1
- Jojo Rabbit – 1
- Judy – 1
- Little Women – 1
- Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You're a Girl) – 1
- Marriage Story – 1
- Rocketman – 1
- The Neighbors' Window – 1
- Toy Story 4 – 1
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
Conservative MPs who have publicly revealed sending letters of no confidence
- Steve Baker
- Peter Bone
- Ben Bradley
- Andrew Bridgen
- Maria Caulfield
- Simon Clarke
- Philip Davies
- Nadine Dorries
- James Duddridge
- Mark Francois
- Chris Green
- Adam Holloway
- Andrea Jenkyns
- Anne-Marie Morris
- Sheryll Murray
- Jacob Rees-Mogg
- Laurence Robertson
- Lee Rowley
- Henry Smith
- Martin Vickers
- John Whittingdale
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
FIGHT%20CARD
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The Details
Kabir Singh
Produced by: Cinestaan Studios, T-Series
Directed by: Sandeep Reddy Vanga
Starring: Shahid Kapoor, Kiara Advani, Suresh Oberoi, Soham Majumdar, Arjun Pahwa
Rating: 2.5/5
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Dhadak
Director: Shashank Khaitan
Starring: Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khattar, Ashutosh Rana
Stars: 3
Top goalscorers in Europe
34 goals - Robert Lewandowski (68 points)
34 - Ciro Immobile (68)
31 - Cristiano Ronaldo (62)
28 - Timo Werner (56)
25 - Lionel Messi (50)
*29 - Erling Haaland (50)
23 - Romelu Lukaku (46)
23 - Jamie Vardy (46)
*NOTE: Haaland's goals for Salzburg count for 1.5 points per goal. Goals for Dortmund count for two points per goal.
Other key dates
-
Finals draw: December 2
-
Finals (including semi-finals and third-placed game): June 5–9, 2019
-
Euro 2020 play-off draw: November 22, 2019
-
Euro 2020 play-offs: March 26–31, 2020
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
Citizenship-by-investment programmes
United Kingdom
The UK offers three programmes for residency. The UK Overseas Business Representative Visa lets you open an overseas branch office of your existing company in the country at no extra investment. For the UK Tier 1 Innovator Visa, you are required to invest £50,000 (Dh238,000) into a business. You can also get a UK Tier 1 Investor Visa if you invest £2 million, £5m or £10m (the higher the investment, the sooner you obtain your permanent residency).
All UK residency visas get approved in 90 to 120 days and are valid for 3 years. After 3 years, the applicant can apply for extension of another 2 years. Once they have lived in the UK for a minimum of 6 months every year, they are eligible to apply for permanent residency (called Indefinite Leave to Remain). After one year of ILR, the applicant can apply for UK passport.
The Caribbean
Depending on the country, the investment amount starts from $100,000 (Dh367,250) and can go up to $400,000 in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take between four to five months to receive a passport.
Portugal
The investment amount ranges from €350,000 to €500,000 (Dh1.5m to Dh2.16m) in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take a maximum of six months to receive a Golden Visa. Applicants can apply for permanent residency after five years and Portuguese citizenship after six years.
“Among European countries with residency programmes, Portugal has been the most popular because it offers the most cost-effective programme to eventually acquire citizenship of the European Union without ever residing in Portugal,” states Veronica Cotdemiey of Citizenship Invest.
Greece
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Greece is €250,000, making it the cheapest real estate residency visa scheme in Europe. You can apply for residency in four months and citizenship after seven years.
Spain
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Spain is €500,000. You can apply for permanent residency after five years and citizenship after 10 years. It is not necessary to live in Spain to retain and renew the residency visa permit.
Cyprus
Cyprus offers the quickest route to citizenship of a European country in only six months. An investment of €2m in real estate is required, making it the highest priced programme in Europe.
Malta
The Malta citizenship by investment programme is lengthy and investors are required to contribute sums as donations to the Maltese government. The applicant must either contribute at least €650,000 to the National Development & Social Fund. Spouses and children are required to contribute €25,000; unmarried children between 18 and 25 and dependent parents must contribute €50,000 each.
The second step is to make an investment in property of at least €350,000 or enter a property rental contract for at least €16,000 per annum for five years. The third step is to invest at least €150,000 in bonds or shares approved by the Maltese government to be kept for at least five years.
Candidates must commit to a minimum physical presence in Malta before citizenship is granted. While you get residency in two months, you can apply for citizenship after a year.
Egypt
A one-year residency permit can be bought if you purchase property in Egypt worth $100,000. A three-year residency is available for those who invest $200,000 in property, and five years for those who purchase property worth $400,000.
Source: Citizenship Invest and Aqua Properties
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
RACE CARD
6.30pm Maiden (TB) Dh82.500 (Dirt) 1,400m
7.05pm Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 1,400m
7.40pm Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (Turf) 2,410m
8.15pm Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (D) 1,900m
8.50pm UAE 2000 Guineas Trial (TB) Conditions Dh183,650 (D) 1,600m
9.25pm Dubai Trophy (TB) Conditions Dh183,650 (T) 1,200m
10pm Handicap (TB) Dh102,500 (T) 1,400m
Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
