Anas serves tea to customers at King Karak. Pawan Singh / The National
Anas serves tea to customers at King Karak. Pawan Singh / The National
Anas serves tea to customers at King Karak. Pawan Singh / The National
Anas serves tea to customers at King Karak. Pawan Singh / The National

Neighbourhood Watch: The changing face of Mussaffah


John Dennehy
  • English
  • Arabic

There is a suburb of Abu Dhabi where you can travel the world.

According to the Abu Dhabi Film Commission, Mussaffah can double as a location for Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait and even parts of war-torn Iraq and Afghanistan.

This may not be hugely surprising. Mussaffah developed as an industrial complex from the 1970s as the discovery of oil transformed the city. It swiftly became known for its gritty mix of shabby warehouses, labour camps and car workshops. But the suburb is now home to Dalma Mall, the emirate’s second-largest after Yas Mall, schools are opening, restaurants are appearing and a hotel will welcome its first guests by December. Abu Dhabi Municipality has installed new street lights, demolished buildings, removed abandoned cars and the air of unruliness that once pervaded the area is fading away.

Children play football in a car park as the sun sets over Mussaffah. Pawan Singh / The National
Children play football in a car park as the sun sets over Mussaffah. Pawan Singh / The National

Mussaffah is divided by the E30 motorway. On one side, by the port, is the industrial area while on the other side is the residential area of Mussaffah Shabiya.

When we visit the industrial part one Sunday evening, crowds of people are attending St Paul’s Catholic Church for mass. At least 10,000 people attend services here every week and music from the choir drifts into the street and into the nearby labour accommodation.

Residential buildings of Mussaffah in Abu Dhabi. Pawan Singh / The National
Residential buildings of Mussaffah in Abu Dhabi. Pawan Singh / The National

There are also Armenian and Greek churches, while a huge Anglican church is being built nearby. Reverend Andy Thompson is the chaplain at St Andrew's Church in Abu Dhabi city. It can no longer cope with demand and this new centre of worship will cater for the expanding Christian community.

“It’s changing in front of our eyes,” said Rev Thompson, who arrived in the UAE eight years ago. “The area has been cleaned up massively.”

Many who live in Mussaffah are domestic and industrial workers, do not make a lot of money and can’t afford to travel into the city to attend services. The church aims to change that.

“I’ve met people from Africa and India who are Christian and say: ‘You don’t see me in church because it’s difficult for me to get there from Mussaffah’,” said Rev Thompson.

Reham Ulla makes manaeesh for a customer at Ghulam Manual Bakery, where he has worked for 10 years. Pawan Singh / The National
Reham Ulla makes manaeesh for a customer at Ghulam Manual Bakery, where he has worked for 10 years. Pawan Singh / The National

Across the E30 is Mussaffah Shabiya, hugging the motorway down a long strip. Official population figures for Mussaffah are not public but most people live in this part and here, too, changes are in the air. People are drawn to the competitive rents with one-bedroom apartments now available for Dh40,000. A trail of 4x4s wait for service outside funky restaurant Burger28, schools have relocated to the area and construction sites abound.

At Ghulam Manual Bakery, Reham Ulla is manning the oven. Mr Ulla, from Afghanistan, sells about 400 naan a day and works beside the gas-fired oven despite the searing summer heat. “What am I to do?” he says, as the sweat pours off his brow. “In winter it’s no problem, but summer is too hot and difficult.”

A steady stream of customers line up for the bread despite some of these older bakeries falling out of favour. Down the street is Nourmandy restaurant. Mohammed Hassan opened the seafood eatery four years ago and says business has increased over the past few years.

“It’s like a small town and here we have everything,” said Mr Hassan, who is from Egypt. “New customers are always coming in.”

Customers have dinner at Nourmandy Sea Food Restaurant in Mussaffah. Pawan Singh / The National
Customers have dinner at Nourmandy Sea Food Restaurant in Mussaffah. Pawan Singh / The National

In a nearby block, the final touches are being applied to the 73-room Gravity Hotel. It’s the first in the area and its new manager Youssef Riachy says the facility is sorely needed because of the influx of schools, the presence of Al Ain University and the forthcoming Burjeel Hospital.

“We are targeting the corporates,” he said. “There will be many engineers, doctors and students coming here. Now they will have options.”

The area is home to a multinational community — Indians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Jordanians walk from the bakeries to the laundries, baqalas and vegetable shops. People play cricket and volleyball in the car parks.

Shazad Akram, from Lahore, Pakistan, lives in the area and has stopped for a karak at one of the many small cafeterias. “Before, there were no malls or markets,” said Mr Akram, 29. “I prefer here to the city because there it’s hard to park. We also have good security.”

Customers visit Al Rayyan Fresh Fish shop. Pawan Singh / The National
Customers visit Al Rayyan Fresh Fish shop. Pawan Singh / The National

Mussaffah Shabiya is also punctuated by several small fishmongers. You don’t find many of these standalone fish shops in Abu Dhabi anymore with most swallowed by supermarkets and large markets.

Al Rayyan Fresh Fish opened last year and is one of at least four in the area. Al Rayyan gets its fish from the market at Mina Zayed in Abu Dhabi, and Dubai and also supplies restaurants.

Staff and customers say the price, service and freshness of the fish is why they prefer the smaller shops. “The city has the fish market at Mina Zayed but it would take people here 40 minutes to reach there,” said the shop’s manager, Abdul Majeed, who is from Syria. “There are a lot of fish shops here.”

From the counter, Mr Majeed points out at the construction of residential blocks taking place around the shop.

“We are now waiting for the customers.”

_______________

Read more:

Free bus service that can be hailed on the street on trial in Abu Dhabi suburb

'Every one of us is a little lost': Demolition starts on Umm Al Quwain's decrepit old town

How Mussaffah is undergoing a quiet transformation

_______________

Jetour T1 specs

Engine: 2-litre turbocharged

Power: 254hp

Torque: 390Nm

Price: From Dh126,000

Available: Now

SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20Z%20FLIP%204
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Getting there

The flights

Emirates and Etihad fly to Johannesburg or Cape Town daily. Flights cost from about Dh3,325, with a flying time of 8hours and 15 minutes. From there, fly South African Airlines or Air Namibia to Namibia’s Windhoek Hosea Kutako International Airport, for about Dh850. Flying time is 2 hours.

The stay

Wilderness Little Kulala offers stays from £460 (Dh2,135) per person, per night. It is one of seven Wilderness Safari lodges in Namibia; www.wilderness-safaris.com.

Skeleton Coast Safaris’ four-day adventure involves joining a very small group in a private plane, flying to some of the remotest areas in the world, with each night spent at a different camp. It costs from US$8,335.30 (Dh30,611); www.skeletoncoastsafaris.com

The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204.0-litre%20twin-turbo%20V8%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E680hp%20at%206%2C000rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E800Nm%20at%202%2C750-6%2C000rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERear-mounted%20eight-speed%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E13.6L%2F100km%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Orderbook%20open%3B%20deliveries%20start%20end%20of%20year%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh970%2C000%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
TOUCH RULES

Touch is derived from rugby league. Teams consist of up to 14 players with a maximum of six on the field at any time.

Teams can make as many substitutions as they want during the 40 minute matches.

Similar to rugby league, the attacking team has six attempts - or touches - before possession changes over.

A touch is any contact between the player with the ball and a defender, and must be with minimum force.

After a touch the player performs a “roll-ball” - similar to the play-the-ball in league - stepping over or rolling the ball between the feet.

At the roll-ball, the defenders have to retreat a minimum of five metres.

A touchdown is scored when an attacking player places the ball on or over the score-line.

The specs
 
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The rules on fostering in the UAE

A foster couple or family must:

  • be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
  • not be younger than 25 years old
  • not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
  • be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
  • have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
  • undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
  • A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Bawaal%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Nitesh%20Tiwari%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Varun%20Dhawan%2C%20Janhvi%20Kapoor%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
GROUP RESULTS

Group A
Results

Ireland beat UAE by 226 runs
West Indies beat Netherlands by 54 runs

Group B
Results

Zimbabwe tied with Scotland
Nepal beat Hong Kong by five wickets

HOW%20TO%20ACTIVATE%20THE%20GEMINI%20SHORTCUT%20ON%20CHROME%20CANARY
%3Cp%3E1.%20Go%20to%20%3Cstrong%3Echrome%3A%2F%2Fflags%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E2.%20Find%20and%20enable%20%3Cstrong%3EExpansion%20pack%20for%20the%20Site%20Search%20starter%20pack%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E3.%20Restart%20Chrome%20Canary%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E4.%20Go%20to%20%3Cstrong%3Echrome%3A%2F%2Fsettings%2FsearchEngines%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20in%20the%20address%20bar%20and%20find%20the%20%3Cstrong%3EChat%20with%20Gemini%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20shortcut%20under%20%3Cstrong%3ESite%20Search%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E5.%20Open%20a%20new%20tab%20and%20type%20%40%20to%20see%20the%20Chat%20with%20Gemini%20shortcut%20along%20with%20other%20Omnibox%20shortcuts%20to%20search%20tabs%2C%20history%20and%20bookmarks%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

'Ghostbusters: From Beyond'

Director: Jason Reitman

Starring: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace

Rating: 2/5

Reputation

Taylor Swift

(Big Machine Records)

SHALASH%20THE%20IRAQI
%3Cp%3EAuthor%3A%20Shalash%3Cbr%3ETranslator%3A%20Luke%20Leafgren%3Cbr%3EPages%3A%20352%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20And%20Other%20Stories%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs: 2019 Mini Cooper

Price, base: Dh141,740 (three-door) / Dh165,900 (five-door)
Engine: 1.5-litre four-cylinder (Cooper) / 2.0-litre four-cylinder (Cooper S)
Power: 136hp @ 4,500rpm (Cooper) / 192hp @ 5,000rpm (Cooper S)
Torque: 220Nm @ 1,480rpm (Cooper) / 280Nm @ 1,350rpm (Cooper S)
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 4.8L to 5.4L / 100km

While you're here

Not Dark Yet

Shelby Lynne and Allison Moorer

Four stars

The Bio

Favourite place in UAE: Al Rams pearling village

What one book should everyone read: Any book written before electricity was invented. When a writer willingly worked under candlelight, you know he/she had a real passion for their craft

Your favourite type of pearl: All of them. No pearl looks the same and each carries its own unique characteristics, like humans

Best time to swim in the sea: When there is enough light to see beneath the surface

LOVE%20AGAIN
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Jim%20Strouse%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStars%3A%20Priyanka%20Chopra%20Jonas%2C%20Sam%20Heughan%2C%20Celine%20Dion%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The%20Beekeeper
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDavid%20Ayer%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJason%20Statham%2C%20Josh%20Hutcherson%2C%20Emmy%20Raver-Lampman%2C%20Minnie%20Driver%2C%20Jeremy%20Irons%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201.8-litre%204-cyl%20turbo%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E190hp%20at%205%2C200rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20320Nm%20from%201%2C800-5%2C000rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeven-speed%20dual-clutch%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%206.7L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh111%2C195%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EQureos%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EUAE%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELaunch%20year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2021%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E33%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESoftware%20and%20technology%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%243%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A