How did we live all those years ago, when the first edition of The National hit the streets of Abu Dhabi on the morning of April 17, 2008?
Asked almost anywhere else, the question would seem facetious given such a brief passage of time. But such is the speed of change in the UAE that going back just 10 years takes you to a different world.
In Abu Dhabi in 2008, almost any journey began with the search for a passing white Toyota Corolla with gold panels over each wheel and a green sign on the roof with the word “taxi” in Arabic.
This was the city’s main method of transport for those without a car. The strongest point in favour of the gold and white taxis is that they were cheap. Almost any journey within the city cost no more than Dh5, except during prayer times when the entire fleet would vanish from the streets.
The drivers were almost exclusively Pashtun, clad in salwar kameez, all claiming to be from Peshawar as they tried to negotiate an off-meter fare that would bring them a few more dirhams.
Their knowledge of the geography of the city was generally as sparse as their command of the English language, which did little to stem the endless flow of questions.
Unaccompanied young female employees of The National were generally assumed to be in search of a husband, while any citizen of Britain – the first question asked was "Where are you from?" – was able to procure for them a visa for the UK and a job offer.
The days of the gold and white taxi were already numbered, as they were to be replaced by the silver Corollas of TransAD – more reliable but also far more expensive.
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Read more of our 10-year anniversary coverage here:
SPECIAL REPORT: Chronicling 10 years of change in the UAE
Then and Now: A decade of remarkable growth in every direction imaginable
A decade of media experimentation
Technology has transformed every aspect of life in UAE
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The process of finding a taxi is also a useful reminder of how our lives in 2018 are so much easier than they were in 2008. The TransAD app involves a couple of clicks and a driver is summoned automatically to your door.
Almost every government service these days can be accessed with an app or a website. Utility bills can be paid in seconds. Many services 10 years ago would have involved a long queue at a chaotic government office.
And not just public, but also private services. When was the last time any of us needed to pay a visit to our bank?
This was the age before smartphones, of course. The first iPhone was only a few months old, and the preferred instrument of communication was the sturdy Nokia 3120, with a BlackBerry 8800 the ultimate status symbol.
It would be a mistake to think, though, that life was somehow less complicated in those days. If you did own a car, finding a space to leave it was a major headache. This was the age of sand parking, finding a vacant plot of land with a drop in the kerb to reach it. Having four-wheel drive was a major bonus.
Then came Mawaqif, the era of paid parking, and inevitably parking tickets. The blue and black or white lines first arrived in 2009 around Hamdan Street but inexorably spread across the capital. Like other changes, it has made life a little easier but also costlier.
The geography of the city has changed too. Back in 2008 Ikea, then as now often the first stop for any new arrival furnishing their home, was in Marina Mall. Today it is next to Yas Mall on Yas Island and perhaps busier than ever.
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Bolts of lightning form over Burj Khalifa in Dubai. January 14, 2009. Paulo Vecina / The National -
Thanita Denkaew an expatriate from Thailand spins inside the Dot Obsessions installation by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama at Sharjah Art Foundation on January 9, 2017. Christopher Pike / The National -
Cavalia at Qasr Al Hosn hosts a media day before the opening of the Qasr Al Hosn festival in Abu Dhabi. February 18, 2014. Sammy Dallal / The National -
Three boys dressed in camel costumes run down the grass embankment at Abu Dhabi's Zayed Cricket Stadium during the Arabian Cricket Trophy Match. March 21, 2008. Nicole Hill / The National -
A man works at Al Dhaid agricultural research centre, Sharjah. 21 April, 2014. Jaime Puebla / The National -
A fisherman throws a net to catch fish during the Qasr Al Hosn Festival in Abu Dhabi. February 1, 2016. Mona Al Marzooqi / The National -
A fishing boat moored off the coast at the Umm Al Quwain fish souq. March 10, 2014. Antonie Robertson / The National -
Jossem Al Ameni, 19, and Mashal Al Dhiferi, 24, dive for pearls in the Arabian Gulf, Kuwait. August 4, 2009. Andrew Henderson / The National -
Emirates Aviation students promote the new UAE space programme during the Global Educational Supplies & Solutions in Dubai. March 1, 2016. Delores Johnson / The National -
Traffic speeds by this group of young men along Emirates Road in Ajman. March 25, 2011. Jeff Topping / The National -
Students from Dar Al Uloom Private School in Abu Dhabi, bunch up at their bus window to pose for a photograph after their performance during National Day celebrations. November 27, 2013. Silvia Razgova / The National -
The Dubai Marina at night. November 15, 2012. Jaime Puebla / The National -
Prayers at Bin Dalmook Mosque in Deira, Dubai. June 10, 2016. Jeffrey E Biteng / The National -
The skatepark in Nad Al Sehba, Dubai. January 27, 2012. Lee Hoagland / The National -
A student in the science department looks at a skeleton during the celebration of Repton School Dubai's 10th anniversary. October 21st, 2017. Christopher Whiteoak / The National -
The Big Bubble Run at the Dubai Autodrome. 8 April, 2016. Antonie Robertson / The National -
Brothers Khaled and Mohammed Al Hadrami play with bubbles at the Science Festival in Abu Dhabi. November 14, 2013. Silvia Razgova / The National -
Aerial photograph of desert and water in the Western Region of Abu Dhabi. June 24, 2008. Ryan Carter / The National -
Young men enjoy their evening jumping into the warm sea water during Eid Al Fitr at the Breakwater Corninche in Abu Dhabi. August 19, 2012. Silvia Razgova / The National -
Emirati boys take in a sandstorm from the Breakwater in Abu Dhabi. August 17, 2014. Christopher Pike / The National -
Novak Djokovic serves to Tomas Berdych during the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. February 25, 2011. Mike Young / The National -
The Sharjah skyline lights reflect in Al Khan Lagoon. Antonie Robertson / The National -
A Formula One car speeds along the track during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix qualifying session at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. November 12, 2011. Pawan Singh / The National -
Local children play as they wait to be able to cross a washed out road in Wadi Khab Shamis north of Dibba in Musandam, Oman. February 18, 2012. Christopher Pike / The National -
Habus men perform the Nadbah, a traditional war cry, during a welcoming ceremony at Wadi Qadaa, Ras Al Khaimah. February 9, 2013. Jaime Puebla / The National -
The last piece of the roof is put into place at Louvre Abu Dhabi. September 17, 2015. Christopher Pike / The National -
People celebrate the 41st UAE National Day on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. December 2, 2012. Silvia Razgova / The National -
A showgoer films the Al Ain Aerobatic Show at Al Ain Airport. January 26, 2010. Jaime Puebla / The National -
Exterior view of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque at dusk. 4 December, 2017. Antonie Robertson / The National -
Gatekeeper Imam Bakhsh walks toward another gate where he will move rocks and cloth to allow water to irrigate another date palm section in Hill Oasis in Al Ain, April 18, 2011. Jeff Topping / The National -
Ahmed Khalil of the UAE celebrates scoring against Iraq during their 2018 Fifa World Cup Qualifier football match at Mohammed bin Zayed stadium in Abu Dhabi. November 15, 2016. Christopher Pike / The National -
Final day of the 2017 Mother Of The Nation festival in Abu Dhabi. April 4, 2017. Mona Al Marzooqi/ The National -
Pakistani fans taking photos before the start of a One Day International cricket match between Pakistan and Australia in Sharjah. October 7, 2014. Pawan Singh / The National -
A flyover during the 2017 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit. Christopher Pike / The National -
Ahmed Bin Shaiban Al Hebsi kisses a portion of the 40-meter long UAE flag he and his brothers carried to the top of Jebel Janas to hang over the ledge above Wadi Qadaa near Ras al Khaimah City, in Ras al Khaimah. December 1, 2011. Jeff Topping / The National -
Emirati teenagers sail during the second round of the Traditional Dhow Sailing Race in Mina Seyahi, Dubai. January 14, 2009. Kevin J Larkin / The National -
A Bangladeshi fisherman works on fixing a torn fishing net at the Al Rughayalat Port, Fujairah. March 3, 2014. Silvia Razgova / The National -
Prisoner, Shama, 19, from Abu Dhabi shows a piece of art made in the Mafraq Correctional Facility in Dubai. June 26, 2008. Ryan Carter / The National -
A man helps a bus driver push his vehicle through a flooded street in Al Bateen, Abu Dhabi, after it stalled during a storm. December 13, 2009. Rich-Joseph Facun / The National -
Arabian racing studs from Al Harif Stable train in a swimming pool at The Abu Dhabi Golf & Equestrian Club. October 16, 2008. Nicole Hill / The National -
Brothers Mohammed Al Shehhi and Abdulla Al Shehhi perform the the The Mzafin during a sword dance at Khatt town, Ras Al Khaimah. December 6, 2011 Jaime Puebla / The National -
A fire rips through Dubai Marina's Torch tower. One of the many onlookers takes a mobile phone picture. 4 August, 2017. Antonie Robertson / The National -
Parked cars at a JLT residential tower appear toy-like from a high vantage point in Dubai. June 16, 2013. Sarah Dea / The National -
Maryam Almass, Nora Said, Abeer Hassan, and Fatima Saif pose for a portrait. Their team came in 3rd place among 25 women shooters. Abu Dhabi police participated in a 3-day shooting match. April 7, 2008. Nicole Hill / The National -
Amani Al Hashemi reacts as she rushes to check on her son, Nahian Abdalla Rashid during a match at the Abu Dhabi Jiu-Jitsu Cup, at Zayed Sports City, Abu Dhabi. February 5, 2014. Silvia Razgova / The National -
A fisherman waiting to see the fresh catch after fishing near the Corniche area at Kalba in Sharjah. November 22, 2017. Pawan Singh / The National) -
Street art along December 2 street in the Al Satwa area of Dubai. May 26, 2017. Christopher Pike / The National -
Construction workers seek shelter from the rain under a bus in Dubai. January 7, 2014. Sarah Dea / The National -
Whitewater rafting at Wadi Adventure in Al Ain. July 25, 2015. Christopher Pike / The National -
Animal mascots enjoy a ride at Kidsfest in Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi. October 17, 2013. Silvia Razgova / The National
The crowds at off-island locations such as Yas Mall, with its multiplex cinema and brands that once required a trip to Dubai, illustrate a broader point. Abu Dhabi has become suburban in the past 10 years.
Khalifa City once seemed a remote place, a name on road signs leaving the island. Today it is a thriving community of Emiratis and expatriates, attracted by its excellent schools, the city’s biggest Spinneys and with a second hospital near completion. There are parks now and even some bike paths.
Back in 2008, the city was in the grip of a housing stock crisis. For new arrivals there was almost nowhere to live and what was there was massively expensive. One entrepreneur famously even tried to pass on a windowless garage as a studio apartment.
Today new arrivals are spoilt for choice – a sea vista at Al Bandar or Saadiyat, a high rise on Reem Island or a villa in Al Raha Gardens.
Back in 2008 the concept of underground parking and a swimming pool and gym was unheard of. Today it is pretty much non-negotiable.
How we are spoilt for choice in 2018.
When Jones the Grocer opened just a stone's throw from The National's old offices in Al Mamoura in 2009 it heralded a gourmet revolution in a dining landscape until then largely dominated by the shisha cafe.
Back in early 2008, the city was agog at the opening of the Shangri-La hotel at a location that even when meticulously explained to a taxi driver took some finding.
In 2018, the opening of a new luxury hotel barely raises an eyebrow. There is the Fairmont, Dusit Thani, a brace each of the Ritz Carlton and the St Regis, and the rapidly expanding Rotana Group, which has just opened a beach resort on Saadiyat.
Yet for all the changes in Abu Dhabi from then to now, families still head for the parks, seeking the cool of the evening for a picnic or an impromptu game of cricket or football.
The streets still quieten for Friday prayers and the best flatbread is still found in fresh from the oven for the price of a few coins.
If the competition in 2018 is fierce for the best wagu burger or sashimi platter, so it still is for a Chips Oman sandwich or chicken shawarma.
At its heart and in its soul, the city remains the same.
