Open Skies - April 2019

APRIL 2019

S H O U L D YO U G O V EG A N ?

ATLANTA MAKES SPORTING TRACKS

The alt fad that became a worldwide movement

A ROMA GUIDE TO MEXICO CITY

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF OBAID HUMAID AL TAYER

EDITOR

MANAGING PARTNER & GROUP EDITOR

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

IAN FAIRSERVICE

GINA JOHNSON gina@motivate.ae

SENIOR ART DIRECTOR

ART DIRECTOR

GEORGINA LAVERS editor@openskiesmagazine.com

OLGA PETROFF olga.petroff@motivate.ae

CLARKWIN CRUZ clarkwin@motivate.ae

SENIOR WEB DEVELOPER

DIGITAL ANIMATOR

EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

FIROZ KALADI firoz@motivate.ae

SURAJIT DUTTA surajit@motivate.ae

LONDRESA FLORES londresa@motivate.ae

CONTRIBUTORS Iain Akerman; Emma Coiler; Ben East; Sarah Freeman; Sarah Gamboni; Alice Holtham; Dom Joly; Emily Manthei; Conor Purcell; Reverend Andrew Thompson Front cover: Maurizio Di Iorio

GENERAL MANAGER PRODUCTION

SUNIL KUMAR sunil@motivate.ae

PRODUCTION MANAGER

R MURALI KRISHNAN muralik@motivate.ae

CHIEF COMMERCIAL OFFICER

ANTHONY MILNE anthony@motivate.ae

GROUP SALES MANAGER

MICHAEL UNDERDOWN michael@motivate.ae

SENIOR SALES MANAGER

ASSISTANT PRODUCTION MANAGER

MURALI NARAYANAN murali@motivate.ae

BINU PURANDARAN binu@motivate.ae

EDITORIAL CONSULTANTS FOR EMIRATES

EDITOR

MANNA TALIB

DEPUTY EDITOR

CATHERINE FREEMAN

Emirates takes care to ensure that all facts published herein are correct. In the event of any inaccuracy please contact the editor. Any opinion expressed is the honest belief of the author based on all available facts. Comments and facts should not be relied upon by the reader in taking commercial, legal, financial or other decisions. Articles are by their nature general and specialist advice should always be consulted before any actions are taken.

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CONTENTS APRIL 2019

56 DUBAI The ethical dilemma A scientific case for clean eating 56

19

73

GLOBAL

EMIRATES

Tony Blackburn The radio legend on “ruining soul” 62

Expo 2020 Experience 20 Stay: Palatial accommodation, from the Oman’s summit to London glamour Dom Joly on Sarajevo’s delights Dispatch: Atlanta, football heroes Neighbourhood: Lavapiés, Madrid Art beyond vision 44 The sounds of Helsinki 50

22 30 32 36

Latest news 74 Inside Emirates 76 Destination: Glasgow 78 UAE Smart Gate 80 Route maps 82 The fleet 88 Celebrity directions: the Roma guide to Mexico City 90

On including every kind of visitor 66

LitFest A festival of thought, and action 68

A Year of Tolerance 70

A cutting-edge public library located in Al Watan Palace in Abu Dhabi, this new landmark houses a large collection of titles about the United Arab Emirates, along with a plethora of knowledge, research and entertainment sources, and unique reading experiences using the latest technology.

Qasr Al Watan Library: Where the Future of Knowledge Begins!

Qasr Al Watan Library is open from 11 March 2019 For more information, visit visitabudhabi.ae

17

EDITOR’S NOTE BOTH FEET IN THE DOOR

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To encourage people out into the world, institutions ranging from stadiums to galleries are waking up to the fact that they must shake things up. In Berlin: “Anyone who has ever visited a museum knows the urge to touch artworks: here that becomes reality” says Berlinische Galerie. The art gallery spent two years creating tactile models made of felt, wood and fabric, so that their visually impaired art lovers might be able to experience modernism or abstraction through touch.

Emily Manthei spent some time with visitors to get their first impressions on p44, and to see if this might be the beginning of art that speaks to every sense, and guest.

In Atlanta, a city perhaps not revered for its sporting prowess, a combination of marketing savvy and young talent has brought about real change, says Conor Purcell on p32. By drafting in players from Ecuador and Venezuela, Atlanta United made the city the epicentre of Major League Soccer, as well as raising a generation of devoted fans.

The team’s owner, Arthur Blank, made some drastic choices too in their home stadium: slashing food prices in half, widening the seats, putting on karaoke and giveaways in a ‘Power Hour’ before games.

The sport brought a wave of new and devoted fans, as well as putting the city back on the sporting map. Marketing tactics? Maybe. But for whatever motive, the more people that go catch a game, visit a gallery, sit in a jazz club – the more vibrant our cities will be.

Georgina Lavers, Editor

Global °

STAY

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DISPATCH

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NEIGHBOURHOOD

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MUSEUM

PHOTO: BRETT REEVES

EXPERIENCE

Wildean glamour A discreet entrance on Southampton Row conceals the ornithological artistry within L’oscar hotel – recently reimagined by Jacques Garcia of La Mamounia. p24

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JAZZ

20 / GLOBAL / EXPERIENCE

KEUKENHOF, APRIL-MAY

The gardener to seven million blooms Keukenhof is one of the most spectacular gardens in the world. Open for just two months in the spring, there are over 800 varieties of tulips. Celebrating its 70th edition this year, gardener Andre Beijk explains the power of flowers Why do you think Keukenhof has become such a unique experience?

Obviously the flower displays are amazing. But more than that, I think people see Keukenhof as the signal that winter is at an end. It’s been cold, it might have snowed, and then people come here and feel spring has come. There’s a sense of nature coming to life again and people run to that after winter time.

Has social media affected its popularity?

We say on our website that some areas of the garden are very Instagrammable and I do think that social media has made a huge difference in the last five years. It’s interesting, how we are seen on social media has somewhat changed the gardens we design – we have to make them work as images that will be shared online.

What do you imagine will be the most ‘liked’ images this year?

I would imagine the spring bulb flowers like tulips, hyacinths and daffodils, as always. But there is so much more to Keukenhof than that actually. I say to people in the city “you live so close, why have you not been to Keukenhof”, and they tell me they can see flowers everywhere they go. When they finally get here they’re surprised by what else there is – grasses, flower shows in the pavilions, sculpture, live music, exhibitions, boat trips. It’s a pretty special place.

Yes, on a sunny, warm day you can experience this amazing smell throughout the park. The funny thing is, you don’t exactly know where it is coming from and you can see people sticking their noses in the air! Along with the look of the flowers and the sound of the birds tweeting, it all comes together to make you feel, wow, I’m in a good spot here.

I’m in the right place.

And what’s your favourite flower this year?

In the garden we have a few changes – we’ve got some areas and flower designs which reference Flower Power. But Keukenhof is about celebrating the importance flowers have in people’s lives. I believe flowers do have a power to change the way you feel about your life in an individual moment.

Lisse, The Netherlands. keukenhof.nl/en

Some of the tulip varieties this year have this deep yellow colour. They’re strong, they look great, they feel like a smile in a flower, to me. And they smell like real tulips. I know that sounds strange, but not all tulips have a good smell.

So how Keukenhof smells is important to you, too?

This year the theme is Flower Power. Is it a nod to the 1960s movement?

Andre Beijk believes flowers can change the way you feel about your life

11-13 APRIL

MIDDLE EAST FILM & COMIC CON

RYAN LASH

HK RUGBY UNION

Fuelled by the never-ending enthusiasm for superhero films, the multi-billion dollar comic-con industry has spread to the Middle East with MEFCC, where superheroes and superfans of comics, television series, movies, anime and manga all come together in one extravagant celebration of pop culture. The big draws this year will be Katie Cassidy Rodgers (Arrow), Mike Colter (Marvel’s Luke Cage) and Ross Marquand (The Walking Dead) – but the fans’ exuberant costumes take equal billing. Dubai, UAE. mefcc.com

APRIL 5-7

APRIL 8-13

APRIL 15-19

HONG KONG SEVENS

SNOWBOMBING

TED 2019

The short sided version of international rugby union has gone from strength to strength in recent years, and Hong Kong is the place where this game really took off. It’s a social as well as sporting event, with a gig from Gwen Stefani alongside intense action on the pitch: the top four teams in World Rugby Sevens Series will qualify for next year’s Olympics.

Hong Kong, China. hksevens.com

When a group of dance music fans first envisaged a Glastonbury in the snow, they probably didn’t expect it would draw dance music fans to the ski slopes of Austria 20 years later.

But the combination of igloo parties, winter sports, and big beats makes it a unique festival. Headliners this year include Stormzy and Fatboy Slim.

Mayrhofen, Austria. snowbombing.com

TED conferences have become so influential (and ubiquitous), it’s easy to forget they were initially set up to discuss technology, entertainment and design. The theme of this year’s annual event is ‘Bigger Than Us’, with everyone from actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt to strategic advisor Priya Parker exploring ideas that inspire wonder and creativity.

Vancouver, Canada. ted2019.ted.com

22 / GLOBAL / WHERE TO STAY

MUSCAT

23.5859° N, 58.4059° E

PRICE: FROM US$632 PER NIGHT

A peaceful Omani stay, where privacy is valued above all

Serai style WORDS: GEORGINA LAVERS

On a blustery January morning, a flock of gulls are seemingly the only visitors to a private beach in Muscat.

The scene is one of wild beauty. Birds blast through the thermals; foaming waves pound the coastline.

But just over the dunes off this 370-metre strip, tranquility reigns. This is the home of Chedi Muscat: the Omani offering from the GHM group synonymous for its select offering of properties and Asian design elements.

One of the few premier properties in Muscat, the Chedi has – unusually for the capital – its own private beach, and this emphasis on calmness and privacy echoes throughout.

Children are only allowed at one of the pools, and all three are the deepest allowed before needing lifeguards, allowing for an uninterrupted paddle.

The hotel does not offer day passes to its pool or beach, and grants few outside reservations for its eight restaurants and lounges. The resulting feeling is one of total

immersion, where the only coming and going of visitors is guests hopping from cabana to spa, pool to tennis court.

Asian elements such as small square pools dotted symmetrically throughout the property meld seamlessly with Omani influence, seen in factors that include staff – many locals work on the property – as well as aesthetic.

Rooms range from the more modest serai, with pool and city views, to private villas off the beach, each equipped with its own sunken bathtub and private terrace. A unique touch is the infinity lap pool, which is twice the length of an Olympic pool. Even the gym feels intimate, with carved wooden dividers offering privacy for those wanting to try out the Pilates machine.

Though the vibe is elegant, guests are relaxed. As night falls, bright whites are replaced by flickering lanterns, and the lick of flames from the firepit, where guests congregate to watch the sunset. It’s peaceful, serene – and everything a getaway should be.

IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD For those looking to explore outside of the hotel, the Sultan Qaboos Mosque is a short taxi ride away and is open every morning except for Friday. Despite its grandeur – with an 8.5 tonne chandelier and ornate mosaic work throughout – the atmosphere is casual, and visitors are free to explore most of the buildings.

MUSCAT

Emirates operates daily flights to Muscat with the Boeing 777-300ER.

24 / GLOBAL / WHERE TO STAY

LONDON

51.5074° N, 0.1278° W

PRICE: FROM US$510 PER NIGHT

A former Baptist Church in Bloomsbury’s historic Holborn gets a flamboyant facelift

A theatrical turn WORDS: SARAH FREEMAN

TAKE A PEW For seasonal British fare in more ecclesiastical surroundings, make a reservation at the Baptist Grill. Michelin-starred Tony Fleming whips up dishes in the former chapel that include coal-roasted beetroot salad and rose veal neck with rosemary, anchovy and lemon.

IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD In a city the size of London, location is everything. As well as a coveted address on fashionable Southampton Row, L’oscar is just a whisper from lively Covent Garden’s pedestrianised piazza, the British Museum and Russell Square – a welcome oasis of greenery in central. Fittingly, the theatre district is also on the doorstep, as well as high culture hub, the Royal Opera House and (for lit-lovers) the Charles Dickens Museum.

With no visible signage, the low-key entrance to London’s newest 5-star hotel, L’oscar, lets its neo-baroque interior do the talking. Derelict for over a decade, the Grade II-listed building has been reimagined by pre-eminent French interior designer Jacques Garcia, of Paris’ Hôtel Costes and La Mamounia fame.

Garcia has brought bohemian excess to every corner of L’oscar’s central London address, from its velvet-clad lobby to the 39 boudoir-esque bedrooms.

Thankfully, its turn-of-the-century feel isn’t lost under all those drapes of damask.

Original heritage features like the grand staircase (now illuminated by a cascading chandelier of glass birds), Royal Doulton-tiled fireplaces and stained glass windows have been painstakingly restored by scores of master craftsmen. Overseen by national charity English Heritage, the building underwent a six-year, US$50m refurbishment, which involved the addition of two more storeys to its original five.

The influence of Irish-born playwright Oscar Wilde, the hotel’s muse, comes to the fore in its guestrooms. Adorned with chaise lounges, antique gilt mirrors and more tassels than a Victorian drapery store, peacock-feather panels complete the decadent look.

Every Garcia hotel has an animal motif, and L’oscar is no different. Birds and butterflies take whimsical flight in the form of hand-painted peacock plates and Lalique crystal butterfly taps in the bathrooms. Bespoke his and her toiletries are courtesy of master perfumer Roja Dove, who was tasked with creating two new scents for the hotel.

Everything from umbrellas to champagne coupes (and toilets!) has been custom-made.

A sultry space in the evening is beneath the mirrored ceiling of the ground floor’s Café L’oscar, inspired by the décor of Venice’s iconic Caffè Florian. A French-inflected menu of rabbit and potato gratin or buttermilk fried baby chicken makes for comfort food par excellence. I’m quite sure Wilde would have approved.

LONDON

Starting 1st July Emirates will launch a second daily flight from Dubai to London Stansted. The additional flight means that Emirates customers will now have 11 daily flight options to and from three London airports.

26 / GLOBAL / WHERE TO STAY

HỘI AN

15.8801° N, 108.3380° E

PRICE: FROM US$180 PER NIGHT

A stay that delivers innovative dining, local art and plenty of tropical allure in Vietnam’s most enchanting city, Hôi An

Riverside beauty WORDS: SARAH FREEMAN

ART MEETS TECH Making its contribution to Hội An’s thriving creative scene is the resort’s new art and dining concept space, where you can dine on wood-fired oven pizza and grilled spiny lobster, with a side of local art. Its curator is acclaimed British artist Bridget March, who has brought candid Vietnamese street photography, Fauvist-style landscapes and portraits by acclaimed French photographer Réhahn Croquevielle to the venue’s barebrick walls. The dessert plates are equally creative, thanks to a 3D food printer (Vietnam’s first and only one), which magic’s up edible Japanese Bridges and Mondrian paintings.

IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD They say location is everything, but so too is being cocooned from the hustle and bustle of the city. Striking this balance with aplomb is Anantara H i An Resort, a mini oasis nestled on the fringes of the Vietnamese city’s ancient quarter.

Ninety-four rooms and suites are split between two terracotta-roofed buildings that wrap round a palm-shaded square pool.

Its hanging vines, fragrant herb garden and frangipani trees may transport you to some faraway tropical land, but local life and culture remain within arm’s reach. A public promenade separates the resort from the Thu Bon River, where sampans (Chinese wooden boats) putter downstream and buffalo lazily graze on its banks. A sweet spot to watch this bucolic scene unfold is the terrace of the resort’s H i An Riverside Restaurant, over a

plate of beef salad. The romance is taken up a notch at night, when clusters of glowing paper lanterns carrying wishes, float on by.

Local Vietnamese design elements combine with French and Japanese heritage in a cohesive mix, from exposed timber in the Lanterns restaurant to airy guestrooms with shuttered French windows and ceiling fans.

An elegant balustrade divides the split-level living-bedroom area, flanked by a mosaic bathroom with rain shower, and luxurious house brand products.

Sealing the deal are the rooms’ wide porches – Anantara’s refined take on the street-side hammocks locals sling up for their daily siesta.

Endowed with plaster-cast cushioned daybeds, they’re the only place to spend a languid afternoon with a dog-eared book and lemongrass iced tea, gazing out over the river.

Aside from its Chinese Temples, colonial-styled houses and 18th-century Japanese Bridge, Hội An’s old town is where you’ll find some of the city’s best art, traditional food and tailoring. Check out Réhahn’s gallery-slash-museum to see fine art photography and traditional dress from the country’s 54 minority tribes. Then try the city’s signature dish, Cao lầu, made with water sourced from a local ancient well, at no-frills Cao lầu Không Gian Xanh.

Ready to get measured up?

At Kimmy Tailor’s, you don’t just come home with a new suit – you’re assigned a personal style guide and get to visit its factory, located just one block away.

H᝙i An, known as the city of 1,000 lanterns

Háť˜I AN

Emirates flies to 13 destinations in South East Asia including Hanoi.

28 / GLOBAL / WHERE TO STAY

RAS AL KHAIMAH

25.6741° N, 55.9804° E

PRICE: FROM US$225 PER NIGHT

There’s more than meets the eye to this regal resort in the Northern-most emirate

Kings on the coast WORDS: ALICE HOLTHAM

As you enter into the arabesque lobby of the Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah – only to be swiftly greeted by your very own personal concierge – the tone is set for a luxury stay in this relaxing emirate.

The first Waldorf hotel to open in the United Arab Emirates, in 2013, the property has since transformed the quiet beachfront of Al Hamra into a glittering 346-room, Arabian palace.

Though originally an American brand – its flagship property is in New York – the geography of the UAE defines the design, from the Arabic calligraphy in the majilis-style lobby, to mother-of-pearl accents that run throughout – a nod to the country’s rich pearl diving history.

The rooms are breathtaking; all are generous sizes, with luxury furnishings in the pale blue and beige silks so beloved in the country. Sea view rooms grant you a front-row seat to spectacular evening sunsets, and it is worth upgrading to one with

a balcony to enjoy them alfresco.

The resort is expansive, featuring a lagoon-sized swimming pool, luxury spa, no less than nine restaurants and adjacent to an 18-hole golf course – meaning you never have to leave the property, should you not wish to. However, an array of restaurants and bars can be found a short walk from the hotel in Al Hamra village, from a traditional English pub to a candlelit beachfront restaurant.

If time allows, take a trip to the nearby Hajar mountains, which serve as a stunning backdrop to limitless hiking trails and adventure sports just a 45-minute drive from the resort.

After a day of either pool or adventure, few places are better to retire to than Siddharta Lounge by Buddha Bar, a sixmonth beachfront pop-up at the hotel. By day, guests lounge poolside tucking into an Asian fusion menu, while by night the air pulses with lively house beats, as the sun sets over the Arabian Gulf.

FROM THE CONCIERGE Via Ferrata Inject some adventure into your stay at the Via Ferrata. Traverse more than 1km along a mountain route that combines climbing, hiking and ziplining off the UAE’s highest peak, Jebel Jais.

Wadi Showka The Wadi Showka trail takes hikers across part of the Hajar Mountains so expect a pretty epic – and elevated – climb.

For the most part, it’s a clearly defined route and as you climb, be sure to look out for Showka Pools – they’re perfect for cooling off in.

Suwaidi Pearl Farm Nestled off the coast of Al Rams, a sleepy fishing village on the northern tip of Ras Al Khaimah, Suwaidi Pearls keeps a 7,000-year tradition alive. The pearl farm educates visitors on the history of pearl diving, as well as guiding guests through the activities of a working pearl farm.

RAS AL KHAIMAH

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30 / GLOBAL / COLUMN

SARAJEVO 43.8563° N, 18.4131° E

Dark tourism in Sarajevo Cast off any preconceptions, says Dom Joly – Sarajevo should be on your Europe bucketlist

flydubai operates a codeshare service with Emirates to over 84 destinations including nonstop flights between Dubai and Sarajevo.

Sarajevo. It’s a name that is synonymous, in most people’s minds, with a bitter civil war and a brutal siege. What it should be however, is your next go-to destination as I honestly think it’s currently the most interesting city in Europe.

I got there by flying to Dubrovnik in Croatia and then doing a leisurely road trip up the Dalmatian coast and into Bosnia-Herzegovina. I stopped off in Mostar, a beautiful little town, most famous for her gorgeous old Ottoman bridge built in 1566. The bridge was intentionally destroyed by Croatians in the war. Fortunately, it has been meticulously rebuilt and I was thrilled to see that the impressive tradition of local youth diving off the twenty metres high apex had resumed. I was sorely tempted to give it a go, but my goal was the Bosnian capital – Sarajevo. After another three hours driving through almost Alpine hill country, I rolled into town.

Sarajevo is very much where the shifting tectonic plates of the Muslim East and Christian West meet. Church spires vie with minarets to dominate the skyline. Sadly, it was this heady, religious ratatouille that, mixed with a rise in supra-nationalism, was the cause of the conflict that over-ran the city and the country in the mid-Nineties. Sarajevo sits in a valley surrounded by mountains and it was from these that Serb gunners besieged the city for 1,425 days.

This experience has given Sarajevo some unusual tourist attractions that are like a magnet for a Dark Tourist like myself. Mortar

craters are still visible in much of the city, but local artists have painted petals round them and filled the holes with red resin, turning them into the so-called Sarajevo Roses.

I wandered down the Appel Quay that runs through the middle of the city alongside the Miljacka River. I was looking for a particular corner; Franz Josef Street, where Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in 1914, an event that eventually precipitated World War One. After a five-minute walk I got there. I stood on the very spot where the Serb assassin, Gavrilo Princip, had been sitting forlornly in a café, thinking that his chance to kill the Archduke had gone after one of his associates had clumsily thrown a bomb that bounced off the car and exploded underneath it. The Archduke and his wife had been unhurt and driven fast to the town hall. Now they were on their way to the train station to get the hell out of Dodge.

Unfortunately for them, their driver took a wrong turn, stopped, and was reversing back onto the Quay right in front of Princip.

He stood up and shot them both dead.

The most extraordinary fact of the whole affair? The number plate of the car in which they were riding. It was so extraordinary that I didn’t believe it at first and had to travel to Vienna to see the car and check.

It was A 11 11 18. The 11th of November, 1918 was the last day of Wold War One. Sometimes travel really does throw up the most wonderful nuggets of trivia.

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GLOBAL / DISPATCH / 33

This American city hadn’t seen a major sporting victory in over two decades. It took one English sport – and a devoted fanbase – to change that WORDS: CONOR PURCELL

How Atlanta rebooted the MLS

Jubilant celebration after the MLS Cup Final between Atlanta United and Portland Timbers, in December 2018

It was, in the end, the most unlikely of victories. A team less than two years old, based in a city with no soccer heritage to speak off, winning the Major League Soccer (MLS) Cup. Equally surprising is that it did so with record attendances, a young, multicultural squad and some of the most passionate fans in the division.

Atlanta United’s MLS Cup victory last December is even more impressive when you consider the city’s recent sporting history is one littered with near misses and painful failures. This is a city that hadn’t won anything in any sport since the Atlanta Braves won the 1995 World Series – a gap of 23 years. Only two years ago, the city’s NFL team, the Atlanta Falcons, threw away a 28-3 lead over the New England Patriots in the 2017 Super Bowl. Before that, the Atlanta Braves lost a two game lead in the 1996 World Series.

Typical Atlanta, rival fans crowed.

That narrative was rewritten on a freezing December night in front of 73,000 delirious fans. The victory, over

34 / GLOBAL / DISPATCH

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the Portland Timbers was, in the end, relatively routine. Atlanta settled any nerves in the 38th minute when star striker Josef Martinez pounced on a sloppy back pass and rounded the Portland keeper. Atlanta sealed victory in the second half when their best player, Miguel Almiron (since moved to Newcastle United in a record US$28 million transfer) converted from a tight angle.

Cue bedlam in the stands.

That Atlanta’s victory came as a surprise, isn’t all that surprising. It has always been an overlooked city. A local journalist wrote after the MLS victory: “Will America finally acknowledge Atlanta as the international, world-class city it is?” That remains to be seen.

Atlanta has always prided itself on being different, especially from its neighbours in the South. It was the

home of the civil rights movement, billed in the 60s as the “city too busy to hate.” In the 70s, the city pioneered affirmative action in industry, ushering in a new wave of black millionaires. The 90s saw the Olympics put the city on the world map, an South Coast hip hop make waves. In short, not a city where ‘soccer’ – which has largely taken root only among Latino residents – would have a chance to succeed.

Yet Atlanta’s victory was not just one for the city, but for the MLS as a whole.

It showed that the league could generate a buzz outside the traditional hot spots of New York and California. Atlanta averaged 53,000 per game last season, a figure most Premier League clubs would kill for. Its final match saw more than 73,000 fans pile into the Mercedes-Benz stadium – to put that in perspective, it’s

higher than the attendance at the past four Super Bowls.

That is reflected in the excitement around the MLS right now. Los Angeles FC became the league’s 23rd team last year, while Cincinnati will join in 2019, followed by Miami and Nashville in 2020. There are as many as 10 other cities, including front-runners Austin, Phoenix, St. Louis, and San Diego looking to join the league.

“Every now and again you have something that happens that shocks you,” the MLS Commissioner Don Garber said. “Seattle was the first example of that. What’s happening in Atlanta continues to astound me.”

Of course, some of this needs to be taken with a pinch of salt. Atlanta, led by its billionaire owner Arthur Blank (who also owns the Atlanta Falcons), were

GLOBAL / DISPATCH / 35

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1. Miguel Almirón, who signed for Atlanta FC for US$8m 2. The signature red, black and gold on display in the MercedesBenz Stadium 3. Owner Arthur Blank 4. Venezuelan striker Josef Martinez 5. Atlanta fans have gained press inches for their enthusiasm 6. Martinez holds the MLS record for career hattricks, with six in his first 44 games

very savvy in how they sold the brand.

A marketing team was put in place nearly three years before the team kicked a ball in order to drum up support. ‘Evangelists’ were found in local bars who would drive support in local communities. Flags and scarves were given away at the ground in order to encourage atmosphere. The loudest fans in the world – from Anfield to Borussia Dortmund’s Yellow Wall – don’t need brand evangelists to get behind their team, and there is something slightly gimmicky about this ready-made fanbase, something a bit artificial about all the face-painting and chest thumping.

But in America fans expect their teams to move around: loyalty lasts only as long as ‘their’ team stays in their city.

It helps too that Atlanta has always been a city of immigrants, a place where out-

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siders could reinvent themselves. And so this team of Argentinians and Venezuelans, Jamaicans and Paraguayans, Germans and Irish won the hearts of a city known as the centre of black culture in America. Their victory was what the MLS hoped would happen when it was created: a team of young, largely unknown, ethnically diverse players taking home the top prize.

It’s not the first time an Atlanta soccer team has won a trophy. In 1968, the Atlanta Chiefs won the inaugural NASL championship. If that feels like a lifetime ago, it is. That club – the brainchild of the owner of the city’s baseball team – would only last until 1973 before it was dissolved. The average attendance in 1968 was a little over 5,000. The MLS has (largely) learned from the mistakes NASL made in the 70s and 80s. It has

tried to avoid relying on big name superstars looking for a last pay day (hello Lothar Matthaus) and instead tried to nurture a new generation of talent. Indeed the big European clubs now look at the MLS as a credible incubator of young players, something that was inconceivable even a few years ago.

And, if the MLS does eventually compete with the traditional big three American sports, it may just be that a freezing night in Georgia was the catalyst.

Fly to Atlanta and over 70 other destinations in the US, Caribbean and Latin America, with Emirates and Jet Blue. Members of Emirates Skywards earn Miles on JetBlue flights. Members of JetBlue’s TrueBlue loyalty programme can also earn points for Emirates-operated flights.

36 / GLOBAL / EXPLORATION

NEIGHBOURHOOD

MADRID, SPAIN

40.4168° N, 3.7038° W

Find old-timey tapas joints, community gardens ringed by street art and secret ateliers in the Spanish capital’s most bohemian neighbourhood

Lavapiés, Madrid WORDS AND IMAGES: SARAH FREEMAN

From Jewish corner to working class Spanish barrio, village-like Lavapiés’ history is as colourful as its ubiquitous ochre and dusky pink balconies, which hang over its maze of cobblestone streets.

Located southwest of the city centre, Tirso de Molina Square marks its northern boundary, bordered to the south by Embajadores metro station. Originally it was set beyond the city walls, and in many ways Lavapiés is still an outsider, marching to the beat of its own drum. It has an emerging underground culture, and yet traditions still run deep. Old converges with new – Cine Doré, a beloved 1920s cinema, is situated just four

DID YOU KNOW?

A portmanteau of ‘lava’ (meaning wash), and ‘pies’ (meaning feet), Lavapiés translates as “wash your feet”, after the fountain that once stood in its namesake square where locals did, well, exactly this.

blocks from graffitied La Tabacalera, a former tobacco factory-turned-community-arts-space. Straddling both worlds is vibrant indoor market, El Mercado de Lavapiés, which hosts free Swing Dancing and Salsa lessons on Sundays. The barrio’s ‘pay what you can afford’ bookstores and free admission days at Reina Sofía mean you don’t need to show up with deep pockets.

As well as throwing its fair share of fiestas, Lavapiés pulls out all the stops for Chinese New Year and Ramadan, a clue to its multiculturalism, also reflected in an eclectic food scene.

Take your pick from traditional tapas haunts and hip Bao hole-in-the-walls, to Moroccan teahouses and Senegalese restaurants like Baobab in Nelson Mandela Square. But it’s still a barrio that packs a castizo (genuine) Madrileño punch, with old-school taverns like Antonio Sánchez and Bodegas Alfaro. You could while away several hours at treelined Calle Ave María and Calle Argumosa – both strewn with animated bars and street-side terrazas, that make for the perfect tapeo (tapas crawl).

1 START

PASTELERÍA SALAMAT For the sweet taste of Syria in the heart of Madrid, follow your nose to this unassuming bakery, said to have the stickiest and crunchiest baklava in town! These bite sized parcels are baked fresh every morning by owner Yahid, a third-generation baker hailing from Aleppo. Don’t be surprised if he offers you a cardamom-laced black tea on the house. It’s the perfect accompaniment to dulces árabes (Middle Eastern pastries) like Ma’amoul; a buttery date-paste stuffed cookie.

Calle del Tribulete, 10, +34 666 62 31 37

38 / GLOBAL / EXPLORATION

2

A FIVE-MINUTE TAXI

LA CASA ENCENDIDA Housed in an imposing Neo-Moorish building, this 6,000sqm social and cultural hub is an incubator for Madrid’s emerging artistic talent. It also hosts cinema sessions, workshops, live music and a jam-packed performing arts calendar.

Ronda de Valencia, 2, +34 915 06 21 80. lacasaencendida.es

3

A SEVEN-MINUTE WALK

DEBORAH ABIZANDA CERAMICS Sandwiched between galleries and ateliers on Doctor Fourquet Street, spitting distance from Reina Sofía, this charm-

ing ceramics shop keeps excellent creative company. Its Madrileño owner, Deborah, turned her love for mud (an obsession that took hold aged four) into a business three years ago. Ranging from US$28-280, her collections include rustic stoneware dinner sets, hanging flower “Sapa” pots that recall Vietnamese hats, and porcelain plates inspired by her rescue greyhound, Philip. Get your hands dirty at one of her small group pottery classes ($28 for two hours), held in her annexed studio.

Calle Doctor Fourquet 11, +34 652 93 62 37, deborah-abizanda.es

GLOBAL / EXPLORATION / 39

4

A FOUR-MINUTE WALK

OLLO MAO Self-taught designer Francisco Panadero’s atmospheric milk-shop-turned-atelier is an unexpected find on Calle de la Fe. You’ll often find the former pho-

tographer pattern making with antique leather-craft tools, surrounded by his Singer sewing machine and 60-yearold leather stencil press. Most of the materials are sourced from the city’s Calle de Ribera de Curtidores – once the navel of Madrid’s tanning industry.

Starting at $170, Francisco’s signature backpacks take an average of three days to make, and, along with the designer’s wash bags, wallets, cardholders and key rings, come with a lifetime warranty.

Calle de la Fe, 18, ollomaotaller@gmail.com

40 / GLOBAL / EXPLORATION

5 A TWO-MINUTE WALK

LA GATOTECA A cat café with a conscience, non-profit La Gatoteca is both a refuge for Madrid’s stray kitties and a space to enjoy feline company. “The house belongs to the cats” is the owner’s motto, and judging by the eat-sleep-play zones, running wheels and climbing towers that monopolise its two floors, we’d have to agree. Cats take up residence here anywhere from several days to a year, and if one tugs at your heartstrings, you can adopt after attending a crash course in feline care and nutri-

tion. Prices start at $5 for half an hour, including one free soft drink.

Calle Argumosa, 28, +34 916 22 58 31, lagatoteca.es

6

A FOUR-MINUTE WALK

ARTE REINA SOFÍA This vast temple to 20th-century Spanish art features all the greats, from cubist master Picasso to doyen of Surrealism, Dalì. Francis Bacon’s Lying Figure and Mirò’s Man With a Pipe are crowd-pleasers, but it’s Picasso’s venerated black-and-white, Guernica, which hangs with jarring impact at 3.5 metres tall, that steals the show. Also check out its art-dedicated library (Spain’s largest), housed in the museum’s triangular-roofed Jean Nouvel extension. Visit Saturday evening, Sunday afternoon and weekdays (except Tuesdays) from 7pm onwards, for free entry.

Calle de Santa Isabel, 52, +34 917 911 330, museoreinasofia.es

Pink Beach, Komodo National Park

Breathe in the Tranquil Thrill of a Harmonious Paradise There are just seven pink beaches on this entire planet, and one of them located in East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. But this one is dierent like no other.

Here, not only you can enjoy endless majestic discoveries above and below the horizon, but also witnessing the habitat of a primordial creature or even island hopping to several nearby paradises. Enjoy trekking, snorkeling, or even just relaxing by the beach with its surreal landscape. Travel around and experience a remarkable journey in the land of endless wonders.

Find out more on April 28 - May 1, 2019 at Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre #AS2550 www.indonesia.travel indonesia.travel Indonesia.Travel indtravel

42 / GLOBAL / EXPLORATION

SOUND BITE

Like an artsy postcode?

Track down San Pedro Mártir Street, where Pablo Picasso once lived.

8

A THREE-MINUTE TAXI

CAFÉ BARBIERI One of the city’s oldest literary cafés, this 114-year-old Art Nouveau institution attracts a motley crowd from students to well-heeled tourists. Tables spill out onto the pavement (great for people watching on sunny days), whilst inside its peeling walls, cast-iron beams and original tiled-floors transport you to 19th century Madrid. Settle into one of their red velvet banquettes and cave into your sweet tooth with chocolate molten cake or homemade churros. Thirsty? Choose from 25 different teas, a dedicated milkshake menu or spirits and vermouth on tap. There’s usually someone tinkling the ivories from 9-11pm, and Swing or Jazz nights on Mondays.

Calle del Ave María, 45, +34 915 27 36 58, cafebarbieri.es

7

A SEVEN-MINUTE TAXI

LA POSITIVA Vintage-meets-urban style at this gorgeous boutique that champion’s independent Spanish designers. Shop for jazzy bow ties, light box art, woolly hats with customisable bobbles and rails of retro-print fashion.

Calle del Ave María, 27, +34 918 23 70 71, facebook.com/lapositivashop

MADRID

Emirates serves two destinations in Spain – Barcelona and Madrid.

FEELING THE ART

WORDS: EMILY MANTHEI

How the Berlinische Galerie is making visual art accessible to all

46

period, of which two of the pieces in the permanent exhibition are a part. (The museum is currently hosting a wider show of Novembergruppe works.)

Katrin-Marie Kaptain, the educational consultant at the museum, says that vision-impaired visitors, as well as sighted ones, are curious to experience the artistic interpretations of the tactile models, which help everyone see the art in a new way. I talked to a few visitors across the spectrum of sight about using their other senses to experience modern art.

Christine Rieger worked as an art teacher before taking a position with the German Society for the Blind and Vision-Impaired. She herself has a vision impairment. She used feedback from the focus group of the society to develop the audio guide text for the assistance app, and now gives tours to blind and vision-impaired visitors a few times a year, along with Dirk Sorge.

About the audio guide app: “The special thing about the audio guide is that visitors with a visual disability can visit the museum independently and complete the exhibition. The audio guide has two systems: a technical system, which means that if they have the courage, they can access the text for the audio guide by using a beacon, which knows how to locate your smartphone and the image in front of it, so that the visitor can listen to the text independently, if they so desire. This is great for the blind. It makes them relatively independent as they move through the exhibition. The second system is of course an audio version of what is readable to everyone. But in addition, especially for the blind visitors, there is a special audio guide for 17 pictures. Of course, for some of these there are also the texture models.

But this audio description is in addition, and is special because it offers a physical description, which is really for the inner eye, so that the blind visitor can develop another sense instead.”

“You can download the app on your own smartphone and read the text in a larger size at your house. When you’re

PHOTOS: NINA STRASSGUETL, HARRY SCHNITGER

From top: Emily Eldridge, a muralist and graphic designer; Otto Moeller’s Strassenlärm, 1920

People with disabilities are limited in how they see the world in many ways.

Curators at the Berlinische Galerie decided to take on the lack of access to cultural life for disabled individuals by creating a way for the visually impaired to visit the museum for modern art, photography and architecture in Berlin.

More than a year ago, the gallery unveiled a project that would allow more independent access to the museum for visually-impaired visitors. Partnering with the German Society for the Blind and Vision-Impaired, they developed accessibility upgrades, including raised floor tracks to guide a visitor’s feet through the museum; an app with a beacon system enabling it to physically locate the visitor and play the appropriate audio tracks describing works of art in the museum; and, most exciting, seven tactile models of pieces of art from the museum’s permanent collection, “Art in Berlin, 1880-1980,” developed in cooperation with the German Society for the Blind and Vision Impaired and two visualisation-model companies.

The modernist, somewhat abstract pieces are replicated in felt, wood and fabric to give visitors the experience of art from dynamic art movements, including the exciting Novembergruppe

47

The model is very complex – it’s got all different parts to it. You can feel the keys, different wood, all sorts of surfaces to feel. It feels like a complicated instrument he is playing, like a one man band or something. I can see a lot of color, and the feeling of the myriad contrasts makes it come to life. So it’s quite a jolly kind of music he’s playing. You get the impression that there are lots of different sounds, like there is something you’re activating.”

On the Novembergruppe exhibition: “It’s an exciting period in art, I think, because there was so much going on politically and socially. New things were tried all the time. You can tell by how different the paintings are, and how different the tactile models are, and the different effect they had on me. There were so many different styles going on. They were colorful, and had lots of textures.

Those were possibilities that helped me see the painting with other senses.”

Berlinische Galerie worked for two years to equip the permanent exhibition with tactile exhibits

home, you might be able to understand everything better, including the descriptions because you have the possibility to zoom in on your ipad and enlarge the image.”

About the tactile models: “They are super. I can understand everything.

For the vision-impaired, they are really good because of the strong contrast, so it adds to the understanding and is good for everyone.”

Eleanor Forbes is a Scotswoman who has been living in Germany for almost 25 years. She has had operations for her eyes,

one of which sees blurred colours and the other of which can focus on close-up objects. To regulate her sight during the day, she wears glasses; to experience the museum, she took off her glasses and let her other senses take over.

On Review Girls: “There’s lots of contrast of colour, and I can tell they’re looking to the left. They have a different texture on the hats, and the hair. You can feel the strands of the hair… their heads are roughly in the same direction. That’s very nice. You can tell they are dressed up for some occasion, in sleeveless dresses, for a party or summer outing.”

On The Musician: “There is a different texture between coat and trousers.

Dirk Sorge is a Berlin-born visual artist who works with video, interactive animation and sound. His vision impairment is part of what drew him to animation and video. “I got interested in programming because it gives me some kind of freedom, but also control.

I know what’s happening because I’m scripting it, like a theatre director.” But the script itself allows for variation and randomness, which bring independent life to the work: “You have a strict framework, but within the framework you can be pretty flexible. It’s a powerful tool if you’re visually impaired. You know what’s happening, but there are also unexpected behaviours.” Dirk gives tours of the museum’s collection and exhibitions to blind and vision-impaired groups several times a year.

On the museum’s systems for the visually impaired: “This museum here is special because as far as I know it’s the only art museum in Berlin that has permanently installed aids for blind people. It tells you that the museum is really paying attention to our needs.”

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On the tactile models: “I think the models are very helpful because you get a good sense of the composition. It’s always hard to describe everything, even with a good audio description. This way you get an impression of the whole image in your head. So when you have the tactile model and the description together, it’s very good. I’m not blind, but I have a visual impairment. I can see the colours if they are bright enough or if the lighting is good. The tactile models help because they offer contrast, and you can get closer to them than the originals hanging on the wall. The models are prominently in the room, and well lit, with a spotlight. Sometimes you can really find some details in the model that you would overlook on the original painting, even as a sighted person.”

Emily Eldridge is a muralist and graphic designer from the United States, who came to Berlin via Hong Kong and Barcelona. Glasses help her with her nearsighted vision, but as an artist who works with different textures and brushstroke techniques, the tactile models provide an additional level of experience with the artwork.

On Dancer: “It’s interesting because I can understand the volume of what the painter is trying to express. I can feel underneath the dress, the form of her body. By being nearsighted, I can see [in the model] some of the details that I can’t see in the image because it’s far away. Like her face, and the flowers in her hair, are quite blurry from here. To see some of the details brings the art to life a little bit more. Also the sensation of what the artist is trying to portray with the diaphanous fabric as portrayed in paint. It gives me a deeper feeling.”

On Jenny Sitting Down: “If you’re completely blind, you don’t need the colours or have a deep understanding of colour. But it’s interesting to feel the form of the figure, and the volume. You can almost feel the depth because her knees are higher than her hips, which recede a bit. The height of things is help-

ing to understand the volume of the figure. Her face is more prominent than the background elements, which are lower, recessed. You have this feeling that it’s behind her. This piece of wall next to her is lower too. It’s interesting how they’ve used volume to show the depth of the piece. It’s also all smooth, so you can’t really tell, but my impression is that it’s smoothly painted and the artist has not used a lot of texture. Does this represent the brush strokes, or not? My question is, does it represent the painting style, or just what’s shown?”

On Synthetic Musician: “It’s interesting how they have used a lot of different types of wood, materials, fabric, some synthetic materials, wood grains, wood finish. And some velvet stuff. I can’t see anything, but I can feel that there is volume because some parts are raised, some receded. The painter has used, as far as I can tell, some volume or texture here in this black coat area.

It’s hard to see, but I can feel a lot of texture. It’s cool. Not having inspected the painting, I’m curious if this is all painted or if it’s collage, or if it’s representing the textures that the painter has used.

There’s a lot of different materials.”

On the texture models: “I think in some of the more abstract works, I could sense there was a little bit more energy or movement because of the different pieces. Some of the classical stuff is represented in a more naturalistic way: one solid piece, or fabric, that gave a feeling of what the painter was trying to depict.

They did an interesting job adding the collage elements where the painter was really painting something that was a little bit chaotic in style or had more movement to it…. They [the models] gave a sensation that the painting style was different, and the painters were very different people. But maybe I didn’t understand so clearly the texture of the canvas or the brush strokes. You did understand the form and the volume and the shape and the subject matter – that made sense.

Btu texture or line work would be more difficult to deeply grasp. But generally I had a feeling for what was being depicted and how the artist created the work.”

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The models are not only of use to blind guests: children and families can also perceive art with two senses by using them

UNLIKELY

PLACE

PHOTO: KOPTERCAM & PETRI ANTTILA

AN

FOR

JAZZ?

BUT

HELSINKI

IS

MAKING

TRADITION

WITH

ITS

SOUND

WORDS: IAIN AKERMAN

CLEAN

H A R D B O P

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Just under a kilometre southwest of Helsinki’s South Harbour is an area known as Viiskulma, or the Five Corners in English. It’s not much to look at, just an intersection of five streets with a statuesque building on each corner, but for lovers of jazz and architecture it is of very particular, and very precise, importance.

Viiskulma is the spiritual home of The Five Corners Quintet, one of Finland’s finest musical exports and a modernist creation formed by the founders of the now defunct Ricky-Tick Records. When the band was launched in the early 2000s it fused jazz, architecture and design in a way that was completely Finnish. It was about crafts-

manship, polished contemporary production and the golden era of modern jazz, but it was also minimalist and elegant, just like much of Helsinki’s most memorable architecture.

The man responsible for this symbiosis was Antti Eerikäinen, the co-founder of Ricky-Tick Records and the entrepreneur behind Pontus and Ateljé Finne, two of the city’s finest restaurants. He combined architecture and design on the quintet’s album covers, creating the concept behind the band with music producer and Ricky-Tick co-founder Tuomas Kallio, who would go on to found the hugely successful summer music festival Flow.

“The idea was to make modernist (not modern or contemporary, but modernist as a mid-century cultural movement) jazz and the architecture of that period fitted in well,” says Eerikäinen, who also runs Jackie, a bar inspired by 60s Italian lounge and 70s French cosmic disco. “I thought that it would somehow reflect the overall ethos of our project.”

On the cover of Trading Eights, therefore, was a photograph of the Meilahti Hospital, which was designed by the architects Jaakko Paatela and Reino Koivula in 1965. For The Devil Kicks EP Eerikäinen chose Marja and Keijo Petäjä’s Lauttasaari Church. For Chasin’ the Jazz Gone By, the Tapiola CenL-R: Valtteri Laurell Pöyhönen of the 20-headed Ricky-Tick Big Band and sextet Dalindèo; Helsinki’s eclectic Flow Festival

53

tral Tower by Aarne Ervi. You can see these buildings during walking tours of the city or read about Ervi and other influential architects at the Museum of Finnish Architecture, which is a short walk from Viiskulma and forms part of Helsinki’s Design District.

More a state of mind than anything else, the Design District spans several downtown neighbourhoods and represents the capital’s epicentre of creativity.

It is here that you’ll find everything Helsinki is renowned for – great architecture, great design, great art galleries and museums. There’s even a Design District map, offering a curated selection of more than 200 boutiques, ateliers, museums,

galleries and cafes, amongst them the Design Museum on Korkeavuorenkatu and Galerie Forsblom in Kamppi. Eerikäinen’s Jackie is here, too, three blocks up from Viiskulma.

Architecture is at the heart of Helsinki’s identity, particularly modernism and the work of Alvar Aalto, who borrowed shapes and colours from the Finnish landscape and treated each of his buildings as a work of art. You can find many of them in the city, including the asymmetrical wonder of Finlandia Hall, just to the south of Töölönlahti Bay, and Aalto’s own home in the northern suburb of Munkkiniemi.

But if modernist architecture provides Helsinki’s urban backdrop, it is

jazz that provides the soundtrack. It matches the energy of its buildings, with its clean but edgy lines and rejection of the abstract. When it was first released in 2003 The Five Corners Quintet’s debut EP, Trading Eights, blended hard bop with Latin jazz and took jazz running back to the dancefloor. For anybody unaware of Helsinki’s vibrant music scene, it was a revelation, with the quintet coming to epitomise an era of stylised dancefloor jazz.

Although the quintet no longer performs, many of its members are now part of the Ricky-Tick Big Band, while groups such as Dalindèo (the second signing to Ricky-Tick Records) contin-

54

ue to play live. That means a focus on basslines and grooves.

“It’s about energy,” says Valtteri Pöyhönen, the immaculately dressed jazz guitarist, bandleader, composer and producer behind Dalindèo. “If you go in the abstract direction you have a different type of energy than if you go for the hard-hitting stuff that makes people move.”

That energy is on display at venues such as G Livelab, which lies northeast of Viiskulma in Kaartinkaupunki, and at Storyville, the oldest jazz joint in town. Most of the best spots, however, can be found in Kallio, Helsinki’s trendiest neighbourhood. Located north of the city centre and across the Pitkäsilta

bridge, Kallio is a sometimes intoxicating mix of cafes, restaurants, nightclubs and bars and is home to venues such as the Koko Jazz Club and Tenho Restobar.

And then there’s Flow, which began life as a soul and jazz event and is held every August in a former power plant in Suvilahti. It now attracts more than 80,000 people a year.

“It’s the musicians that you play with too,” adds Pöyhönen, who is also the leader of the Ricky-Tick Big Band.

“Jaska Lukkarinen, who’s the drummer in both the bands, is an energetic guy and I think we always have this kind of push, this drive, which is also part of jazz. And right now, especially with what we do with the Ricky-Tick Big

Band, it’s not just about jazz, it’s about hip-hop and other musical influences.”

Pöyhönen is at the Korjaamo Culture Factory in Töölö, a cultural venue not far from his studio and the Sibelius monument, with its wave-like steel pipes forming a visual representation of music.

Nearby is Café Regatta, a traditional red cottage by the edge of the sea famed for its homemade cinnamon buns.

The following evening he is at the Savoy Theatre in central Helsinki leading the Ricky-Tick Big Band & Julkinen Sana. It’s a full house. With the band featuring some of Finland’s finest jazz musicians and the rappers Paleface, Tommy Lindgren and Redrama, it would be hard to imagine it being anything else.

PHOTOS: MIIKKA PIRINEN, KONDRUKHOV KONSTANTIN, KONSTA RYOESA

Flow Festival takes place in a former power plant – tenants now include a brewery and graffiti gallery

56 As traditional food production struggles to keep pace with population growth, veganism has been touted as a solution

HIGH STEAKS

V E G A N I S M I S FA S T MOVING BEYOND A FA D T O W A R D S BECOMING A GLOBAL ECOLOGICAL N E C E S S I T Y. I N T H E U A E , M E A TBASED TRADITIONS ARE BEING TURNED

How big is your favourite cut of steak?

Are you partial to a 500g rib-eye, a 300g eye fillet, or perhaps a 1kg T-bone is more your style? What if we told you that the ideal daily serving size for a piece of beef may be closer to 15g? For many, it’s a concept that’s hard to swallow, yet a team of scientists believe it is the optimum amount of red meat for the health of our bodies and the planet.

A new report published in The Lancet, one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious medical journals, recommends a drastic overhaul of our diets: replacing much of the animal protein we currently consume with plant-based proteins and rethinking the way land is used for agriculture. The EAT-Lancet Commission aims to “illustrate the ways that food production and consumption, perhaps more so than any other human activities, inextricably link the earth’s natural systems and human health, and that this relationship does not have to boil down to a choice between health or the environment.”

ON THEIR HEAD

THE ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT

WORDS:SARAH GAMBONI

T

The report comes at a time when a record number of people are turning to veganism as a way to reduce their environmental footprint.

In November, Forbes reported a 600 per cent increase in the number of US con-

sumers identifying as vegan between 2014 and 2017. The Guardian noted a 260 per cent increase in veganism in the UK over the past decade, with one in eight Britons now vegan or vegetarian.

Earlier this year, 300,000 people took part in Veganuary, a movement that encourages participants to switch to a plant-based diet for January, and which led to Emirates Airlines seeing a 40 per cent spike in the number of vegan meals ordered on flights that month.

For many people who are concerned about global warming, making the switch to veganism or significantly cutting back their intake of animal protein feels like a tangible step towards securing our planet for future generations.

The co-founder of Dubai Vegan Days, Will Rankin explains that there’s a rising body of evidence that shows reducing meat intake will have a positive impact on the health of the planet. “The facts are pretty startling,” says Will. “Animals and meat production cause more greenhouse gases than the entire world’s transport systems. Rainforests and other wooded lands are being razed to the ground to grow soybeans for animal feed and, with a growing global population, food production isn’t keeping pace with the number of people.”

“Animal production is also extremely inefficient in terms of land use,” Will explains. “For example, one acre of land can produce about 22,500kg of tomatoes, 24,000kg of potatoes, 13,500kg of carrots or just 114kg of beef. It doesn’t take a genius to work

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One acre of land can produce about 24,000kg of potatoes – or 114kg of beef

out that if we reduced meat consumption, it would have a direct, rapid, positive effect on the environment.”

Figures provided by The Lancet report suggest that by 2050, feeding our global population with a healthy, sustainable diet will be impossible without massive, systemic changes to our eating habits, food production, and waste reduction. “The food we eat and how we produce it determines the health of people and the planet, and we are currently getting this seriously wrong,” says Tim Lang, the commission’s co-author and professor at Britain’s University of London. “We need a significant overhaul, changing the global food system on a scale not seen before.”

IN GOOD HEALTH

I

It’s not just the health of the planet that gives us a reason to rethink our meat intake. The World Health Organisation classifies processed meats as a Group 1 carcinogen, meaning there is evidence that processed meats cause cancer, while red meat, including beef and lamb, is classified as Group 2A, probably carcinogenic to humans. Nutritionist Banin Shahine from Fitness First believes a vegan diet has a number of health benefits. “It is a great way to improve digestion with a high intake of vegetables, fruits, fibre

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and prebiotics,” she says. “According to the American Dietetic Association, reducing your animal product intake can also help lower the risk of developing chronic diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, and heart diseases. And it may decrease the risk of having cancer, due to its richness in antioxidants and superfoods.”

For those tempted to reduce their meat and dairy intake, one concern that commonly crops up is how to replace those traditional protein sources with plant-based alternatives. “All plants have a good amount of protein, even cucumbers,” says Banin. “However, the quality of protein in plants is different and dependent on the amino acid con-

tent, as there are nine essential amino acids that the body cannot produce.”

These amino acids can be found in quinoa, buckwheat, hemp seeds, chia and spirulina. Banin also suggests vegans supplement their diet with a number of nutrients that are hard to obtain from plants alone, including vitamin B12, omega 3 and zinc.

At their award-winning Little Erth restaurant in Dubai, Nabih Al Momaiz and Ghalia Alul serve a menu that is 98 per cent vegan, drawing on a natural bounty of chickpeas, quinoa, kidney beans, mushrooms, nuts and seeds to create mouth-watering burgers, tagines and desserts. “A lot of our customers are not vegan, but they are very health

conscious, and they like to come to Little Erth because they say the food is ‘clean’,” says Nabih. “We’ve veganised a lot of the most popular Arabic dishes and we’re challenging the idea that a lot of these recipes only go well with meat.”

Dubai-based chef Anand Radia of Nara Pan Asian has been a vegetarian his whole life, and credits his diet with keeping him healthy, “physically and spiritually. At 55 years of age, I am in perfect health, and I have never gone out of my way to source plant-based proteins. Instead, I try and consume a balanced diet consisting of fresh fruits and near raw vegetables as often as possible,” he says. “I know it is difficult to change a ‘habit of a lifetime’, but

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10 TO TRY THE BEST PLACES IN THE UAE TO TRY ON VEGANISM FOR SIZE

Little Erth by Nabz&G

Bareburger

Vegan meatballs, Buddha burgers, and carrot cake with cashew cream are just some of the tempting dishes on offer at Little Erth. They also host a popular vegan Iftar every night during Ramadan. Shop 34, Building J2, Cluster J, JLT, nabzandg.com

Get your vegan burger fix at Bareburger, where the Beyond Meat patty delivers the juiciness and flavour you’d expect from a beef burger, with a huge 25g of plant protein whose primary source is peas. Various locations, bareburger. com/uae/

Nara Pan Asian

Life N One Café

Chinese, Thai and Japanese classics are given a vegetarian makeover, as chef Anand Radia serves meat-free dim sum, curries and sushi alongside the traditional meat and seafood options. Cluster A (next to Movenpick Hotel), JLT, naradxb.com

Located in the Life N One wellness centre, this plant-based café is renowned for its cakes and desserts, such as Snickers pie or the triple chocolate cheesecake, all free from gluten and refined sugar. Street 27B, Jumeirah 1, Jumeirah Beach Road, Dubai, lifenone.com/cafe/

Super Natural Kitchen

Ronda Locatelli

This 100 per cent raw, vegan, gluten-free eatery creates virtuous versions of lasagne, pizza and cakes, along with a dairy-free cheese board of cultured, nut-based cheeses. 2nd Floor, Galeries Lafayette, The Dubai Mall, Downtown, snkitchen.com

From Italian masterchef Giorgio Locatelli, this family-friendly pizzeria in Atlantis, The Palm, has launched a new vegan menu sporting 40 pizzas, pastas and desserts. Atlantis, The Palm, atlantisthepalm.com/restaurants/ronda-locatelli

Wild & The Moon

The Raw Place

With locations in Dubai, Paris and New York, this hip eatery does a roaring trade in breakfast bowls, lunchtime salads, and raw desserts made from nuts, cacao and coconut oil. Alserkal Avenue, Al Quoz, and Robinsons, Dubai Festival City; wildandthemoon.ae

Using certified organic, GMO-free and plant-based ingredients, online store The Raw Place delivers detox juices, handmade nut milks, superfood bowls and restorative soups around the UAE. Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah; therawplace.com

Roots Bistro

Dubai Vegan Days

When you’re craving comfort food, Roots Bistro delivers with its vegan takes on ramen, paella and lasagne.

Techno Hub 2, Dubai Silicon Oasis, rootsbistro.ae

Follow Dubai Vegan Days on Facebook to hear about community days, pop-up markets, informative talks and catchups at vegan eateries around town.

Follow @DXBvegandays

having access to information showing how meat production is harming the environment and how eating meat is actually harmful, the decision should be an easy one to make. Initially become a weekend meat-eater and thereafter reduce totally,” Anand suggests.

CHANGING HABITS

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Ananda Shakespeare, co-founder of Dubai Vegan Days, has been a vegan for 26 years, but she has a simple message for people who are readdressing their diet. “For those who would like to cut down, there’s a movement called Meat Free Mondays, which I think is a good way to start. Paul, Mary and Stella McCartney are behind Meat Free Mondays and it’s been going for years. Try one night a week and then maybe challenge yourself to another day a week and so on. It’s great to challenge ourselves and embrace change… it keeps life interesting.”

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HOW TO HOLD AN AUDIENCE For decades, UK DJ Tony Blackburn has captivated listeners, from Top Of The Pops to Radio 1. What’s his magic formula?

WORDS: IAIN AKERMAN PHOTO: RON BURTON

The former Radio 1 DJ at his home in the UK. Previous page: Rehearsals ahead of the official launch of Radio 1, in 1967. The first record played was ‘Flowers in the Rain’, by The Move

One of the many faces of Top Of The Pops and the DJ who officially launched Radio 1, Tony Blackburn is a household name in the UK. Unabashedly mainstream, he has survived more than 50 years in radio and is as busy as ever, working for four different stations and currently touring the country with Sounds of the 60s, his weekly show on BBC Radio 2.

It is because of The Emirates Soul Show, however, for which Blackburn has so far recorded two episodes, that we are talking. “I listened to one of them coming over – I thoroughly enjoyed it,” he says with a laugh. It’s the kind of easygoing banter that has made him such a popular figure in the UK, refusing to take himself too seriously and mixing lighthearted pop chatter with a genuine love of music.

“For me it’s always been soul music,” he says. “I just love it. You know, people singing from the heart and fabulous singers and anything Motown. That’s the only thing I’m proud of really – introducing Motown into Great Britain.

Because until I started playing it on the pirate ships and on Radio 1 – people like Diana Ross and Stevie Wonder – nobody was playing those records.”

Blackburn began his career as a singer in a dance band, performing at the Bournemouth Pavilion for three years until he landed his first gig as a pirate radio DJ for Radio Caroline in 1964. He later joined Radio London (which, like Radio Caroline, was run from a ship in the North Sea), but it was the launch of BBC Radio 1 in 1967 that made him a household name.

“Good morning everyone, welcome to the exciting new sound of Radio 1,” were his immortal first words.

A large part of his popularity, however, is down to comedy. The British comedian Harry Enfield modelled the fictional character Dave Nice (of Smashie and Nicey fame) on Blackburn and he was once described as “more Partridge than Partridge”. The latter was a reference to Steve Coogan’s comic radio presenter Alan Partridge, who is prone to eccentric, self-aggrandising chatter.

It’s the kind of gentle mockery that Blackburn appreciates. “I’ve never taken myself too seriously. With an act like mine you can’t,” he says with a chuckle, injecting self-deprecating humour into the conversation with endearing regularity.

“I made 29 singles and two albums – all ahead of their time,” he says at one stage, discussing his failed singing career and, in particular, the song I’ll Do Anything, which he recorded in 1969.

He would later describe it as a “soul record without any soul”.

“I’d already destroyed Baby I Need Your Loving by the Four Tops and I didn’t realise I couldn’t sing soul music,” he says with a smile. “It’s very difficult. But this record got released in the northern soul clubs under the name of Lenny Gamble and somebody rung me up and said, ‘I don’t know if you know, but you’ve got a northern soul hit’. I said ‘that’s an awful record’. But I went to the Wigan Casino and they introduced me on stage as Lenny Gamble and I came on and I could see the look of disappointment in their eyes.

They thought, ‘my God, we bought a Tony Blackburn record by mistake’.”

Despite the self-mockery, there’s a formula to Blackburn’s success. One that has assured him a place in British radio history.

“If you’re going to go on the radio you might as well get a big audience,” he says.

“I’ve always adopted the American top 40 system, which is based on a half an hour format where you would take the same records, but you’d change them every week because you predict what’s going to be a hit and what isn’t going to be a hit. So you refresh it that way.

“The current commercial radio in Britain I think is awful. They play the same records over and over again. With my shows you’re never more than one record away from a hit, and that’s the secret of getting an audience.”

Hear an exclusive interview with Tony Blackburn, who tells us all about his colourful career and how he came to host The Emirates Soul Show. Listen to it on channel 1800 on ice.

PHOTO: DAN KITWOOD / GETTY IMAGES

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66 / EXPO 2020

Welcoming everyone in the ‘hayyakum’ spirit Inspired by the traditional Emirati greeting of ‘hayyakum’, Expo 2020 Dubai is creating an inclusive site equipped to deliver an unforgettable visitor experience for millions of people – and everyone’s invited What does it mean to host a World Expo?

It means bringing together millions of people from every corner of the planet to share ideas, drive progress and have fun.

It means creating a jam-packed programme of events, with mind-blowing performances from world-famous artists, taste bud-tickling cuisine from Michelin star chefs, horizon-expanding talks from pioneering thinkers, and everything in between.

Most importantly, it means delivering an unforgettable visitor experience for everyone, regardless of age, background or ability.

In the spirit of ‘hayyakum’ – a traditional Emirati greeting used to welcome guests – Expo 2020 Dubai aims to host the most inclusive World Expo in history. Our accessible site will cater to all needs, with a variety of features that have been ‘designed in’ to empower visitors in line with our theme of ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and our key subtheme of Opportunity.

Based on the principles of equity, dignity, functionality and independence, the Expo 2020 team has considered all visitor segments and requirements to create a comprehensive selection of accessibility solutions, which are being deployed across the site and its supporting infrastructure.

From mobility services such as wheelchairs and charging stations, strollers and electric vehicles travelling to and from designated parking zones, to audio-description guides and audio induction loops for people with visual or hearing impairments, Expo 2020 has the amenities needed to support every single visitor journey.

In collaboration with the Dubai Autism Center, Expo has also created four quiet rooms – spread across its site – to provide ‘decompression areas’ for visitors who are prone to experiencing sensory overload or hypersensitivity.

With accessibility and inclusivity at its core, Expo 2020 is working with its partners and participants to deliver a hassle-free visitor experience for people of determination, senior citizens, guests with temporary injuries or medical conditions, individuals of tall or short stature, pregnant women, families with small children, school groups, and every other segment of society.

Put simply, if you are ready to take part in a global celebration of human ingenuity and progress, we are ready to say ‘hayyakum’ to you. Whoever you are, wherever you’re from and whatever your requirements, Expo 2020 can provide tools that will help you to shape a brighter tomorrow.

By welcoming the world to our accessible and inclusive site, we hope to help raise the benchmark for accessibility and inclusivity in our region and beyond, creating a lasting impact for generations to come.

At Expo 2020, we are committed to saying ‘hayyakum’ to the world, because every single one of us has an important role to play in ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’.

The Expo 2020 site has considered every visitor in its design, from wheelchair stations to audio induction loops

For more, check out the Expo 2020 podcast on ice channel 1901.

68 / LITFEST / THE BIG QUESTION

From left: Jane Hawking’s memoir was a poignant memory of her father

The highlights of the 10th Emirates Airline Festival of Literature LOCAL FLAVOUR The 10th iteration of the festival kicked off with a spectacular opening event at The Cultural & Scientific Association, Al Mamzar. The ceremony featured multicultural performers honouring the history of the Festival and its home, Dubai, with recitals by Festival 2018 authors, shadow-dancers, pearl diver aerialists and traditional Emirati sea-faring singers, bringing to life the many facets of the Festival’s programme. The event also marked the official launch of the Festival’s 10th anniversary book, For the Love of Words.

INSPIRATIONAL MEMOIRS Travelling to Infinity is Jane Hawking’s record of her time with her then husband, the renowned Stephen Hawking, tracing his life after motor neurone disorder struck him, through to his ascension into one of the most brilliant minds of his day. Alannah Hill designs fabulously feminine clothing with frills, flowers and flair. Her memoir however, makes it clear that underneath all that froth, lies a core of steel. Evolved celebrates Darcey Bussell’s many achievements, becoming the principal dancer

HOW TO SPEAK IN PUBLIC Radio personality Richard Dean launched a groundbreaking new book on public speaking at LitFest – CROWDPLEASER: the 100 greatest public speaking tips of all time from Socrates to Steve Jobs. The tips will, says Dean, “transform your talks in minutes.” Each of the 100 lessons summarises a classic public speaking tip, such as the Steve Jobs ‘Twitter-friendly headline’ or ‘The Wonder Woman Pose’ by Harvard professor Amy Cuddy.

ADVICE FOR WANNABE WRITERS The Festival programme also included a dedicated Publishing Day, where global industry experts held sessions, master-

PHOTO: ANGELINA MICU

Why go to a literature festival?

of the Royal Ballet Company at a mere 20 years of age and features gravity-defying poses through a series of gorgeous images shot by Annie Liebowitz and Mario Testino. All spoke at LitFest about their journey.

LITFEST / THE BIG QUESTION / 69

classes and workshops on key aspects of publishing, while experts on the Business Day discussed the latest thinking on a range of topics to help business leaders give their companies the edge.

There was also a raft of competitions to hone writing skills, from the Oxford University Press (OUP) Story Writing Competition to the Costa Debate for 2019 (which is best, Fact or Fiction?)

IMMERSIVE EVENTS More than 1,700 children were entertained by Diary of a Wimpy Kid author Jeff Kinney in his hilarious fast-paced show and crowds of YA fans came to see their heroes Cassandra Clare, Holly Black and Victoria Aveyard. The children’s programme included favourite characters such as the Demon Headmaster, Isadora Moon and Bee Boy with lots of free family fun events and the Festival Fringe showcasing drama and music from schools and community groups around the region. Special

Nine days of literary entertainment featured more than 175 global authors.

Below: Richard Dean

Events included a dedicated Youth Day which attracted more than 1,200 young people to the dynamic sessions designed to engage, inform and inspire the up and coming generation of the UAE; a ‘United by Food’ dinner celebrating the ways we are all connected by words and food; the return of the Festival’s atmospheric landmark event Desert Stanzas; and The Murder Mystery Dinner featuring legendary DJ Tony Blackburn.

For more, visit the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature podcast on channel 1805 on ice.

70 / THE YEAR OF TOLERANCE

Sheikh Zayed at the opening of St Andrew’s Church in 1968

What is tolerance?

In the UAE’s Year of Tolerance, Reverend Andrew Thompson asks what the term could – and should – mean for today’s world ADAPTED FROM ‘CELEBRATING TOLERANCE: RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY IN THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES’/BOOKSARABIA.COM When I stand in the garden of St Andrew’s Vicarage, which is our home in Abu Dhabi, I look to my right and I see the magnificent mosque of Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, with its four minarets towering over my house. In front of me, lies the huge campus of the Roman Catholic Church of St Joseph. One starry night, we hosted a Passover meal in our garden and as the Psalms known as the Hallel (part of the Passover tradition) began to be chanted in Hebrew, suddenly the call to prayer rang out plaintively from the minaret next door.

At the same time, the Roman Catholic Church who were holding an open air meeting in their courtyard burst into a song of praise – a Christian hymn of worship to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

For a profound moment, the Hebrew chanting, the Arabic call to prayer and a traditional English hymn collided in the

air over the garden. It sent shivers down my spine and I wondered where else in the world would you experience this?

The word tolerance in the English language can be ambivalent in meaning; to tolerate someone does not necessarily imply an attitude of goodwill. For example, the child’s bad behaviour was tolerated through gritted teeth. Is this the meaning behind the Emirati commitment to tolerance? Is the purpose of tolerance to put up with the expatriate presence and religious others with ill grace, or a plea to the foreign tourists to bear with the Islamic culture and practice of the Emiratis?

The reality of religious tolerance on the ground in the UAE is very different.

In Arabic, the word used for tolerance by the UAE’s government is tasaamu, which unlike the English word has no negative undertone. Thus, according to the Arabic dictionary, the verb used in

this instance means to “show oneself as tolerant, by treating others kindly and with indulgence, and to forgive”. Another form of the verb with the same root is translated as “to grant from a generous heart, to be generous, magnanimous, kind, liberal, open-handed”.

The UAE’s long history of religious tolerance stands in stark contrast to her neighbours. With over forty church centres, two Hindu temples, a Mormon Stake and a Sikh Gurduwara, the UAE hosts more religious minority buildings of worship than the rest of the GCC put together.

Most recently, this commitment to religious tolerance was enshrined to a deeper level with a new law, passed in 2015, which criminalised all forms of discrimination on the grounds of religion, caste, creed, doctrine, race, colour or ethnic origin.

For people not familiar with the UAE, the discovery that there is freedom of worship here, not only for Christians, but also for people of other faiths comes as a surprise.

The one thing that unites us all as diverse religious communities in the UAE is our commitment to tolerance, tasaamu, that is, to be generous-hearted, kind, forgiving and open-handed. In short, this whole book is a call to friendship. That in the words of the Holy Qur’an, there is a divine mandate to “know one another“ (Surah Al Hujurat 49:13), or as Jesus Christ said, we must “love our neighbours“ (Mattew 22:39).

May God guide and bless the UAE as they pursue the paths of peace and tolerance.

Rev. Canon Andrew Thompson is Senior Anglican Chaplain of St Andrew’s Church, which is next door to the magnificent Mary Mother of Jesus Mosque.

Emirates NEWS

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INSIDE EMIRATES

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DESTINATION

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UAE SMART GATE

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ROUTE MAP

Along the Douro Emirates is to launch a four times weekly service between Portugal’s second largest city, Porto, and Dubai from July 2. p.74

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FLEET

74 / EMIRATES / NEWS

Emirates to launch new service to Porto Porto will become Emirates’ second destination in Portugal, as Emirates announced it will launch a four times weekly service between the country’s second-largest city and Dubai from 2 July 2019.

Emirates – which currently serves capital Lisbon with two flights a day – will provide travellers with a new service in northern Portugal, a major urban area, as well as those in the Northwest of Spain in cities such as Vigo and Santiago de Compostela.

The flight will be operated by a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft in a three class cabin configuration, offering eight private suites in First Class, 42 lie flat seats in Business Class and 310 spacious seats in Economy Class.

The flight between Dubai and Porto will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays, and depart Dubai as EK197 at 0915hrs and arrive in Porto at 1430hrs. The return flight, EK198, will depart Porto at 1735hrs and land in Dubai at 0415hrs the next morning.

Situated along the coast and on the Douro River, Porto is world famous for

its Port wine production and historical city centre, a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site. Besides offering a rich cultural heritage and variety of tourist attractions, Porto is also an important trade and industrial city, attracting business travellers.

The new service will also enable Emirates SkyCargo to offer up to 18 tonnes of cargo capacity on the flight, giving local businesses the opportunity to increase their exports such as garments, shoes, automotive parts and cork.

EMIRATES TO LINK PHNOM PENH AND BANGKOK WITH DAILY SERVICE FROM DUBAI Emirates will link Phnom Penh (PNH) and Bangkok (BKK) with its new daily service set to launch on 1 June 2019. The service from Dubai to Phnom Penh, via Bangkok, will provide passengers travelling between the capital cities of Cambodia and Thailand with more flight options.

Travellers from both Southeast Asian nations will also enjoy access to Emirates’ global network, with enhanced connectivity to over 150 destinations in 86 countries and territories.

The new service will be operated with an Emirates Boeing 777 aircraft. Flights to Phnom Penh will depart daily from Dubai International Airport (DXB) at 0845hrs local time, as EK370, and arrive in Bangkok at 1815hrs. The same flight will then depart Bangkok at 2000hrs,

before arriving at Phnom Penh International Airport at 2125hrs.

On the return segment, flight EK371 will depart Phnom Penh at 2320hrs, and will arrive in Bangkok at 0040hrs, the following day.

It will then set off to Dubai at 0225hrs, arriving at 0535hrs.

Emirates has been serving Cambodia with its flights to Phnom Penh since July 2017, carrying over 100,000 passengers on the route to date. As Cambodia’s largest and most rapidly developing city, Phnom Penh contributes significantly to the country’s economic growth and continues to witness a significant increase in foreign tourist arrivals. Trade links between the UAE, Cambodia and Thailand will also be supported with daily Emirates cargo services on the same route.

EMIRATES / NEWS / 75

ADVANCED NAVIGATION TECHNOLOGY TO INCREASE CARGO CAPACITY TO KABUL

Emirates Flight Operations has developed a new navigation technique that allows the airline to carry additional cargo into Kabul International airport. The innovative missed-approach procedure developed by the airline has replaced an older technique that required cargo bound for Kabul to be offloaded in Dubai during poor weather conditions at the destination.

Emirates operates a daily flight into Kabul International airport on its Boeing 777-300ER aircraft and within the first three months of implementation, the new solution gave Emirates the capability for carrying an additional 250 tonnes of cargo into Kabul during low-cloud conditions.

Kabul airport is situated in a wide valley at an elevation of 5,800 feet and is surrounded by mountains that are over 11,000 feet tall. The airport has a number of constraints associated with it because of the challenging terrain, Air Traffic Control (ATC) and other security requirements.

Kabul airport’s primary Runway 29 has two established missed-approach procedures with one of them requiring that an aircraft be able to climb at a steep angle when cloud cover is lower than 1,200 feet.

Previously, whenever meteorological reports predicted cloud cover below this level at Kabul airport, cargo was offloaded in Dubai to make the aircraft lighter to ensure that in the event the aircraft had to execute a missed-approach at Kabul airport, it could achieve the required climb gradient. However, this measure often resulted in cargo not arriving on time at Kabul. In order to optimise cargo loads without compromising on safety, Emirates Flight Operations Support developed a new missed-approach navigation procedure with an easier climb gradient for Kabul airport’s Runway 29 taking advantage of the Boeing 777 aircraft’s superior navigational accuracy.

Emirates partners with tech startups for Dubai Future Accelerators Emirates and Dubai Future Accelerators, an initiative of Dubai Future Foundation, have launched the sixth cohort of their Accelerators programme.

The Dubai Future Accelerators programme brings together innovative tech startups from around the world to collaborate with government and corporate entities in Dubai to develop solutions around specific challenges outlined by the host entities.

The three challenges defined by Emirates are: using the latest blockchain and AI technology to build a platform that will redefine b2b purchasing and procurement for the airline; creating an integrated platform to support a seamless pre-airport arrival experience for customers travelling on Emirates;

and developing an online system that consolidates all the different processes involved in cabin crew duty travel.

The seven shortlisted teams taking part in the programme originate from six different countries including two teams from the UAE.

EMIRATES WINS AWARDS FOR CABINS AND LOYALTY PROGRAMME

Emirates has won ‘Favourite Middle East Airline, Premium Cabin’ at the Condé Nast Middle East Reader’s Choice Awards, as well as ‘Excellence in Management’ at the Loyalty Awards 2019.

The Condé Nast awards are conferred by reader-generated votes across the GCC. Over the past year, Emirates has been working hard to bring its customers a more comfortable and connected onboard experience, from refreshed cabins to greater entertainment options, dining choices and upgraded lounges.

For the second year, Emirates Skywards, the loyalty programme of Emirates and flydubai, was presented with the ‘Excellence in Management’ award at the Loyalty Awards 2019.

In 2018, Emirates Skywards was recognised for its use of data science to optimise member engagement through relevant offers. This year, Emirates Skywards introduced its dynamic flight upgrade and Cash+Miles promotions for members who book their flights via Emirates.com.

76 / INSIDE EMIRATES

To Veganuary and beyond

The worldwide vegan movement had a major impact on which meals you requested on board Emirates in January – but it didn’t stop there

Emirates’ team of nutritionists and chefs use the freshest vegetables and unique grains to create our special meals. Known for our regionallyinspired cuisine on board, we take the same approach for our vegan meals, with recipes inspired by our destinations.

Emirates’ Veganuary in numbers

20,000+ Plant-based meals served on board

40% Increase in requests for vegan meals

The movement didn’t stop in January: • Emirates has more than 170 plant-based recipes in its kitchen • They are designed by a team of nutritionists and chefs • Vegan is our 3rd most commonly requested special meal in Economy • Emirates was voted as ‘Best Airline for Vegan Meals’

by Vegan News

Our most popular vegan meals: • Mushroom ravioli • Vegetable tagine served with couscous • Sweet potato, lentil and spinach ragout with brown rice …Not forgetting desserts • Key lime parfait with date and citrus compote • Moist chocolate cake • Chia seed pudding

INSIDE EMIRATES / 77

We go to great lengths to present our customers in every class with a great dining experience, regardless of their preferences or dietary requirements.”

Joost Heymeijer, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Catering

Prefer a regular meal?

For customers less inclined toward a plant-based diet, Emirates’ regular menus are also whipped up by award-winning chefs • 110 million+ meals served onboard each year • The same attention to detail across classes • 55 million+ dine-in guests catered to per year • Destination-inspired cuisine

DID YOU KNOW? 18,000kgs+ Of nut-based cheese has been served on board in the last year

How to get your hands on one of our vegan meals Vegan meals, along with other special meals, are available on all Emirates flights and across all classes and can be requested 24 hours before departure. All the menus on board are changed monthly.

WANT TO FIND OUT MORE? HEAD TO EMIRATES’ OWN FOOD AND WINE CHANNELS ON ICE TO GET A BEHIND-THE-SCENES LOOK AT HOW WE CREATE OUR ONBOARD MENUS AND WORK WITH OUR GLOBAL PARTNERS

78 / EMIRATES / DESTINATION

Glasgow, Scotland Take in the colour – and humour – of this former merchant city Glasgow is testament to the fact that a city is not all that it appears. Superficially, its centre is mostly made up of a lot of handsome – if stolid – brick institutions that have weathered both the loss of industrialisation, as well as winters that run to around two degrees.

Yet, colour can be found in the unlikeliest of corners. Whether its the Klein blue of Glasgow Cathedral’s stained glass, the gold leaf of City Chambers, or the bright fuschia of the Billy Connolly mural in Gallowgate – this is a city that you have to delve into in order to appreciate.

Another inarguable source of colour are Glaswegians themselves, who are only too willing to poke fun at themselves (and others).

Check out the Stand or Rotunda comedy clubs for some of the best acts in the country – or just try to decipher residents’ many colloquialisms.

Once the shipbuilder to the world, today the city has many more strings to its bow, from art to architecture and music. A perhaps lesser-known attraction is its shopping – the city has the second-largest retail sector in the UK, most of which can be found on Style Mile.

Pick up some Scottish tartan or tweed at one of the traditional tailors on Sauchiehall Street, browse diamonds at Argyll Arcade, or haggle for flea-market finds at Barras Market.

A mural of local comedian Billy Connolly on Osborne Street

Emirates will operate the A380 on the Glasgow-Dubai route between 16 April and 31 May.

EMIRATES / DESTINATION / 79

15 GLASGOW This boutique bed & breakfast manages to mesh period features – the 19th-century terrace property has original fittings such as fireplaces and wooden shutters – with a cosy and informal atmosphere.

Its five rooms are pet friendly and a meander away from the bohemian West End. 15glasgow.com

ALSTON BAR & BEEF If you happen to notice commuters slipping through an unremarkable doorway inside Glasgow Central Station, chances are they’re heading to Alston, a speakeasy-style underground gin bar and steak house that sources from sustainable, small batch farms that grass feed. alstonglasgow.co.uk

GLASGOW TIGERS SPEEDWAY Scotland’s best motorcycle riders jostle for position at speeds of over 100km/h, with no brakes, in this event that runs from March to August. The machines are specially designed to have only one gear which – alongside the lack of brakes – causes their extreme sliding. glasgowtigers.co

BLYTHSWOOD SQUARE HOTEL

HOTEL DU VIN GLASGOW

For a stay with all the amenities head to this five-star property, which has a barber shop, heated pool, golf course and beauty salon on its premises.

Activities like snow skiing and racquetball can be arranged, and the city centre is just a 10-minute walk away. blythswood-square. hotelsofglasgow.com

Near to the Botanic Gardens and only half an hour from Loch Lomond, Hotel du Vin – part of a boutique chain in the UK – is set on a tree-lined Victorian terrace in the West End. Stay for the ambience, plus luxuries such as a cigar shack and whiskey room. hotelduvin.com/locations/glasgow

111 BY NICO

THE UBIQUITOUS CHIP

A bistro that mentors young people from underprivileged backgrounds, 111 is ethically-minded without losing its gastronomic focus. Their menu changes weekly but adventurous eaters should try ‘TRUST’, where the guest chooses from a list of 12 ingredients to make up their five course tasting menu.

111bynico.co.uk

Known affectionately just as ‘The Chip’ by locals, this brasserie, restaurant and bar trifecta has been open since 1971. Now, food provenance is all-too familiar but owner Ronnie Clydsedale was truly unique in his championing of local Scottish cuisine, before it was fashionable. ubiquitouschip.co.uk

SWG3

HAMPDEN PARK

Roisin Murphy plays there in May, as well as every iteration of EDM, a regular poetry night and an event space for hire. This artistic tabula rasa can adapt to fit every creative medium manageable – the Acid Bar hosts ongoing exhibitions, and the Yard is an outdoor space that has seen graffiti shows and food festivals alike. swg3.tv

Take a tour around the 52,000-seater stadium that created the ‘Hampden Roar’, a crowd celebration so loud that in 1929, a player lying in the infirmary a mile away could hear it. As well as a chance to measure the speed of your penalty kick, visitors can also visit the football museum housed within. hampdenpark.co.uk

80 / EMIRATES / UAE SMART GUIDE

Be smart!

NATIONALITIES THAT CAN USE UAE SMART GATES

Use UAE Smart Gate at Dubai International Airport Citizens of the countries listed on the right and UAE residents can speed through Dubai International by using UAE Smart Gate.

If you hold a machine-readable passport, an E-Gate card or Emirates ID card you can check

in and out of the airport within seconds.

Just look out for signs that will direct you to the many UAE Smart Gates found on either side of the Immigration Hall at Dubai International Airport.

USING UAE SMART GATE IS EASY

1

Have your machine-readable passport, E-Gate card or Emirates ID card ready to be scanned.

2

Place your passport photo page on the scanner. If you are a UAE resident, place your E-Gate card or Emirates ID card into the card slot.

3

Go through the open gate, stand on the blue footprint guide on the floor, face the camera straight-on and stand still for your iris scan. When finished, the next set of gates will open and you can continue to baggage claim.

REGISTERING FOR UAE SMART GATE IS EASY

To register for Smart Gate access, just spend a few moments having your details validated by an immigration officer and that’s it. Every time you fly to Dubai in future, you will be out of the airport and on your way just minutes after you have landed.

IF YOU’RE A UAE RESIDENT

Remember to bring your Emirates ID card next time you’re travelling through DXB – you’ll be able to speed through passport control in a matter of seconds, without paying and without registering. Valid at all Smart Gates, located in Arrivals and Departures, across all three terminals at DXB.

*UK citizens only (UK overseas citizens still require a visa)

UAE SMART GATE CAN BE USED BY: • Machine-readable passports from the above countries • E-Gate cards • Emirates ID cards

82 / EMIRATES / ROUTE MAP

Emirates Porto: four times weekly service starts 2 July flydubai Naples: daily service starts 4 June

A380 ROUTES

NEW ROUTES

Routes shown are as of time of going to press

*Suspended

**Seasonal service

GLOBAL ROUTES

Emirates Amsterdam / Auckland / Bangkok / Barcelona / Beijing / Birmingham / Brisbane / Casablanca / Christchurch / Copenhagen / Dusseldorf / Frankfurt / Guangzhou / Hamburg / Hong Kong / Houston / Jeddah / Johannesburg / Kuala Lumpur / Kuwait / London / Los Angeles / Madrid / Manchester / Mauritius / Melbourne / Milan / Moscow / Mumbai / Munich / New York / Nice / Osaka / Paris / Perth / Prague / Rome / San Francisco / SĂŁo Paulo / Seoul / Shanghai / Singapore / Sydney / Taipei / Tokyo / Toronto / Vienna / Washington, DC / Zurich

Emirates route

flydubai route

TRAVEL TO ADDITIONAL DESTINATIONS WITH OUR CODESHARE PARTNERS

With 23 codeshare partners in 26 countries (21 airlines and an air/rail codeshare arrangement with France’s SNCF/TGV Air and Italy’s Trenitalia), Emirates has even more flight options, effectively expanding its network by over 300 destinations.

Visit emirates.com for full details on our travel partners

EMIRATES / ROUTE MAP / 83

Routes shown are as of time of going to press

*Suspended

**Seasonal service

84 / EMIRATES / ROUTE MAP

MIDDLE EAST

Emirates route

AFRICA flydubai route

EMIRATES / ROUTE MAP / 85

ASIA & PACIFIC

EUROPE & CENTRAL ASIA

**Seasonal service

86 / EMIRATES / ROUTE MAP

AMERICAS

Routes shown are as of time of going to press

EMIRATES SKYCARGO

Freighter destinations

88 / EMIRATES / FLEET

Emirates Fleet

Our fleet of 269 aircraft includes 257 passenger aircraft and 12 SkyCargo aircraft

AIRBUS A380-800

109 IN FLEET All aircraft

up to 4,000+

Up to 489-615 passengers. Range: 15,000km. L 72.7m x W 79.8m

20+ aircraft

BOEING 777-300ER

136 IN FLEET All aircraft

up to 4,000+

Up to 354-428 passengers. Range: 14,594km. L 73.9m x W 64.8m 100+ aircraft

For more information: emirates.com/ourfleet

BOEING 777-200LR

10 IN FLEET All aircraft

3,000+

Up to 302 passengers. Range: 17,446km. L 63.7m x W 64.8m

EMIRATES / FLEET / 89 HERE’S WHAT CONNECTIVITY, ENTERTAINMENT AND SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE ON BOARD EACH AIRCRAFT TYPE

Live TV, news & sport

Wi-Fi

Mobile phone

Data roaming

Number of channels

First Class Shower Spa

*Onboard lounge

**In-seat power

USB port

In-seat telephone

* First Class and Business Class; **Available in all rows in Economy Class, and in all seats in First Class and Business Class

BOEING 777-300 1 IN FLEET All aircraft

1,900+

Up to 364 passengers. Range: 11,029km. L 73.9m x W 60.9m

AIRBUS A319 1 IN FLEET

2,000+

The Emirates Executive Private Jet takes our exceptional service to the highest level to fly you personally around the world. Fly up to 19 guests in the utmost comfort of our customised A319 aircraft with the flexibility of private jet travel.

Further information at emirates-executive.com

EMIRATES SKYCARGO

BOEING 777F 12 IN FLEET

Range: 9,260km. L 63.7m x W 64.8m

The most environmentally-friendly freighter operated today, with the lowest fuel burn of any comparably-sized cargo aircraft. Along with its wide main-deck cargo door, which can accommodate oversized consignments, it is also capable of carrying up to 103 tonnes of cargo non-stop on 10-hour sector lengths.

Aircraft numbers accurate at the time of going to press

Up to 19 passengers. Range: 7,000km. L 33.84m x W 34.1m

FERNANDO GREDIAGA’S

GUIDE TO MEXICO CITY From Netflix’s Oscar-winning ‘Roma’, Fernando Grediaga introduces the real Mexico City INTERVIEW: EMMA COILER The Roma district was named by Mexico City as one of its magical neighbourhoods, or “Barrios Mágicos”. That says it all about Roma. It’s a place of magic: the colours, the people, the streets.

The great thing about Mexico City is that it is warm most of the year, so you don’t need to worry about the weather. I love the morning walks there – it just makes the world seem so colourful. It’s so eclectic; business people on their way to work, the many juice stalls piled high with papaya’s and melons, and the delicious smell of huevos y frijoles (eggs and beans) coming from everywhere.

Roma probably has become more gentrified over recent years, but even though it has many tourists, it doesn’t feel touristy. It still very much has that real and gritty feel to it. If you are a regular visitor, it’s the sort of place where the bartenders remember your name – it has a real neighbourhood feel.

MEXICO CITY, MEXICO

19.4326° N, 99.1332° W

Famous for its cafes and coffee shops, Borola on Jalapa is my favourite. Not only is the coffee totally delicious but they have an incredible choice as well. Buna on Orizaba is great, too; it’s located on the fountain-centred Plaza Rio de Janeiro, which is a brilliant place for people watching.

For dinner, Salon Covadonga on Puebla is some of the best seafood I have had anywhere in the world. Sobrino’s on Obregon is an upmarket place if you are looking for somewhere special, and they have this great pavement bar where you can sip on a margarita while they get your table ready.

A special place in Roma for you that sums the district up is El Moro on Obregon, a 24-hour joint that sells churros and hot chocolate. I like going late when the street musicians are there after a long night playing.

Fly to Mexico City and over 70 other destinations in the US, Caribbean and Latin America, with Emirates and Jet Blue.