A bite and no crime

I've wanted to talk about food and public safety for awhile now. These are two elements of daily life that are noticeably different in the UAE. Housing in Abu Dhabi costs about as much as New York or San Francisco (alas), but crime rates and food prices don't follow suit. And I'm not just saying that to get y'all to come visit (though you WILL have a free place to stay...)

Actually, I didn't believe it until I saw it myself. This past March, some miscreant in San Francisco shot out both the windshield and back window of my VW Beetle. When I mentioned the incident to a friend living in Qatar (the country right next door to the UAE), he wrote, "That would never, ever happen in the Gulf." Although I pointedly shared this with anyone who feared I was moving to a terrorism zone, I was dubious. Runaway growth, massive wealth and a large service economy is a perfect recipe for petty crime and general yahoo-ery, in my humble opinion. My Qatar friend, a US diplomat, was surely sheltered from reality.

Or not. In a city the size and shape of Abu Dhabi (you've seen the pictures: apartment buildings shoulder-to-shoulder, skyscrapers, malls, wide streets filled with cars and taxis), there is very, very little crime. Not only is there hardly any actual crime, there is a pervading sense of security. I don't know why this is true because I have seen exactly one police car since I landed, but something is clearly working. Colleagues leave their cars unlocked. One woman at school told a story today about leaving her wallet in a restaurant and returning a day later to claim it, and her money inside. No one seemed surprised by this. I have found myself doing things like leaving my purse in the shopping cart and walking off in search of an item, only realizing later how risky it should feel.

And, speaking of the grocery store (how's that for a segue?), food quality and food prices here are probably the most reasonable I've seen anywhere in the world. Western-style supermarkets are pretty much the only option, and most are European chains (Carrefour, Lulu, Spinneys). While they're low on traditional culture and exotic character, they are high on value and service, with prices to match any souk. In the mall at the end of 9th Street, the grocery store Lulu has this salad bar-by-the-kilo sort of thing. Load up a good-sized plastic container full of lettuce, veggies, chicken, legumes and feta for the equivalent of, oh, $3. Obviously, the Middle Eastern food is a steal, with containers of hummus, kalamata olives or a dozen dolmas for $1. A gallon of milk or a loaf of bread (whole wheat, freshly baked, sliced to order) costs about $1.50. (Camel milk is even cheaper.) But imported stuff is also reasonable. To be honest, I don't buy that much, but I got a package of Atlantic smoked salmon for about $4. Not even Trader Joe's (which I do miss somewhat desperately) can beat that. Oddly (or maybe not) broccoli is the only vegetable that's almost impossible to find and crazy expensive when it shows up. I saw it yesterday for the equivalent of $5.50/pound! Think about it the next time to buy those florets.

I didn't know what I expected before I came. I didn't know if the whole city would be dripping in gold and soaked with inflation, or if all this famed Gulf wealth was just a mirage. I do know that the government is working overtime to keep prices stable, and that a gallon of gas sells for about $1.70 ( a huge, recent jump) where across the border in less-obnoxiously-loaded Qatar it's still under $1. This place is not immune to the laws of economics. But they are doing something right.

If you know the secret to the UAE's low crime rate and food prices, do share...