Now guys we've all sinned in the news and read reports about tourists that got
arrested for fairly innocuous things unfortunately they're all true
so here's ten things that you definitely don't do when you're here in Dubai the
UAE or anywhere in the Middle East
number one substances drink and drugs is generally not tolerated yes there's
plenty of alcohol here in the Middle East even though it's Muslim country and
they generally aren't supposed to drink it you won't find any problem finding it
in a supermarket in a bar or a hotel but keep it in a bar or a hotel because
quite frankly if you are caught with alcohol in the middle of the street or
if you're drunk in public this can get you arrested and fined what's less
tolerable than alcohol is drugs if they find drugs on you if they find drugs
stuck to you if they even suspect that you're doing some kind of drugs this is
a surefire way of landing it in prison if you are into drugs don't bother doing
them here and if you do enjoy drink make sure you enjoy it in licensed bar and
enjoy it sensibly what about tobacco well generally tobacco is allowed but
only in designated areas there are specific signs that will point you out
to these designated areas where you could smoke failure to contain yourself
within these areas will obviously land you a fine number two don't eat and
drink during Ramadan currently I'm here in Dubai and is Ramadan this means that
you can't eat or drink between the hours of sunrise and sunset here in Dubai now
I know what you're going to be thinking that means I'm gonna starve to death
that means you've got a die of thirst well not necessarily yes it's true that
some restaurants close up completely there's nothing you can do about that
but the ones that stay open will black out their windows pop
like curtains up and put up signs say that they are open to non-muslims and
children so you could still go in and consume food and beverage but you can't
leave the premises with it so it's better than nothing I guess
what's even more inconvenient is if you do this in a shopping mall there are
food outlets that will serve you the food but they'll put it in a plastic bag
and they'll tell you to consume it in the food court
now these shopping malls are palatial and you might be walking 500 meters or
more just to reach the nearest food court to take a sip of water so even
though it's inconvenient it's not the end of the world remember you're in a
foreign country with a following religion and you have to be respectful
of the local wars religions and customs number three don't stay in a hotel room
with somebody that you're not married to or closely related to if you're a young
couple and you want to come to Dubai and you want to sleep in the same room
together bear in mind that this is actually illegal and they will check at
reception there are ways of getting around this number one where fake
wedding rings green photos of you photoshopped in wedding dresses and
suits etc and just argue that eat does not have time to change your names etc
that's usually enough to kind of alleviate any suspicion from the hotel
staff but this is a law that they enforce strictly so if you do find
yourself foul of this law you could be facing a quite a lengthy prison sentence
whilst we're on the subject of spouses public displays of affection are not
tolerated so in the West we're happy to hug each other kiss each other or grope
each other I guess in the middle of the street this is not tolerated here in
Dubai or the Middle East this can get you arrested in the worst case scenario
but more often than not this gets you a tongue lashing from the locals and
people who get offended by that number five dress code
you've got to dress modestly when you're here in Dubai now I know it's hot it's
always hot it's a desert country but you still have to cover up skin so four men
short-sleeved shirts and shorts that go over the knees and for women something
that covers and shoulders and a long flowing dress that hides the legs if you
stick to that you generally won't suffer here and yes there are tourists that
walk around generally half-naked and yes people don't bat an eyelid and sometimes
they get away with it but do you want to take that chance they enforce this rule
strictly in places like mosques and government buildings they won't let you
near the place if you're dressed inappropriately so better in mind when
you're packing your suitcase number six don't use obscenities or hand gestures
swearing can get you arrested and fined so people understand English they know
all the English swear words if they hear you saying it they will Dobby win or at
least give you a good telling off aggressive hand gestures are also not
tolerated so even doing something like this is an
insult doing this is an insult and obviously that and that will get you
arrested so if in doubt don't use any hand gestures at all number seven don't
take people's photos without their consent so obviously there's a lot of
cool things to photograph it in Dubai but you've got to watch out because if
you take your photograph of someone and they don't give consent this could lan
you it's some serious trouble especially if you take pictures of women children
or Emiratis they hate that and if you are caught taking photos and they've not
agreed to it you're going to land yourself in jail that's not a joke in
general you can go around and take as many pictures as you like with your cell
phone so long as it's for personal use if you're a professional like me and
you're wielding around a giant DSLR security will shut you down pretty much
immediately and ask you if you have permission or a permit slip most of
which I don't have and they're very protective about their property and
professional photographers generally have to pay to take commercial snaps so
if you are wielding a professional looking DSLR don't be surprised if
secured to your police come and ask you the permits if they do tell you to leave
pack your camera away and leave without question don't argue
arguing with them is a surefire way of getting yourself into some serious
trouble you know man 8 don't act like a complete tourist but need I'm on holiday
I should be able to enjoy myself yeah you should be able to enjoy yourself and
so long as you're respectful of the local laws and traditions you can enjoy
yourself what's not tolerated is if you act like a complete tourist if you're
loud aggressive you dance in the street if you're being a general nuisance
people are going to notice you will stand out like a sore thumb and it won't
be too long before security take notice and decide to find you all you can call
the police so better in mind that the more loutish your behavior the more you
stand out the more likely you going to be caught doing something number 9 don't
post on social media wait what social media yes social media can get you into
some serious trouble the rules of thumb are don't criticize
the government don't criticize the royal family don't
criticize the country and don't criticize the religion of Islam we've
all heard of the guy that got arrested for posting on Facebook here in Dubai
and this happens quite a lot dubai cybersecurity is second to none so if
you have criticized them at some point they will find you they will arrest you
and they will throw you into jail and the same goes for if you've been
distributing or downloading porn they don't tolerate that either so if you are
thinking about doing anything like that love of God don't number 10
pay your bills it seems rudimentary pay your bills right if there's a dispute
between you and a restaurateur or you and a taxi cab driver and they believe
that you owe more money than you think you do ask politely if there has been
some kind of mistake but if they insist that they are in the
right and you were in the wrong even though you know your rights for the love
of God just pay the money I know that goes against our Western Way of thinking
what's not paying your bills is a serious crime here
so if they do dispute that you've not paid
anything they can literally call the police the police will come and who are
they gonna believe the local or the tourists of course they're gonna believe
the local and you're going to line yourself in some serious hot water if
you're in the dispute just pay the money it's not worth your freedom and bonus
tip don't steal if you're not sure whether to take something that you might
think is free always ask because stealing is a capital crime here they
really don't tolerate stealers here so if you are thinking about shoplifting
don't because the penalties are actually really severe Dubai is relatively crime
free because they enforce their laws strictly and without mercy so bear this
in mind before you actually come here if you're respectful of the local laws
customs and traditions you'll have an amazing time here I've done stuff I've
never done in my life during my ten days here in Dubai and I guarantee you'll
have a wonderful time so long as you don't do those ten or eleven
aforementioned things if you have found this video it's all helpful please be
sure to LIKE share and subscribe comments on the comment section below
and if I do get enough suggestions for ultimate bucket lists tweet them at me
also if I get enough sessions I'll go ahead and do that so guys thank you very
much for watching and we'll see you in the next episode
Ninh Ly - www.ninh.co.uk - @NinhLyUK