Modhesh Delivers Dubai Summer Surprises

"Registrations for the exclusive DSS summer event, the Modhesh Friends' Club, take a hectic pace as a number of parents accompanied by their holidaying children are rushing to the DSS Office to grab the last few remaining seats available for the Club all set to start on June 24."

So, in tones of overwrought hysteria, goes the press release announcing that uptake has been a little slower than anticipated for the Modhesh Friends' Club summer kids' event. It's quite possible, of course, that demand has been reduced because parents simply don't believe they'd have a chance of getting their kid in because the demand would be so great. After all, as the press release (posted here on arabianbusiness.com) tells us, application forms are "fast flying off the shelves" so it must be popular.

If you'd like to learn more about Modhesh, you can go here. There's more information there than anybody in their right minds can take, all presented in a comforting palette of colours designed to trigger scary roller-coaster flashbacks from that time you dropped an experimental tab or two back at Uni. In fact, uncontrollable brain-skitter is a constant danger in Modhesh's online world, but I do recommend you pop in to enjoy, if nothing else, the relentless tone of the prose offered up to you.

Here's a sample:

"His popularity is truly inspiring, growing constantly over the years. As summer time approaches children anxiously wait for their favourite character to return and become a part of their lives. His yearly visits to Dubai win him friends and fans in huge numbers indicating to his popularity among children of all ages. Even grown-ups can’t help but join in the celebrations when Modhesh invites them to shop at the malls or be a part of the weekly themed events."

Quite.

Emirates Issues Press Release

OK. In my humble view, this is a little slice of Press Release Brilliance. Emirates is now flying daily to Venice. So they've put out a press release announcing that the business and first class limo service they provide will now extend, in Venice, to the world's first airline water limo service. And you get this nice piccie of a smarmy suit, an Emirates Girl and... a water taxi in Venice!


I love it - good old fashioned PR stuff. You saw it here first!

Dignity and Robbery

Today, buried behind the headlines announcing the capture of the Dhs 50 million Wafi City Heist Gang, Gulf News reports that the court in Abu Dhabi that's trying the two journalists for accusing two 'dignitaries' of having an award withdrawn from them for horse doping has now ruled against them. The two journalists, as they were originally dubbed, now turn out to be the editor in chief and the CEO of the newspaper. The Abu Dhabi Federal Court of First Instance, Gulf News tells us, ruled that the CEO is not responsible for editorial content so he's off the hook. What a very lucky CEO, you'd be forgiven for thinking.

While the CEO and staff are undoubtedly getting stuck into some celebratory chocolate cake, the editor is getting hit with a Dhs 20,000 fine (about $5,500) and he's, not suprisingly, reported to be appealing today. You can't help feeling that there's a lot more to this case than meets the eye and you'd probably be right. Dhs 20,000, incidentally, is a small amount in the circumstances - a sum reminiscent of Whistler's Farthing. It'll be interesting to see what happens at appeal.

Meanwhile, Dubai's sensational capture of the Wafi Gang (well, three of them) has resulted in the recovery of the jewellery (well, Dhs 14 million of it). This is widely pictured and shows just how little Dhs 14 million (About $3.8 million) seems to buy you these days. See? Life in Dubai IS getting expensive.

The tray's nice, though...