UAE - Culture Smart! The Essential Guide to Customs and Culture Paperback – 31 Jan. 2008

Got this book as I'm about to emigrate to the UAE. I'm so glad I have this book as it explains how the Arabs think and why they behave the way they do. Can now understand why they want so many papers! Also it gives some really useful pointers as the Emirates are too polite to criticise your behaviour in public but privately it is very easy to give the wrong impression.Would recommend this book to anyone who is going to spend time in the UAE... hope the information will prove both accurate and useful when I get there!

As expected

Interesting to read about the lifestyles and customs of the people of the UAE.Easy to read.possibly needs updating in some area's.Worth the money.

I feel I`ve learned a wealth of fundamental things about UAE and it`s people. It`s written with clarity and a deep understanding of culture and history. There is clearly a tremendous respect for the country and it's people. I would recommend it to anyone with an interest in the region and certainly to everyone who will be visiting and/or working there.

The locals were very helpful also for true reflection of what is best but this guide gave some hints as to what to expect

Ideal for travel to UAE

By no means is this an exhausive or detailed book into the cultural and historical points of UAE, it is a brilliant stepping stone for anyone wishing to visit or live in the country. For a tourist, the historical content in the first few chapters may not be wholly relevant but the later chapters on values, customs and attitudes was very helpful in pointing out what not to do as a tourist!Overall, I think this is a useful book for travellers with little or no knowledge of the customs or traditions of the Arab countries and wish to brush up before travelling.

Has some good insights into the local history and culture - after living here a little while, prob not as in depth as required as this place is changing fast. Good guide though, and I found the guides in eastern Europe good, so I think this is a good effort. Perhaps is due an update.

We purchased this book before our first visit to Dubai last month. It was a very interesting read and helped prepare us for the UAE culture. That said, Dubai has many more expats than native Emirates, so there were certainly many "flavors" of culture that we encountered. Nonetheless, I would definitely recommend this as a good reference book prior to traveling to the UAE.

Fully prepared me to go to the UAE, work with important people there, and fully respect their culture. A fantastic guide to their history and customs.

good book, told us why we didn't know

I bought this book for my manager who was traveling to the UAE for the first time on business. Great resource for anyone who has not yet traveled to the country and needs to know about customs, traditions, interests/past times of the locals. Good for business travelers as well as those traveling for their personal reasons.

Though I didn't read it all, the first sections are useful and practical. Easy to read and up to date.