Top 10 Ways Dubai Reminds me of London

In 1971, the UAE gained independence from Great Britain. Also, many of the expats here are either British or from a former British colony. So, it's no surprise that there are several ways that Dubai reminds me of living in London. Here are the top ten ways:

10. Light switches that you flip down to turn 'ON' and up to turn 'OFF'. I never did get used to this in London.

9. Bathroom light switches that are outside the bathroom.

8. No electrical outlets in the bathroom (except for 110V shaving outlets).

7. BIG HONKING 3-prong plugs for everything.

6. Exit signs and direction signs that never say North, South, East, or West, but instead point you toward the name of a city that is the same direction you need to head (not necessarily near where you're going, but in the same direction). Needless to say, if you are familiar with an area this works well, but if you're new then you must consult your map very carefully to see what cities may be on the exit signs when you approach your intersection. For example, if you are in Milwaukee and you need to get to Port Washington, one sign may say "Green Bay" and another says "Racine". You know that Green Bay is not where you need to go, but it is in the right direction. So, that is the exit you take.

5. Parking your car in the "car park" (but exiting via the "exit" not the "way out").

4. Paper money in different sizes and colors for different denominations (and I can't exactly remember, but I think that the denominations are the same size & color as the UK.)

3. People being late frequently and always using traffic as an excuse.

2. Printers using size A3 and A4 instead of "Legal" and "Letter" (I think this is metric somehow).

and the Number 1 reason Dubai reminds me of London - - -

1. Afternoon tea time can cause a traffic jam in the company kitchen.