I have not yet got my brain around this place that is Dubai. It's very much like falling down the rabbit hole, where things are backwards of what they should be, but everyone's certain this is right. And when you first arrive, the oddness does strike you, but you get pulled along by the Pelican and the WaterRat and the next thing you know you're part of it.

To be here, and not be a national, you require a work permit (or freehold property, which is another can of social worms). To get that, you have to be sponsored by a company, which leaves you at their mercy. As long as you're keeping them satisfied with your work, you can stay. When you stop, they can kick your butt to the curb, and leave you in total limbo. And for a country where there are no unions and no action groups, you'd be shocked what companies can get away with demanding.

Consequently, you end up with two types of hires. Companies going in for 'the brand' will hire whites - mainly Brits, Ozzies and Kiwis. They pay them at par or beyond what most earned back home, offer them hella perks and the chance to become the social elite, just for the bragging rights of having them, and the hopes they will turn their company into the next Virgin or Microsoft. Companies going for 'the bulk' will hire out of South Asia - mainly Indians, Pakistanis and Bengalis. They are also paid beyond what they earn at home, but far below their white counterparts, and are hired because companies know they'll work like dogs to stay in the country.

Some companies do one or the other, but there are many, like mine, that like a mix. And when you have that mix, you end up with an office with lines drawn on race and nationality and a whole lot of tension. The whites blame the browns for not upholding their superior professional standard and bringing the company down, the browns blame the whites for the blunders that come from arrogance and cultural ignorance and bringing the company down.

Sure there is racial tension in all mixed communities, but here it seems to be ingrained. In the US while there are many hate crimes, at least for the most part, the law is on the side of the victim. It does not institutionalize the bias, typically. Here, it's simply part of the system. No one is equal, everyone is at the mercy of their employer, no one understands what's going on, everyone is vulnerable and compromised, so it's a smack that we all get and pass along to the nearest party; a very vicious version of the telephone-game.

That's just the work place and two of the larger expatriate communities. It's much the same on the streets and with the other nationalities.

And in the middle of all this - you have me - white/brown/east/west/English/Urdu. I continually find myself boxed and labeled in the most amusing manner. Except that the funny is wearing off.