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Chasing Xanadu
I landed at the newly minted Emirates terminal in Dubai after a thirteen-hour flight from Seattle. I expected this billion-dollar edifice to run as efficiently as Hong Kong, which took twenty minutes to exit. Here, I had to take a ten-minute “people mover” underground...
Kid Galahad
Watching Wimbledon this week, I witnessed the most remarkable sight. A kid was playing a senior player in the tournament. His opponent slipped on the grass, twisting his ankle. The boy immediately ran to his side and knelt beside him until a medico arrived. That kid...
Another Day in Paradise
It was supposed to be our day off, lounging beside the pool of the Sandy Beach Hotel, in the town of Pyla on the coast of Cyprus, overlooking the glistening Mediterranean. Laura had vanished to the Philippines to attend to her dying mum, while I was lumbered with two...
The Mayor Comes to Town
A few years ago, a friend of mine, a director of Calgary Economic Development, called me up. “We have an American Ismaili Muslim business delegation visiting us for a week. Can you act as host. You’re an Ismaili and a local businessman.” “What do you want me do with...