After what felt like an endless drive I stumbled upon the garage. Nestled between some warehouses and bearing no resembles whatsoever to a map that I was given, there it was in all its glory. So, in I wondered making an enquiry about my appointment only to be directed to the service centre which was on the opposite side of the building. ‘OK’ I thought to myself patiently, still seething from the senseless 2 hours I had just spent quite literally driving around in circles and during which I indulged in a sudden outburst of expletives at the top of my voice when I noticed that I was going back over the same bridge for what was perhaps the 3rd or maybe 4th time. You see the problem is that they don’t have good Sat Nav out here. Apparently, it is due to the fact that everything is done using PO Box and there are no actual addresses which I tend to find rather unusual because there are road numbers at least if not names. But anyway I am told that it doesn’t work and the navigation system that they do have is about useful as a solar powered torch (I wish that someone reads this post, corrects me and tells me where I can get one that really works)!
The thing is I used to find it quite easy to give up on things. Whether it was losing 0-3 at Pro Evo with 5 minutes to go or there was only another 200 meters to go to finish my run, I used to take the easy option and throw away the control pad or reduce my pace to a brisk walk. But a dear friend of mine by the name of Sharif soon saw to that and always pushed me to keep going until the proverbial fat lady had stopped singing (which never did happen). Anyway, I thank him for it because every time I think “bugger this for a laugh” this apparition of Sharif confronts me with a most ghastly frown on his baby face saying “you bloody pansy! Get off your fat lard arse and finish the frikin job you tart!” Naturally, I take little notice, but somewhere inside I know that he is right.
So, as I was going back over the bridge, again! I said to myself “no I am not turning back until I have completed my mission even if it takes another 2 hours. Sure I do not have a sat nav. And sure I have a piece of paper with a map that would be better employed as a toothpick (those who know me dearly will understand). But what I do have is a vision, a drive an unbreakable zeal to get my task accomplished at any cost even if it mean laying down my life for this noble cause! Ok, maybe I got a little carried away there but you get the picture. Thanks to Sharif I wasn’t going to be giving up that easily, so as I was driving over the bridge I spun the car round in a most dramatic fashion using my handbrake and a full turn of the wheel all in one glorious motion that even Lewis Hamilton would be proud of.
Those of you real men out there that appreciate the education that is the ‘Godfather’ will recall a similar scene in part I, when they are taking Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) over the Brooklyn bridge! Well at least that is how I would have done it if I was a maverick and an outlaw but I haven’t yet had a run in with the Dubai police and I don’t particular fancy it just yet. So instead, I wondered over the bridge and then turned back on myself from the first appropriate and clearly signposted u-turn, ensuring that there was no oncoming vehicle or pedestrians in my immediate path of travel, all in a manner of which my law enforcer friend aka ‘Tiddy’ back home in England would have taken his helmet off to.
So as is the case with these situations, right at the point at which you want to give up and you really don’t have the will to continue, you take a turn and wow! There it is right before your very own eyes. So eventually I made my way round to the correct service centre entrance quietly content and reminding myself “Ahh, all is well that ends well”. “Hi, I am here from AYD to have my car looked at, Ali spoke with Taufeeq and booked me in”. “OK Sir, please have a seat and Taufeeq will be with you”. A few minutes go by and in wonders old Taufeeq fresh from his lunch and oblivious of my presence as he enjoyed seconds from what was leftover between his teeth. “Salaam, I am here from AYD to have a few bits fixed on the car please”. “OK Sir, can I take your work request number”, “work request number? I don’t know what that is. I was just given the map and told that I had to bring it in today”. “But Sir…” And that was all I needed. So here are the facts which I presented to him.
1. This vehicle is owned by the same company who owns this very garage which happens to be the same company that I work for.
2. I had been told by someone to attend and the vehicle would be fixed.
3. I have driven for over 2 hours looking for this garage
4. There are only 2 minor problems, the first of which is a simple mechanical fault (the reverse lights are always on) and the second is to re-attach the rear view mirror (which fell off one morning)
5. I am sure that the first-rate mechanics in this establishment would be able to fix both faults in the space of 5 minutes, blind folded and with both hands tied behind their backs (which got me to thinking why I didn’t just do it myself?)
Can you guess what he said?? “Sorry sir it is impossible to do this!” So, after thinking about what to do I figured I was too tired and too bored to start a fracas so I retired to the vehicle and drove back feeling a little sorry for myself. Just like the other day when I tried to return the toaster to Carrefour which I did not need, still within the 7 day returns policy used only once but cleaned immaculately to ensure that it could be resold. Only to be told that there was a bread crumb inside which meant that it had been used and therefore did not qualify for a refund. All I wanted was to swap it for sheesha!. Afterward, I thought to myself I am not going to shop there again which meant that Carrefour was losing out on 150 AED per week or 600 AED per month because it was unwilling to compromise on a 50 AED toaster?
So the moral of the story is quite simple there are some things which we tend to take for granted. And only after they are gone do you realize how valuable they are. I once remember someone telling me that they were enrolled at University for a course on ‘International customer service!’ I still remember thinking to myself “wow they really have a course that does that?” And having been the recipient of a full refund from ASDA for a pair of clippers that I had used and decide they simply were not the ones that I wanted, I can say with complete confidence that they have it spot on back home. I can’t really recall a single occasion in the UK when I have been left fuming by a customer service representative, whereas, I have had two experiences in the space of just a week here in Dubai.
Sheikh Mo I think you got your work cut out…
hopfully now u will appreciate Englannddddd!!! Sheikh your body razi!!
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