Jeremy Williams – Don’t they know it’s Friday?

For anyone traveling to the Gulf to do business Don’t they Know it’s Friday? should be the first thing to put into the suitcase.

The fact that this book is into its eighth edition is testimony to the book’s authority and usefulness. Since 1998 it has been updated by its author, Jeremy Williams, who has two decades of work experience in the region and whose resume includes service as the British Defence Attaché to the UAE and Bahrain.

While this book is written to advise business people, with its chapters on basic Arabic expressions, arranging a marketing visit, entertaining clients and Shariah banking, it has a wealth of insights for travelers and residents working in other spheres.

Williams draws back the veil on revealing how expatriates are viewed, the process of getting a driver’s licence, appropriate and inappropriate touching, exposure of flesh, understanding the different parts of a man’s name, driving in the Gulf, attending and/or arranging a meal, food etiquette and determining who pays the bill.