KT Opinion: The humane touch makes Expo a unique experience

If you visit Expo Dubai as a first-timer, it reveals much more than what social media and news media report, even if those had been in glowing terms.

Keep in mind, expectations are very high: the UAE has been in the forefront of conversations around the world for its swift climb up indices — pertaining to quality of life, ease of business operations, opportunities, market goodwill and so on — and the way it implemented its Covid strategy.

In a way, the Expo was in any case going to take public perceptions several notches higher. But even as you step into the environs of a meticulously-crafted showpiece where almost every single country in the world has found its own footing to exchange ideas and opportunities, you realise that the “hype” of the event perhaps glossed over how convenient it is for the common man — the lay person.

It’s the little things that matter. At the entry gates, for instance, ushers are not only communicative and welcoming; they also have a sense of humour, cracking a joke, putting you at ease even before you hit the ground running.

The Expo space has a sense of inclusion that is actually felt. The multi-culturalism on display is never made crass, it’s imbibed. You have Filipinos serving you Emirati food, Nigerians explaining the India Pavilion, Britons buying Pakistani stoles — and then everyone listening to Khaleeji music together, clapping in unison, egging along the buskers. Indeed, a microcosm of a world without boundaries.

Dubai Metro has risen to the occasion like never before. However much is written about its efficacy and ‘smartness’ will fall short unless one experiences its trail to the Expo site.

Trains trundle in every few minutes, like clockwork, the navigation — even for someone who’s riding it for the first time in his/her life — is seamless, and cost-effectiveness is remarkable.

Once you land at the Expo station (which is quite a piece of art), there is zero effort — other than physically move and follow the signs — to arrive at the entrance. As usual, all stops have been pulled out to accommodate People of Determination so that the experience can be as comfortable as possible.

The lesson to be learnt is this: it’s easy to get complacent, and let things fall into place like routine. But as it gets going, Expo 2020 Dubai shows no evidence to resting on its laurels, with every ancillary service — around the event and on the ground — joining the dots on auto-prompt.

It’s not just about how well the Expo has been organised. It’s about how, each and every single time, it is reinventing a work in progress to ensure it’s one step ahead of the curve.