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French National Day celebrated at Al Bustan Rotana Hotel in Dubai

Biscuitiers La Cure Gourmande, the Paul patisserie, and Cafés Richard had set up stalls at the venue, providing residents a taste of cuisine from home.

It was a night of free-flowing French cuisine and fruit-flavored mocktails, as hundreds of French nationals in Dubai celebrated Bastille Day. A reception was organised by the French Consulate in Dubai at the Al Bustan Rotana Hotel to celebrate French National Day on Monday.

Several hundred French nationals residing in Dubai and Northern Emirates attended the event.

The French community in the UAE has grown by over 60 per cent in the last four years and more than 15,000 of them reside in Dubai and the Northern Emirates, Consul-General of France Eric Giraud-Telme said.

Eric Giraud-Telme cuts a cake to mark Bastille Day, while Dr Rashid Ahmed bin Fahad, Minister of Environment and Water, and other officials look on. — KT photo by Juidin Bernarrd

“We thank the local authorities and the official government here in Dubai for the help they give the French community to settle down here. The excellent hospitality is one of the reasons that a lot of the people who come here don’t want to leave and want to continue their lives here,” Giraud- Telme told Khaleej Times.

Giraud-Telme, and the members of the French general consulate in Dubai and the Northern Emirates welcomed members from the diplomatic community, other officials and hundreds of French residents.

“This night is very special to the French because it is a big milestone in our country’s history that is celebrated to mark the (fall of Bastille) on July 14, 1789. The day is significant for all French nationals because it marked the emerging of freedom in France at that time,” he added.

During the ceremony, which started with the national anthem of both the countries, the consul-general said that there have been very strong relations between France and the UAE in all sectors, hence highlighting the growing economic and trade relations.

Biscuitiers La Cure Gourmande, the Paul patisserie, and Cafés Richard had set up stalls at the venue, providing residents a taste of cuisine from home.

According to the consulate members, it is a common practice across the world where all French nationals living in a country are invited to celebrate their National Day with their countrymen.

Some of the residents at the event said that the cuisine and engaging with people from their home country reminded them a bit of being at home.

French national François V who has been living in UAE for the last six years said: “I love it here. My family is here and my kids study here as well. We do miss home for the weather sometimes, but now Dubai is home.”

dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com