Island life

With a hectic life as a banker in the city, Karim Naccache has created his perfect weekend getaway with a shoreline apartment on the Palm.

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As Karim Naccache speeds up the trunk of the Palm Jumeriah in his nifty sports car, there's no doubt that he appears to be living the Dubai dream. Not only is he the proud owner of a ninth-floor shoreline apartment, complete with luxury finishes and stunning sea views, but his dad happens to be interior designer and owner of the high-end furniture boutique Nakkash Gallery, so it's no surprise that he's ended up with a bachelor pad to die for.

Karim readily admits that not too many of the design genes rubbed off on him, and he was happy to leave it up to his father Wajih Nakkash to design the interior of the apartment using furniture from his boutique. "It's fantastic having a father who can just kit out my apartment for me, I'm definitely grateful for that," he says.

With a highflying career at Deutsche Bank in the city, Karim spends the majority of the week living at Wafi Residences due to its proximity to the office, so the Palm apartment has become the perfect weekend crash pad. "I come here every weekend, its my retreat," says Karim. "I'll generally lounge at the beach and the pool and invite some friends over and we'll have a barbeque."

The Nakkash family invested in the property years ago, when the Palm Jumeirah seemed nothing more than a far-fetched fantasy on Nakheel's drawing board. Now that the first residents have moved onto the island it's become the perfect getaway.

"Life on the Palm has absolutely lived up to expectations," says Karim. "The location is ideal, its great to be in New Dubai right now, and the fact that you're living on an island adds a little flavour to the whole thing. Dubai is one of the only places in the whole world where you can experience a place like this - a man-made island with apartments and villas, which is also a resort with all the facilities you could need."

He admits that not everything has been entirely perfect. "We weren't happy with some of the things in the apartment when it was handed over. There's another tower block being built on the beach just to the left of us that was not in the original plans."

It's true that the constant sound of construction does somehow detract from the peaceful lapping of the waves onto the beach below. There was also a problem with the design of the building itself. "There is a tower which has been built all the way up the side of our building. It would have been much better if this was not here as the balcony would not have been so enclosed and it would have been flooded with light."

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