Posted by Kanga.
Here’s another sight we didn’t expect in the Middle East.
She’s been here for a while. You can tell by the dusty bags under her eyes.
Archive for July, 2010
Don
July 5, 2010Bollywood Movie Review #1
Posted by Kanga.
Don, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Zeenat Aman and Pran, 1978.
I’m starting with this movie, not because it’s the best or because it’s the first one I watched (which it isn’t), but because it is the freshest in my memory having watched it last night and because it is one of the few I managed to watch in one sitting without falling asleep in the middle. This tendency to fall asleep is not a failing of the movies, but a combination of my need for naps, the drain of having to read subtitles, and the fact that most of the movies are 2.5-3 hours in length.
I don’t pretend to be an officianado on Bollywood films, but there are a few patterns I’m picking up on. The movies often have main characters who are criminals, sometimes sympathetic because they were unfortunate orphans. Even more likely is the story of brothers separated at a young age – one becomes a cop, the other a criminal.
<<Word of warning: I will be “spoiling the ending” in my reviews. I am assuming that you are unlikely to ever watch these films and even if you did, knowing the plot twists is unlikely to spoil the enjoyment of watching the films. The real fun is in the performances, songs, dance, and corny stunts.>>
Don doesn’t have estranged brothers, but the don is a criminal and Amitabh does get to play dual roles – the suave, cold hearted don and Vijay, the homeless, betel leaf chewing street performer. When we first meet the don he is coldly shooting a police informant in his office. When we first meet Vijay he is dancing in the street singing a song about Bombay, all the time chewing betel leaves. (Betel is a mild stimulant.)
The police want to catch the don, the uncatchable criminal. However, when he dies in the back seat of the chief policeman’s car, instead of highly publicizing the capture, the policeman covers up the death. Why? you say? Because he wants to catch the bigger fish (and because we are only about an hour into the movie). The policeman remembers an encounter with a man, who filed a police report about abandoned children, who just happened to be the don’s doppleganger. He convinces Vijay, the doppleganger to infiltrate the don’s gang by impersonating him. The plot is far more complex than this with a girl who wants to avenge her brother’s death at the hand of the don who later falls in love with Vijay disguised as the don, and the involvement of the father of the abandoned children in the don’s gang, AND the death of the policeman who is the only one who knows Vijay’s true identity and can clear him when captured. I could go on, but the details would tire us both. (The movie is 2 hrs 40 mins long.)
The best part of this movie is Amitabh Bachchan’s performance as both the don and Vijay. The contrast of the characters is quite entertaining and speaks of his acting talent.
Above is the don, below is Vijay.
Also of note is the final fight scene where Vijay, Roma (his karate chopping, gun shooting girlfriend), and the crippled Trapeze artist take on the whole criminal gang in a graveyard.
Well worth the price of admission.
Shawarma Loiter
July 3, 2010Posted by Kanga.
First, I should explain the origin of the “shawarma loiter” concept. It came from a dinner conversation with friends about shawarma – the quality, availability, etc. One friend asked the other his opinion, to which he replied “I’ve never loitered at shawarma stands.” The word “loiter” hit the funny bone of the first friend, so it became the running joke of the evening and by the end the concept of a shawarma loiter had solidified.
So, June 16th we had our first real shawarma loiter (or stroll) which consisted of meeting at the mall across the street from our apartment and then DaddyBird led us on a tour of some of the shawarma stands in our neighborhood. We paced ourselves by just buying 1/2-1 shawarmas per person per stand.
Shawarmas consist of pita bread rolled around shaved meat that has been cooked on an upright spit. Exact contents vary from stand to stand. There is often a sauce added and some put in veggies. Shawarmas in restaurants often have soggy fries added, but this is not convenient at the stands, thankfully. Stand shawarmas range from 3.50 AED to 5.00 AED (that’s $0.95 to $1.36). The 3.50 ones usually have veggies in them and the 5.00 ones are usually a little larger.
The spit/roaster is usually an electric device producing radiant heat on one side while the spit is rotated slowly. One near our apartment has a bank of coals instead of electric heat.
DaddyBird also included a historical landmark in our tour, the Burj Nahar.
This is one of the watchtowers that used to be on the outskirts of town. It has been preserved and there is a little park area around it.
Next stop was a bread bakery on a back street.
These men are sitting on top of the oven. Two are rolling out the dough and the third is putting it into and taking it out of the oven.
We ended our shawarma stroll at Al Mallah restaurant on Al Muteena street. One of our favorites. We sat inside for the very first time due to the summer heat and the fact that we were pretty sweaty by this point. The air conditioning was quite nice. Shawarma loitering should be a winter activity.
Betawi
July 3, 2010Posted by Kanga.
Last week we met up with friends at an Indonesian restaurant in the Karama neighborhood.
It started with a crisp bread with tiny dried fish in it.
Above is DaddyBird’s nasi padang. He says it was very yummy.
This is my oxtail soup. Sorry, I’ve forgotten the official name of it. I was just really happy to see it on the menu. It was very delicious. I even liked the green beans, which is rare.
So, in summary, we highly recommend Betawi in Karama. Good food for low prices.
Signs from another ‘hood
July 1, 2010Posted by Kanga.
Best 1 Sweets – for all your sugary needs.
Motion Trading – not sure what they sell here. Couldn’t see through the windows, not even sure it’s still in business.
Here we have Al Falah Grocery where, clearly, you can get Coca Cola, Solid Computer and Number One Auto Rental.
Super Kid Laundry – Do they wash children? Do they only cater to superhero offspring? Is there one super kid doing the washing?
I saved the best for last. Polyster Tailoring and Embroidery for all your bell bottom fashion needs. (Polyester?)
Living the Travel Channel 