Archive for the ‘Dubai’ Category

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Walk Through Meena Bazaar

January 24, 2014

Posted by Kanga

Blue Water Sweets shop next to Sweety Sweets shop

After a lovely dinner at Special Ostadi, we took a walk through the neighborhood and Meena Bazaar. This afforded an opportunity to take some sign photos.

Blue Water Sweets shop sign

Blue Water Sweets is right next door to Sweety Sweets.

Sweety Sweets shop sign

I’m glad they spelled sweety correctly. It could have just as easily been “sweaty.”

Choice Corner General Trading shop sign

Choice Corner General Trading – it’s good to have a choice corner.

Spider Star Electronics

Spider Star Electronics – sometimes I think they just pull words out of a hat.

Al Meher Recording shop sign

As we approached Al Meher Recording, we were surprised to hear:

Here are some of their hard to find titles:

album covers Burl Ives, The Ventures, Olivia Newton John, James Brown, Freddie Fender, Roger Whittaker, Marty Robbins, Willie Nelson, Connie Francis, Donnie Osmond

I’ve probably posted this one before, but it is a gem.

Sew and Reap Outfitters shop sign

Tasty Village Restaurant.

Tasty Village restaurant sign

The new souk (market) building has a Loading Unloading Area.

bilingual sign for Loading Unloading Area

It was a pleasant walk. We enjoy the cool winter evenings when we can walk without sweating and being miserable. (It reached a low of 59F.) Of course, “cool” and “winter” are relative terms. We walked around with no coats.

Posted in Dubai, signs | Tagged , | 2 Comments »

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New Year’s Eve 2013

January 5, 2014

Posted by Kanga. Please do not reblog.

New Year’s Eve began with a drive to Dubai and lunch at the Special Ostadi restaurant. Then we went down to the Bur Dubai side of Dubai Creek. We walked through the old souk (market). The merchants were calling out to DaddyBird calling him “boss” and to BabyBird calling her “Shakira” to entice them to stop and see the wares. From there, we took an abra (water taxi) across the creek to the Spice Souk area.

small boat used as a water taxi

The ride across the creek is always pleasant and it is much cooler on the water.

water taxi boat full of passengers

I haven’t even thought of looking up while on the boat before and was surprised to see the life jackets. If the boat runs into trouble, I doubt I would have time to get one of those, but the thought is nice, I suppose.

life preserver jackets attached to the underside of the boat roof

We stopped for fresh juice and BabyBird discovered that fresh apple juice is not like bottled apple juice. I had watermelon juice and was unpleasantly surprised to find that the seeds had been included. We walked through the Spice Souk and Gold Souk. To return to the car parked in Bur Dubai, we took the metro train.

grassy area near the historical Shindaga area

The park area near the Shindaga historical area is quite nice and inviting to those who want to relax for a while. Next, we were off to Bu Qtair Restaurant for our traditional fish and shrimp dinner with friends followed by fireworks seen from Jumeirah beach.

fireworks around the Burj Al Arab hotel

In past years, all the fireworks displays started at the stroke of midnight – Dubai Marina, Burj Al Arab, Atlantis Hotel and the Burj Khalifa (all of which we can see from our beach location). This year the displays were staggered. Dubai Marina went first, slightly before the stroke of midnight. Then the Burj Khalifa was next. Burj Al Arab took it’s turn. (This is usually the best display from four barges lasting 15 minutes.)

fireworks on the Palm Jumeirah island

This year, the world record breaking display capped the evening shooting off from the Palm Jumeirah island and the World islands. It took 2 hours to get out of Dubai and another hour to drive to Fujairah, but it was worth it.

Posted in abras, Burj al Arab, celebration, Dubai Creek, New Year's Eve, Palm Island | Leave a Comment »

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Christmas Balls

January 3, 2014

Posted by Kanga. Please do not reblog.

shopping mall decorated for Christmas

We didn’t check out every mall this season, but there seemed to be a theme of huge Christmas balls.

shopping mall decorated for Christmas

Below is my favorite tree. The carousel horses were moving around the tree.

Christmas tree decorated in gold and silver surrounded by carousel horses

Each year Christmas is more prevalent in public. It is gaining acceptance, because it is a shopping holiday.

Posted in Christmas, Dubai, malls | Tagged , , | 1 Comment »

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Special Ostadi

December 30, 2013

Posted by Kanga. Please do not reblog.

diners and dinner

The food at the family owned Special Ostadi (Al Mankhool Road, Bur Dubai) is always fantastic, but what makes this restaurant stand out is the personal touch. Before we even reached the restaurant, Majed, one of the three sons/waiters, greeted DaddyBird with open arms and a big hug. He had seen us coming down the sidewalk.

plates of dates, hummous, carrots, cucumbers, onions

We took a table for 8, but by the time all was said and done there were 14 in our party. By 8:30 (local dinner time) every seat in the place was occupied. The three sons serve as waiters and keep very vigilant eyes on the crowded restaurant making sure everyone’s needs are met, while still finding time to tease, crack jokes, and pose for pictures.

grilled chicken and beef with flat bread

Highly recommended, this restaurant is within walking distance of the Dubai Museum and the Al Fahidi Metro station. Don’t miss it.

Posted in Dubai, food, restaurant | Tagged , | 2 Comments »

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Christmas Eve

December 25, 2013

Posted by Kanga. Please do not reblog.

Mosque and dark grey clouds

The day began with the idea of going to the beach to watch the sun rise over the ocean, but this was not the appropriate day for that plan.

beach, storm clouds, rain

But the rain could not keep us from having breakfast at Al Khan restaurant – qeema (ground beef and potato), chana (chickpeas/garbanzo beans) and paratha (flat bread).

flatbread, chickpeas, ground beef

Then, a quick drive into Dubai to get to the Burj Khalifa in time for our admission to the observation deck. The tickets were nearly all sold out this week, so timing was inflexible.

two people looking out from the observation deck

It was a particularly clear day, so the view was excellent.

view of the world islands from the Burj Khalifa observation deck

These are the World Islands.

two people

BabyBird and DaddyBird.

mocha, brownie, hot chocolate, cheese cake, espresso

Then it was time for a chocolate binge.

aquarium filled with fish

Then there was a fair amount of shopping and roaming around the mall.

waterfall with 30 lifesize diver figures

The day ended with our traditional meal with friends at Bu Qtair restaurant. Fish, prawns, paratha and good friends.

dinner table

Photo by DaddyBird

We love meeting with such a mix of people from different countries and cultures. It was so much fun. The world would be a more peaceful place if everyone did this.

dinner table

Photo by Labiba Laith

Posted in Christmas, Dubai, food, fountains, malls | Leave a Comment »

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Giant Flag

December 23, 2013

Posted by Kanga. Please do not reblog.

red, green, white, and black flag approximately 18 feet tall

At the airport, there is a giant flag on display. What is it made of? -you might ask.

large crocheted rosettes

Why, large crocheted rosettes, of course.

Posted in Dubai, United Arab Emirates | Tagged , | 2 Comments »

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Thanksgiving

November 30, 2013

Posted by Kanga. Please do not reblog.

plate of turkey slices, brussel sprouts, carrots, sausages, potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce

It’s that time again and Thanksgiving is difficult to recreate when living abroad. First, you don’t normally get the day off from work. This year I did get the day off, but only because Dubai won the World Expo 2020 bid. The email telling me that I didn’t have to come to work was sent out 10:35 pm the night before, so no time to plan anything special.

Secondly, ingredients are challenging to find, although that seems to be improving. The number of restaurants offering turkey dinners seems to be improving also. This is what we opted for this year. I didn’t have high hopes, because our last restaurant Thanksgiving dinner was disappointing (in terms of food) at best.

This time the turkey was lovely – moist, tasty and plentiful. I ate almost everything and much like a real Thanksgiving dinner, I was stuffed to the point of pain. That didn’t stop me from having a bit of dessert.

cheese cake and chocolate sauce

We ordered one cheese cake with three spoons, so I didn’t eat all of this myself. It was nice, but not actual cheese cake. If you can pick it up with your fingers, it isn’t cheese cake. It’s gelatin dessert. Many restaurants here offer “cheese cake,” but what they actually serve is mousse or gelatin. Real cheese cakes are very rare.

It was a pleasant afternoon with good company, good food, and no dishes to wash.

Posted in Dubai, food | Tagged , | 1 Comment »

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Pinoy Lomi House

November 2, 2013

Posted by Kanga. Please do not reblog.

restaurant sign

We tried out another Filipino restaurant last night. We noticed it while driving down an unpaved alley on our way to the grocery store. In preparation for the “Totally Fabulous Fujairah Food Tour,” we thought we better check this one out. When we arrived the restaurant was about half full of Filipino patrons, which is a very good sign.

salad with fish, cucumbers, onions, lemon, turnip, and vinegar

This is kilawin, a salad made with fish, turnips, cucumbers, onions, chili peppers, red bell pepper, and lemon. The fish starts raw and is cooked by the vinegar marinade. Very delicious (as long as I avoided the little pieces of chili pepper).

two plates, one with a beef dish and the other with a shrimp dish

The dish on the left is caldereta, a beef dish. The dish on the right (name unknown) is made with bitter gourd and shrimp. These were DaddyBird’s choices and he didn’t want to share the caldereta with me, so we will need a double order next time. Very delicious. I’m not as crazy about the bitter gourd, though. It has earned it’s name.

beef and cabbage soup

This is bulalo. It is a very savory but simple beef soup. Next time I have a cold or flu, I will be requesting bulalo from this restaurant and seafood soup from The Oriental. That will make everything better.

two bottled drinks

For drinks, we chose orange flavored basil seed drink and coconut juice. The basil seed drinks, which come in multiple flavors, are interesting because the seeds are a bit gelatinous. The coconut juice is the most refreshing. The dish in the front is our dessert choice, a coconut and ube gelatin which also had corn in it. Ube is a purple yam that is used in many desserts and pastries.

Normally, all this would come with rice, but due to our semi-paleo diet, we are not eating rice. This will be a great restaurant for us because we can get dishes that fit our diet and fill us up.

We give this restaurant a A+. This meal cost us a whopping 65 AED ($17.00 USD). Great value and great taste.

Posted in Dubai, food, Fujairah, restaurant | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments »

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Random Dubai Sights

November 1, 2013

Posted by Kanga. Please don’t reblog.

storefront of Magnetic Technologies

What is magnetic water? It looks like fun.

picture of baby swimming "I love magnetic water...try it."

Halloween decorations at the cinema

It’s amazing to see the amount of Halloween decoration this year.

a female mannequin dressed as a witch and a male mannequin dressed as a devil with a coffin

Ah, Halloween. The holiday when tacky is perfectly acceptable.

bilingual sign explaining how to put on a bra

The Marks and Spencer fitting room had this helpful sign.

close up of the sign

Make sure to put your arms in the traps and adjust accordingly.

huge cement support column in a food court

When you build a massive building – shopping mall with floors of apartments above it – you end up with huge view obscuring support columns in your food court.

food court restaurant sign

Extreme Shawarma – Is this where the Avengers eat?

blue ankle boots

Those are SOME blue suede shoes.

brown sweater with a cream colored squirrel on it

Squirrel!

Tweety bird underpants

There was a whole rack of cartoon themed underwear all sporting tags claiming to be official Warner Bro products.

tag on underpants

That’s the feature you want in children’s underwear – potential for bursting into flame.

women's clothing store called Cartoon Fashion

The name Cartoon Fashion doesn’t exactly inspire visions of large women’s clothing. I didn’t see any cartoons in there.

Posted in Dubai, malls, Shopping | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments »

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Sohailia, How I Miss Thee

October 24, 2013

posted by Kanga. Please do not reblog.

There is one more American thing we miss — good dental care. Specifically, good preventative dental cleanings.

En Amérique un dentiste au travail [soignant un molosse] : [photographie de presse] / [Agence Rol]
En Amérique un dentiste au travail [soignant un molosse] : [photographie de presse] / [Agence Rol]
Source: gallica.bnf.fr

We were spoiled by Sohailia. She was such a good dental hygienist that I looked forward to my cleanings. With her range of picks she would carefully clean each and every tooth with such a light touch that it tickled. She would examine each tooth for problems and evaluate the state of the gums. When she finished, she would report to the dentist any and all problems that she observed.

American dentistry is amazing. It comes complete with guilt trip. You can count on being asked how often you brush and if you floss. If you admit that you don’t floss, you’ll get a little lecture about how important it is. The last time I was at an American dentist office, they took a swab of my mouth and showed me the bacteria from my mouth under a microscope to try to shame me into spending more effort on my oral hygiene.

They also go to extreme lengths to retain teeth. I had the root canal done in one tooth three times before a dentist finally admitted that the whole thing had to go. The truth is that I would have been a lot healthier if it had been extracted instead of remodeled.

In the UAE, dentists are everywhere, but hygienists are few and far between. Every “cleaning” I’ve had so far has been done by the dentist with an electric powered tool. This cleaning tool experience is unpleasant, at best. It sure doesn’t hold a candle to Sohailia’s light touch.

The first two dentist experiences I’ve had in the UAE were unpleasant. I specifically requested anesthesia for any drilling to be done and the dentist blatantly ignored this request. I did not go back for more. Our insurance makes it even more annoying, because everything has to be preauthorized, even diagnostic x-rays. So, the first visit is a bit of a waste, because nothing can be done unless you are willing to pay for it out of pocket.

I seem to have finally found a good dentist. The cleaning still involved an electric power tool, but I survived. Before working on fillings, she asked if I wanted anesthesia and then actually gave it to me. Hoorah! She rebuilt a broken tooth rather nicely.

Posted in Dubai, medical care | Tagged , , | 1 Comment »

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