Posted by Kanga.
Snapped this shot when leaving the Sharjah International Book Fair. Beautiful night scene.
Archive for the ‘United Arab Emirates’ Category
Day at the Park
November 7, 2011Posted by Kanga.
The weather has “cooled” enough that it is pleasant to be outdoors, although it can still be a little sweaty, if there is no breeze.
You never know what you might see at the park.
One source of free entertainment is watching others jet skiing. There are a couple of rental providers. One on which is “Titanic.” I’m not sure they are clear on what happened to the Titanic.
And if you are feeling a little peckish, stop by the “Sponge Bop” concession truck.
Tea, Surf, and Cat
November 5, 2011Posted by Kanga.
We spent a pleasant evening at the Hilton with our friend, Rupert. Where we sat near the beach, drank tea, and listened to the surf. (In the spirit of full disclosure, I had hot chocolate instead of tea.)
If you look very closely at the horizon, you might see the ships and tankers lined up out there.
I dipped my toes in the Gulf of Oman for the first time. The sand here is dark, an almost chocolate brown. (I don’t know if that’s because of the actual composition of the sand or the occasional addition of crude oil.) The sand was soft and the water was cool.
There was even an affectionate kitty who wanted to be petted, until he discovered how good cheese cake tastes. Then his priorities changed. After he figured out cheese cake had run out, he decided that being petted was still good. He came by several times during the course of the evening.
Bithnah Fort
October 15, 2011Posted by Kanga.
Saturday afternoon we visited the Bithnah Fort…
which is across a wadi from the town of Al Bithnah…
and surrounded by date palm farm.
Restoration is still in process.
The restoration includes decorative stonework and woodwork.
I hope they don’t cover this wall in plaster. It is beautiful, as is.
This Mobil oil barrel probably didn’t expect to end up part of a water well.
The mountains are quite beautiful.
Al Bithnah is between Fujairah and Masafi. The fort can be seen from the highway. It is a short drive with good signage, BUT the road is not paved and goes through the wadi. We made it with our compact car, but had to drive very carefully because it is very rough roadway.
Thar be Rain Here!
October 12, 2011Posted by Kanga.
I finally got to enjoy a rain storm here in Fujairah. It happened suddenly at approximately 2:30 pm. Lightning, thunder, and torrents of rain for a goodly while. It was still raining, although more gently at 3:50 when I left work.
Sand is not as absorbant as you would think. Basically, the top few inches get soaked and then turn into temporary cement, so this results in a lot of water not being absorbed causing large puddles.
A flooded roundabout is a special kind of lake. (Sorry, no picture.) It slows people down, but doesn’t really improve their roundabout manners.
Right Place at the Right Time
October 8, 2011Posted by Kanga.
You have to be in the right place at the right time. We were driving down the corniche (beach road) when we happened upon a parade.
The road was blocked for the parade, so it took us a while to drive around and get back to the park so we could find out what was happening at this event.
There were pictures of traditional activities – games, fishing, pearl sorting, camels, races, etc.
Some boys were playing a game in which they hop on one foot and use their free hand to try to unbalance their opponent. Also, there were young men performing traditional dance.
There were dioramas of traditional homes, children at school and play, and caravans. In another display area, a fisherman was mending nets.
There were several historical pictures from the early years of the Emirates.
Camels probably don’t need a lot of explanation.
Several horsemen circled the exhibit area.
The weather took a turn for the dark and thunder cloudy.
“Emirates Heritage Club” and “Heritage Caravans”
There was little rain on the corniche, just “sprinkles,” but when we got back over to the side of town where we live, we found large puddles, so clearly there had been a short squall.
We would have enjoyed the rain, but, all in all, we were glad to be in the right place at the right time to catch this cultural event.
Johnny Rodgers Band on Cultural Exchange Tour
September 28, 2011Posted by Kanga.
Last night we attended a free concert held at Fujairah Women’s College (Higher Colleges of Technology) and brought to us as a cultural exchange by the U.S. of A. Consulate General and His Highness Sheikh Rashid Bin Hamed Al Sharqi (ruler of Fujairah). Ambassadors for American jazz, the Johnny Rodgers band from New York kept the place rockin’ from beginning to end.
They performed selected examples of songs by great jazz legends – Louie Armstrong, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, Jerry Lee Lewis. Even managed to squeeze Elvis in with Jail House Rock. However, Johnny was at his very best when singing his own composition, Mary Jean. Songs about old girlfriends are usually the most heartfelt.
I’m not sure how one is supposed to imitate Elvis with such a tiny guitar. He gave up and sang a song he wrote after visiting Graceland.
They sang to a full house and received a standing ovation. The band is very talented and it was an enjoyable evening, although it really is cruel to make music like that when people cannot get up and dance.
Reptile Talk
September 24, 2011Posted by Kanga.
Last July we were having lunch in the Thai Express and overheard the conversation of the men sitting at another table. It’s a small restaurant and it is rare to hear an American accent, so we couldn’t help but notice. The conversation topic seemed to be mostly “snakes of Arizona,” so we also found that an odd thing to hear in Fujairah. The September issue of Fujairah Observer explained it all. “World Renowned Reptile Specialists Visit the Wadi.”
“In June 2011, Wadi Wurayah received the visit of two reptiles and amphibian specialists: Researcher Theodore J. Papenfuss form the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, and his assistant, Todd Pierson, University of Georgia, USA. … they spotted a tiny gecko on the gravel bed of the wadi: the Gallagher’s leaf-toed gecko (Asaccus gallagheri).”
A Gem Tucked into an Alley
September 16, 2011Posted by Kanga.
It may be a little challenging to find, but is well worth the effort. Oriental Restaurant in Fujairah is fantastic.
Beef noodles and fried rice.
Chicken in special sauce.
Prawns sambal.
The food is very delicious and reasonably priced. We’ve already been back a second time. This is definitely a “tweetup” worthy place.
Small Proofs of Globalization
September 10, 2011Posted by Kanga.
Today’s grocery discovery was Shasta brand sodas. Of all the American soda/cola products this is one I didn’t expect to see.
We picked up a few other interesting sodas.
Barr American Cream Soda comes from Glasgow and claims to be “refreshing the nation.” The graphic reminds me more of a bar of soap than a refreshing drink, however. Old Jamaica Ginger Beer “with fiery Jamaican root ginger” comes from Kegworth, England. Idris Fiery Ginger Beer comes from Chelmsford, England with the challenge to “try it if you dare.” (It’s not fiery. Even I don’t think so and I’m pretty wimpy.) Our old friend A&W Root Beer comes from New Jersey (and as we discovered previously smells like surgical spirit.)
Living the Travel Channel 