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Desert Fog

October 13, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

There were at least two foggy days in Dubai last week. Generally, this does not affect us in Fujairah, but we both had to go to Dubai on Thursday, I for work reasons and DaddyBird for the dentist.

So, we got to experience the fog.

zero visibility due to fog

Driving was a challenge. I was pleasantly surprised by the number of drivers who pulled over to the side of the road. Those who continued to drive slowed down. This may seem like common sense to you, Reader, but the UAE is known for it’s 35+ car pile ups.

view through the car windshield showing another vehicle a few car lengths ahead which is barely visible

If you want to see a video of the fog from the topside – click here. Nature is amazing.

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Sprucing Up the Garbage

October 13, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

red and blue dumpster

Fujairah is getting new dumpsters.

dented grey dumpster

This is an example of why. Poor old thing has had a rough life.

red and blue dumpster with city emblem on the front

They are quite attractive. They also come in green and yellow/orange.

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Old Classic

October 12, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

1950's red firetruck

That’s the thing about Dubai. You never know what you are going to see.

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Jahli Fort, Al Ain

October 9, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

desert fort

We were in Al Ain for the day, so we took a walk around Jahli Fort.

fort wall

The fort covers a significant amount of land.

large buttresses along the fort wall

Large buttresses brace the back wall.

fort tower

Tall corner tower.

main gate to the fort

A beautiful gate, but like many historical sites, it was not open for visitors.

tower with four levels

This tower is eye catching.

Update: More information here.

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Fujairah Food Tour

October 6, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

Friends from Dubai came to Fujairah for a food tour of our favorite restaurants. We began Thursday evening with Nepal Kitchen House.

chicken dumplings

We started with the signature momos (steamed chicken dumplings).

four dishes of food

Pictured above (upper right, clockwise) Aloo Jeera  (potatoes, cumin seeds, tumeric), Aloo Dum (potatoes, coriander, tumeric), Chicken tass (chicken, puffed rice, crispy onions), and Badam sandeko (peanuts, onions, tomatoes, chilies).

rice, vegetable curry, lentil soup

We also sampled vegetable rice and chicken rice – rice, lentil soup (daal) and curried vegetables/chicken.

After all that, we called it a night and headed off for a good night’s sleep before starting again with an 8 am breakfast of paratha (flat bread), chana (chick peas/garbanzo beans in a curry sauce) and tea at Al Khan Restaurant.

flat bread and chick pea curry

This breakfast cost 36 AED ($9.80) for 6 people ($1.63 each). They kept the bread coming and would have refilled our bowls, but we had to pace ourselves.

beach

We headed to the corniche for a bit of sun. It didn’t take long to have gotten more than enough heat. It isn’t quite winter, yet. The temperature high that day was 97F.

egg, garlic rice, beef

“Second breakfast” was at Sizzling Restaurant which opened at 11 am. Doing this tour on a Friday was problematic due to Friday hours. Many businesses are closed, some until 4 pm. Any future food tours will have to be done on Saturday.

Sizzling Restaurant is one of three great Filipino restaurants in town. Breakfast entrées consist of fried egg, garlic rice and a variety of meats.

egg, rice, chicken adobo

We ordered and shared three items – tapsilog (beef), adosilog (chicken), and tosilog (chicken).

egg, rice, chicken

Next, we attempted to explore the discount stores, but again ran into the Friday hours problem. Only one store was open.

inlet waterway

We headed down to Kalba mangroves to look for turtles. The mangrove area has been closed since March due to plans to develop the area. We weren’t even allowed to walk out onto the bridge to get a better view of the turtles, but we still managed to see a few.

When we returned to Fujairah, it was a bit too early for the bull butting and too early for bread at the Afghani restaurant, so we were off to Oriental Restaurant for Singaporean/Malaysian food.

table full of dishes and food

Pictured above is crispy shrimp omelet, egg plant sambal with shrimp, chicken and salted eggs, and mixed seafood soup.

beef with kai lan, hainanese chicken

Beef and kai lan is my personal favorite. Also pictured is hainanese chicken.

two bulls butting heads

We returned to the bull arena in time for the last bout.

One last stop at a discount store ended our day around 8 pm. A long, busy, and tiring day. Great fun with great people.

If you would like to get Mita’s take on our tour, read this Mita56’s Blog: Fujairah Food Tour

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Ride the Emu Train

September 28, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

toy train

Get aboard the Emu Train. It goes lickety split.

close up of the train on which is written "lickety split"

knock off barbie dolls with one breast exposed

These knock-off Barbies seem to be having costume malfunctions.

ceramic smurfs and red birds

For some unknown reason, the store had oodles of smurfs (and angry birds).

ceramic smurfs with sideburns and wearing kilts

Including MacSmurf.

smurf wall hangings

And if ceramic smurfs aren’t enough, there are pictures to hang on your wall.

another smurf wall hanging

Plenty to choose from. There were also two poor employees in smurf suits out in the parking lot. In this heat, the thing you don’t want to be wearing is a blue furry suit and a big head.

black lace with silver sparkles doll chairs and lounge

These are the best doll chairs ever!

golden bottles, long neck above a bulbous bottom

I dream of Jeanie…

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Fujairah Roundabout Art

September 26, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

The streets of Fujairah are a web connecting many a roundabout. Several of the roundabouts have art depicting traditional symbols.

statue of a hand holding a perfume bottle

The Perfume Roundabout may be the oldest current roundabout structure. It was recently refurbished. It has a water feature (not running at the time of picture). Water flows from the bottle.

statue of an incense burner

Another of the older art is the Incense Burner.

statue of an Arabic coffee pot surrounded by cups

The Arabic Coffee Pot also has a water feature. Water pours out filling the same cup to overflowing.

two fish statues

The fish of the Fish Roundabout spit water. All the water features happened to be turned off on the day we spent taking pictures. The building in the background is a new mammoth beachside hotel currently under construction.

statue of a bird of prey

Iconic and a bit scary is the Falcon Roundabout. It provides a bit of shade and a good photo op.

roundabout with only grass and a flock of pigeons

Not all of the roundabouts have art. This one is always populated by a flock of pigeons in the afternoon, so it is the Pigeon Roundabout.

sword sculpture

Two new sculptures have been installed since we moved to Fujairah. This is the Sword Roundabout symbolizing the sword handling competitions.

abstract boat sculpture

Newest is this Boat Roundabout. We’ve seen it both lit up blue at night and a water feature that forms the sail. (The building on the left is our apartment building.)

boat sculpture lit in blue lights

Last, and maybe least, is what we like to call the Surveillance Roundabout. In the center of this roundabout is a surveillance camera pointed down a road that borders the palace.

surveillance camera on a tall pole in the center of a roundabout

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The Elusive Blanket

September 23, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

When you move to another country, especially one half-way around the world from your home, you expect that there will be some things you are used to that will now be difficult or impossible to obtain. I was concerned about salmon sushi. What is really difficult to obtain? A common bed blanket.

We started out with a comforter, then moved up to a feather duvet. But, despite the constant airconditioning, these were too much. Too warm. There are cheap fleece blankets, but these are not enough and get all wonky once they are laundered. So, we began a search for a run-of-the-mill blanket.

store display of animal print fleece blankets

The problem is that run-of-the-mill blankets don’t seem to exist here. When you walk into a store and ask the sales person if they have blankets, they say “yes, sir” then show you the duvets. We said that wasn’t what we were looking for and he asked what a blanket was. Seriously.

Throw blankets exist and I actually considered buying several and sewing them together. We have finally found a quilted bedspread. We’ll see how that works, or not.

Sheets can also be somewhat challenging. When we first arrived I bought packages expecting a full sheet set only to find a single flat sheet and two pillow cases, no fitted sheet. If you go to Ikea, it’s the other way around – one fitted sheet with no flat sheet. So, I ended up combining the flat from one store and the fitted from the other. I get excited when I find a complete set. It’s the small pleasures in life, they say.

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More Shopping Adventures

September 22, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

store rack of gloves, ear muffs, and stocking caps

In a desert where the temperature ranges from 75F to 120F, it’s important to have gloves, ear muffs, and furry caps.

2 doll houses

There’s a great new Khaleeji family doll house. Why they live in a wood frame house is a mystery. Apparently, their neighbors, the King and Queen have their own Jester.

toy dinosaur being riden by a cavewoman

Down the street is the Cavemen family.

caveman, cavewoman, and cavebaby

I am greatly amused by the bone in the hair.

embroidered shirt

“The seven innate emotions are joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hate, and desire.” I think this speaks for itself.

package of "streaky" bacon

Streaky bacon.

paper party glasses with scantily clad woman across the top

Here are some “culturally sensitive” party glasses.

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Shopping for the Easily Amused

September 17, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

grocery aisle sign "cheeps nuts popcorn"

Here in the cheeps aisle, they are not talking about marshmallow cheeps. Surprisingly, they didn’t call them “crisps.” It’s a French store chain, so it would probably be treason to use the British “crisps.”

grocery shelves containing Thums Up brand soda

We are surprised and pleased to see Thums Up soda on the Carrefour shelves. (Apologies for the blurry picture, but I am trying to take pictures on the sly.)

water bottles taped to soda cans

It is always interesting to see what two products are taped together to form a special deal. Here two bottles of water are taped to a six pack of soda pop. In the freezer section, there was a small tub of mango ice cream taped to a huge tub of vanilla ice cream.

grocery shelves containing pet treats

The variety of pet treats is interesting. Hamsters, exotic birds, canaries, parrots, guinea pigs, chinchillas, rabbits, and cockatiels. No cheetah chews or tiger bites though. I was tempted to get rabbit treats to see if Oliver, our vegetable eating cat, would like them. Bert is the one we have trouble finding treats for.

can of reptile food labeled "mixed carnivore"

And for your reptiles – mixed carnivore. Does this mean bits of carnivorous animals? Tiger bites? Chewy cheetahs?

groceries in separate bags

I remember the good old days when the bagger used to put more than one item in each bag. I need to be more disciplined about taking canvas bags, but that always throws the bagger into confusion. What to do?!?!?! It doesn’t keep them from putting one item in each bag, however. (Yes, that is Oliver sniffing around the bags. He’s trying to find the curry leaves, one of the many things he loves to eat.)