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Student Sculptures

November 13, 2011

Posted by Kanga.

Last week we were in Dubai doing some shopping and errands. We visited Mirdif City Center Mall for the second time, ever. We saw banners indicating that there was a display of student sculptures somewhere in the mall (which is massive). Luckily, we found the sculpture display around the central information desk. The theme includes recycling and UAE symbols.

sculpture of the Emirates Towers made of aluminum foil

The Emirates Towers

paper mache horse sculpture

Arabian Horse

falcon made of cut soda cans

We were particularly impressed with the falcon. The artist(s) even included the hood. Very creative.

If you are in the Mirdif City Centre Mall soon, look for the display. In order to vote, you must present mall store receipts for a minimum of 200 AED to the information desk.

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

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Day at the Park

November 7, 2011

Posted 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.

man riding a horse through the park

You never know what you might see at the park.

people lined up on the beach watching water skiers

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.

sign for Titanic Jet Ski Rental

And if you are feeling a little peckish, stop by the “Sponge Bop” concession truck.

concessions truck plastered with pictures of Sponge Bob

Posted in beach, Fujairah | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments »

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Tea, Surf, and Cat

November 5, 2011

Posted by Kanga.

white flowers with 5 pedals and yellow centers

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.)

waves and beach

If you look very closely at the horizon, you might see the ships and tankers lined up out there.

me wading in the surf

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.

black cat

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.

Posted in beach, cats, Fujairah | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

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Partying Too Hard?

October 29, 2011

Posted by Kanga.

Apparently, these manikins have been partying too hard.

store display with manikins who have lampshades instead of heads.

(Wafi Mall, Dubai)

Posted in Dubai, oddities, Shopping | 3 Comments »

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Bananas

October 26, 2011

Posted by Kanga.

Not all bananas are 8 inches long and bright yellow.

three bunches of bananas, small, black, and red

In fact, you might think these look rather beat up. But, once they are peeled, you can see that they are not nearly as bruised as you might have thought.

three bunches plus one peeled of each type

They have slightly different flavors. We like the little yellow ones the best. They have a paper thin peel, yet are firm and sweet.

Posted in food | Tagged , | 6 Comments »

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At Your Inconvenience

October 22, 2011

Posted by Kanga.

I really miss American residential laws that require that a tenant be given 24 hour notice before the landlord or any repairmen can enter the apartment. We have been having a long string of disruptions as additional duct work, wiring, etc., related to the air conditioning is done. Apparently, it must all be done in separate phases. Add to this the fact that the workmen just show up at the door and expect to come in and make a mess and break your stuff.

salt and pepper shakers shaped like birds and a salt shaker shaped like a slice of bread

[White Love Bird salt shaker became collateral damage of the last repairmen visit. Now Pepper Bird has taken up with Toast salt shaker who was widowed in our emigration. Toaster didn’t make it onto the ark.]

Never mind that today we were planning on going into Dubai to visit friends and I had a long list of errands I wanted to do. We had no way of knowing how long the workers would be doing whatever it is they were doing today. They finally left at 7:30 pm. We should never have answered the door.

Posted in construction | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments »

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Joys of New Construction

October 17, 2011

Posted by Kanga.

You might think that moving into a brand new building would have advantages. Living in an apartment that no one else has lived in before sounds attractive. However, when you ask if it is “move in ready” and are told “yes” you may find a difference in definitions of “move in ready.” Our apartment was covered in and permeated by dirt.

There’s also the fact that construction may not really be completed. Two floors of our building had to be completely remodeled to suit the business that will be moving in. Also, the air conditioning throughout the building is being revamped, because it turned out to not be up to the challenge. This resulted in:

mound of garbage in the parking garage

The mound of garbage has fluctuated up and down, but has been in our parking garage for weeks. Yesterday, we were shocked to see this:

clean parking garage

Getting in and out of our parking space is much easier now that mound isn’t creeping out in to the drive lane.

Posted in construction | Tagged , | 3 Comments »

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Navratan Korma

October 16, 2011

Posted by Kanga.

bowl of veggies in creamy sauce topped with fruit

In my search for dishes at Indian restaurants that I can eat (i.e. containing no chili pepper) I have discovered navratan korma. It is cooked vegetables in a creamy sauce with cold fruit (sometimes fresh, sometimes canned) on top. I like contrasts in my food, either temperature or texture. That’s one of the reasons I like tacos so much. I don’t usually like to mix my vegetables and fruit, but this is a concept that is growing on me. I can’t always count on being able to eat navratan korma because some restaurants can’t resist putting some chili pepper in, but my loving husband has learned to make it for me at home.

bowl of home made korma

Posted in food | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments »

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Bithnah Fort

October 15, 2011

Posted by Kanga.

restored fort

Saturday afternoon we visited the Bithnah Fort…

city at the far side of a dry river bed

which is across a wadi from the town of Al Bithnah…

date palm tree farm and mountains behind

and surrounded by date palm farm.

stone building covered in scaffolding

Restoration is still in process.

stone work in a flower design

The restoration includes decorative stonework and woodwork.

wooden door

stone wall

I hope they don’t cover this wall in plaster. It is beautiful, as is.

old rusted Mobil oil barrel that is now part of a water well

This Mobil oil barrel probably didn’t expect to end up part of a water well.

red mountains in the late afternoon sun

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.

Posted in Fujairah, historical site | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments »

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Thar be Rain Here!

October 12, 2011

Posted 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.

rain flooded street

A flooded roundabout is a special kind of lake. (Sorry, no picture.) It slows people down, but doesn’t really improve their roundabout manners.

Posted in Fujairah, rain | Tagged , , | 1 Comment »

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