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Life is Beautiful

May 27, 2010

Posted by Kanga.

So, I was standing in line in the small neighborhood grocery behind a woman who was clearly high maintenance in her tight dress, high heels, raven black hair and eyebrows plucked to non-existence. First, there was a problem with the barcode on a couple of small juice bottles, so the clerk typed in the code manually. The woman immediately reached over and grabbed the second bottle before he could enter that one and tossed aside as no longer wanted. Then came the veggies…I have to explain here that the procedure with fresh veggies is that after you choose what you want you take them in plastic bags to a weighing station in the veggie section to have them weighed, sealed and labeled. –Well, she had three bags of veggies, only the first of which had a price label on it. When it became apparent that the second bag of veggies had no label, she grabbed it from the clerk, shoved it at the security guard who happened to be walking past the check stand and indicated that he should get it weighed and labeled. After he left, with veggie bag in hand to do just that, the third bag was discovered to be label-less also. She, herself, grabbed the bag from the clerk and off she went to the veggie section to get it weighed. The clerk then looked at me and said, “Life is beautiful. [pause] Life is still beautiful.” The woman then returned with only the third bag of veggies in hand , weighed and labeled, followed shortly by the security guard with the second bag, also weighed and labeled. Her transaction continued without further ado.

Today, I learned a little something about owls. Westerners consider owls to be symbolic of wisdom. “Wise ol’ owl or wise as an owl.” However, if a Pakistani calls you “a son of an owl” this is actually an insult that equates to “you idiot.” In the Middle East, owls are considered stupid, apparently because they look stupid. So, now I’m going to have to investigate other animals and insults.

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Iconic carts

May 21, 2010

Posted by Kanga.

A common site in Dubai is the cart. Actually, let me clarify, it is a common site in Deira and Bur Dubai, the older parts of the city.

The quintessential sighting we had was as we came around the corner heading for our apartment building, we passed a guy pulling an empty cart down the left side of the street (our lane) while talking on his cell phone. Unfortunately, we did not have time to get a picture of that. DaddyBird was too busy trying not to crash into him.

When we first arrived in Dubai, one of our fellow “newbies” described Dubai as “first world meets third world.” That’s a pretty accurate description and the use of carts is one excellent example of that.

handcart loaded with boxes in the Spice Souk area

It makes perfect sense to see these in the souk areas because the souks are pedestrian traffic only, so a hand cart is perfectly suited to the task of moving goods around.

carts chained to a sign post

Naif has car traffic, but you will still see many carts here because it is the easier way to move things from place to place.

It is not uncommon in Naif to see a family or group of women who are shopping with a cartman following them with a cart full of their purchases.

This video shows two cart-men negotiating the crossing of a busy street.

carts loaded with living room furniture

The most amusing use of carts is for moving.

furniture cushions piled high on a hand cart

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Safe Driving

May 14, 2010

Posted by Kanga

One of the first things we noticed when we arrived back in Dubai last August was the seemingly sudden appearance of signs on the back of commercial vans and trucks stating something along the line of “Am I driving safely? If not, please call…” These have existed in the States for a long time, but they were a new sight on Dubai streets. Why is this of interest? Because of the standard “sign phenomenon.” The first few we saw suffered from creative spelling and grammar. “Pleas” instead of “please.” “Safle” instead of “safely.” Unfortunately, I didn’t get those first few on film and then correct signs started to appear. We have, however, collected 22 (to date) showing various variations on the theme.

Am I drive safe, if not please call

The signs usually give a phone number to call, but sometimes have an email address, for those of you who can send an email while driving (safely).

Some of the signs were professionally printed, but some are spray painted on with a stencil.

Am I safe driver? If not please call

The corker, however, was captured by DaddyBird. The vehicle was yellow, so they simply wrote the sign on with a black marker.

If any comments on my driving, please call

To see all 22 pictures (or more if we add to them in the future), click here.

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Making the Bed

May 9, 2010

We were trying to make the bed (after fixing the broken frame) and Oliver and Bert decided to “pitch in.” Here is the result.

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Oliver, Cardboard and Climbing

May 3, 2010

Oliver loves to chew on cardboard. He also likes to get up on top of the kitchen cabinets. Once caught in the act and the camera is on, he puts on his innocent face.

Oliver has calmed down greatly (post-neutering). He still has a loud voice, but he isn’t constantly using it. He is much happier and so are we. He is getting back to his old self – playing fetch and running around after Bert. He still gets a bit wound up in the evenings when Bert wants to nap and Oliver is bored and wants to be entertained, but we are counting our blessings. Whew!

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Wacky shirts

May 2, 2010

strange t-shirt prints

“Do not try to tell me! Trust all thing” and “B. P. Les Flintstone”

strange shirt print

“you smile behind the sitale sweet child the taste and style always smile did you ever have the slightest intention to stay”

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Restroom signs

May 1, 2010

men's room sign - male to let

There’s a ghost of an “i” there, so did if fall off or get painted over?

sitting human figure above two dotted arched lines

This might take a little explaining to Americans who are not used to bidets. This is a warning that the bidet is built into the toilet.

sign outlining toilet cleaning instructions

This sign was on the underside of the toilet seat cover. “Customer Notice: Clean this product using hot soapy water. If disinfectant is required, a plain unscented bleach may be added to the water. Any other cleaning mediums could result in chemical attack seriously impairing the life of this product.” You gotta watch out for that chemical attack.

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Bull Butting Again

April 30, 2010

two bulls butting heads

We went to Fujairah for the bull butting contest again, one last time before the heat and humidity get unbearable. The crowd was smaller and most of the spectators were gathered in the shade of the two large trees. I suspect we aren’t the only ones who will be taking a break from the sport until next winter.

men gathered to watch the bull butting

I couldn’t pass up taking a picture of this grandfatherly figure. This is technically inside the arena. It is very dangerous, not just from the bulls, but from the panicked spectators who run frantically any time a bull heads into the crowd (and they do).

spiral cone shaped shell on the beach

We spent a few minutes on the beach. The sand is dark. It is almost chocolate brown when it is wet. I resisted the urge to collect this shell and settled for a picture. Takes up so much less space that way.

two girls swimming in the surf

There was a family near us and their daughters (approx. 10 yrs old) were swimming in the surf wearing full length dresses and head scarves. They were having a blast.

falcon sculpture

Fujairah’s known for its roundabout sculptures, large art works in the middle of roundabouts. (Previously posted pictures here) Unfortunately, these pictures were taken at dusk from a moving car, but you get the idea. The guy sitting on its leg is a nice touch.

falcon sculpture

After this it was off to Al Meshwar restaurant for great food, then a two hour drive back home dodging the dangerous drivers. A day well spent.

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Signs

April 24, 2010

Posted by Kanga

Here’s some miscellaneous signs gathered recently.

warning sign showing figure falling into a deep holeI’ve fallen and I don’t think I’ll be able to get up.

sign of Raboob Gents SaloonThis speaks for itself. I’m childish, I know.

sign for My Car RentalDaddyBird insisted we take a picture of My Car Auto Rental. The pedestrian who saw us pull over, roll down the window, take a picture and then drive away undoubtedly thought we were crazy.

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City of Life

April 24, 2010

Posted by Kanga

I don’t know how widely this film will be distributed, but if you get the chance to see it, DO! It was made here in Dubai, about life in Dubai. It is a really well made film. It shows (quite honestly) some of the typical stories of people in Dubai.

City of Life