Have no idea why I have chosen not to write anything further about Dubai. Just laziness and a sense of having been there and done that.. but lots of more places seen, lots more things done, so I am ready to roll!
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Friday, June 15, 2012
Stationery
Its that time of the year again.. school's restarted and there seem to be tons of things that my son seems to want for arts, crafts etc... most of which I suspect are entirely his demands cos he is now a middle schooler! Don't they stop all of that once they graduate from the elementary school?
Not that I blame him. We have discovered this wonderful place in Jumeirah for all kinds of unimaginable stationery items, and faith, I feel like Alice in Wonderland! Heck, I want to buy things, so how can sonny boy be far behind!
So plastic folders for classes became an excuse to drive out some 30 kms from home instead of heading for the nearest Carrefour and we found ourselves at Jumeirah Beach Centre, yet again!. I think, shortly, the guy is going to offer us "frequent flyer" miles :-)) I think its Jumeirah Beach centre but there are so many of these Jumeirah Beach mall, Plaza etc that I am never too sure what the name is. All I do know is that it has a Burger King on the ground floor and the Zaks outlet is there.
Its like being let loose in stationery wonderland. The most bizarre things that you could think of are available - be it paper varieties, thermocol shapes, paints of every type, wall decorations, folders et all.
The array of paints is mind boggling - acrylic, oil, water, glass, cloth. You name it and they probably stock it. The prices however are not for the faint hearted but if you are looking for something and absolutely need it, don't need to look elsewhere!
Not that I blame him. We have discovered this wonderful place in Jumeirah for all kinds of unimaginable stationery items, and faith, I feel like Alice in Wonderland! Heck, I want to buy things, so how can sonny boy be far behind!
So plastic folders for classes became an excuse to drive out some 30 kms from home instead of heading for the nearest Carrefour and we found ourselves at Jumeirah Beach Centre, yet again!. I think, shortly, the guy is going to offer us "frequent flyer" miles :-)) I think its Jumeirah Beach centre but there are so many of these Jumeirah Beach mall, Plaza etc that I am never too sure what the name is. All I do know is that it has a Burger King on the ground floor and the Zaks outlet is there.
Its like being let loose in stationery wonderland. The most bizarre things that you could think of are available - be it paper varieties, thermocol shapes, paints of every type, wall decorations, folders et all.
The array of paints is mind boggling - acrylic, oil, water, glass, cloth. You name it and they probably stock it. The prices however are not for the faint hearted but if you are looking for something and absolutely need it, don't need to look elsewhere!
We picked up some lovely thermocol shapes to paint and decorate the garden with. Its a different story how long they will withstand the heat outside :-) before they wilt away but they were just too tempting to walk away from. Now you know what meant by Alice in Wonderland!
And of course we picked up a few strips to decorate our bathroom with. I just hope they are as easy to rip off after a year as they were to stick on. Otherwise I can see many an afternoon spent with a washcloth and soap instead of packing!
I also saw some really cute pencils across Grades for elementary schools which talked about star students! Was tempted to buy a 6th Grade star student but figured a0 it made sense coming from his teacher and b) er... they didnt have them beyond elementary.
Its a fabulous place to pick up most of your stationery needs. A tad out of the way unless you live in Jumeirah but an absolute must see/browse if only for the vicarious pleasure of being a child once again!
P.S. Went to the shop again, appears they are opening a really large outlet in Barsha! Yipee!Friday, March 9, 2012
Ravi restaurant
There is one place that I have heard so much about, that its been on my list of places to go to ever since I have come to Dubai.
Its not a 5 star spot, in fact a far cry from that, and probably one that most likely only the people from the subcontinent would appreciate. So it was a very pleasant surprise when a Brit friend of mine mentioned that she had been there, of course in the cooler months.
The cooler months is understandable when you reach Ravi restaurant! Located in Satwa, almost at the edge, is a slightly dilapidated looking building with bold green and white sign proclaiming "Ravi Restaurant". I believe its been around since 1932 at exactly the same location, and, I suspect with exactly the same infrastructure, lol!
There is seating inside but I would not recommend it, its preferrable to sit outside on the wooden table and benches / chairs provided. Hence the cooler months. As the man behind the counter very produly told me "our food does the talking, we dont need fancy chairs and tables" Seriously, out in the open, under the skies in the cooler months is actually much nicer. The inside has a old small town crowded eatery feel which is warm but cramped, and, remniscent of a workers' canteen.
Like I said its a far cry from 5 star or even a PF Chang or Asha's or the likes of those restaurants but the food is good. We ordered a haleem - a slow cooked dish of wheat, meat and lentils - cooked to the consistency of porridge and the meat was absolutely soft. In fact, my mom-in-law remarked, when I took her subsequently, that even many of the so called fancy restaurants dont serve meat so tender. Another must order is the nihari - a mutton preparation that is so tender that the meat just falls off the bones.
Being a vegetarian, all of this was wasted on me, but mercifully help was at hand. They serve the most divinely cooked dal along with a potato and aubergine curry.
Both the dal and the curry were really spicy, wonderful to mop up with an unimaginably large roti! However, its best not to look at, or at best ingnore the oil floating on the dishes! There has to be a price paid for taste, right?
To make the evening interesting you will have an occassional feline visitor walk by rather hopefully, but by and large they leave you alone, and as the waiter assures us, they are not allowed anywhere near the kitchen or inside the restaurant. Plus it was reassuring to see that they appeared to have a guy whose only job was to keep cleaning and mopping the floor inside and outside the restaurant.
Someone ordered a biryani and some seekh kebabs and said that they were rather nice. It was a whole load of food that we ordered for 8 hungry people and the bill was an amazing Dhs 127 including water and the desserts! I saw a huge number of parcels being despatched - believe takeaways are a big business! I can imagine, the food was quite wholesome and delicious.
Its not a fancy place, no fancy seating, but I think I liked Ravi for good simple food, for its rustic earthy feel and for the pleasure of eating at some place that was not the biggest, the largest, the best, the most expensive or the most exclusive. Simple pleasure, simple joys!
Its not a 5 star spot, in fact a far cry from that, and probably one that most likely only the people from the subcontinent would appreciate. So it was a very pleasant surprise when a Brit friend of mine mentioned that she had been there, of course in the cooler months.
The cooler months is understandable when you reach Ravi restaurant! Located in Satwa, almost at the edge, is a slightly dilapidated looking building with bold green and white sign proclaiming "Ravi Restaurant". I believe its been around since 1932 at exactly the same location, and, I suspect with exactly the same infrastructure, lol!
There is seating inside but I would not recommend it, its preferrable to sit outside on the wooden table and benches / chairs provided. Hence the cooler months. As the man behind the counter very produly told me "our food does the talking, we dont need fancy chairs and tables" Seriously, out in the open, under the skies in the cooler months is actually much nicer. The inside has a old small town crowded eatery feel which is warm but cramped, and, remniscent of a workers' canteen.
Like I said its a far cry from 5 star or even a PF Chang or Asha's or the likes of those restaurants but the food is good. We ordered a haleem - a slow cooked dish of wheat, meat and lentils - cooked to the consistency of porridge and the meat was absolutely soft. In fact, my mom-in-law remarked, when I took her subsequently, that even many of the so called fancy restaurants dont serve meat so tender. Another must order is the nihari - a mutton preparation that is so tender that the meat just falls off the bones.
Being a vegetarian, all of this was wasted on me, but mercifully help was at hand. They serve the most divinely cooked dal along with a potato and aubergine curry.
Both the dal and the curry were really spicy, wonderful to mop up with an unimaginably large roti! However, its best not to look at, or at best ingnore the oil floating on the dishes! There has to be a price paid for taste, right?
To make the evening interesting you will have an occassional feline visitor walk by rather hopefully, but by and large they leave you alone, and as the waiter assures us, they are not allowed anywhere near the kitchen or inside the restaurant. Plus it was reassuring to see that they appeared to have a guy whose only job was to keep cleaning and mopping the floor inside and outside the restaurant.
Someone ordered a biryani and some seekh kebabs and said that they were rather nice. It was a whole load of food that we ordered for 8 hungry people and the bill was an amazing Dhs 127 including water and the desserts! I saw a huge number of parcels being despatched - believe takeaways are a big business! I can imagine, the food was quite wholesome and delicious.
Its not a fancy place, no fancy seating, but I think I liked Ravi for good simple food, for its rustic earthy feel and for the pleasure of eating at some place that was not the biggest, the largest, the best, the most expensive or the most exclusive. Simple pleasure, simple joys!
Location: Satwa, Dubai
Tel: 04 331 5353
Cuisine: Pakistani
Timing: 5am-3am
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Dubai and me
The folks at BlogExpat.com have been very kind and asked me for my experiences in and of Dubai! So here goes!
From India to Dubai
From India to Dubai
Sunday, March 4, 2012
What's the number please?
I am quite puzzled, intrigued, ignorant and feeling quite cheated actually! Exacerbated by the fact that I have woken up grumpy and with a headache!
Just read that RTA has started auctions for M coded 4 and 5 digit number plates.
Mohammed Abdul Kareem Nimaat, Director of RTA Vehicles Licensing "This auction promises to be exceptional as it features the debut of the ‘M' code; which is one of the most sought-after and popular codes judging by the recurrent inquiries frequently received from the public about the release of this code."
It appears that M is quite a popular alphabet for number plates as is "K". I understand if I wanted my car number plate to be "M" - personalised with my initials and all that jazz, but why M for the public at large? Lucky M? Dunno! Puzzled!
Plates bearing ‘K' code have also been in high demand with clearance rate posted as high as 70 per cent; which prompted RTA to consider issuing a new code. I can understand wanting easy numbers like 10000 or 55555 or your birth date or anniversary date but not sure if its fashionable /superstition or what that prompts this fascination for certain alphabets! Intrigued!
RTA website talks about "distinguished number plates" with code M. I mean its a number plate, how distinguished can it get?
Being the ultimate ignoramus, I obviously was completely unaware that you could chose your number plate - may have ended up with something far more exotic than my current one which is a nightmare to even remember with not even one number repeated and in some random order! I am perennially walking back to check the number while paying parking - clearly, am numerically challenged!
They actually hold an auction for which you need to put down a deposit of Dhs 5000, have a "file" with RTA, and bid for the number plate you want. I believe the 73rd number plate auction in October 2011, collected Dhs 21 million for coveted "distinguished" number plates with just 124 bidders across categories! J-90 got sold for Dhs 1.24 million :-( Huh?
So far so good,but why didn't they tell me about this when I got my number plate done? Then I might have had a distinguished one with my initials and the number of petunias in my garden on my number plate!
P.S. I am still trying to get the "distinguished"bit?
Just read that RTA has started auctions for M coded 4 and 5 digit number plates.
Mohammed Abdul Kareem Nimaat, Director of RTA Vehicles Licensing "This auction promises to be exceptional as it features the debut of the ‘M' code; which is one of the most sought-after and popular codes judging by the recurrent inquiries frequently received from the public about the release of this code."
It appears that M is quite a popular alphabet for number plates as is "K". I understand if I wanted my car number plate to be "M" - personalised with my initials and all that jazz, but why M for the public at large? Lucky M? Dunno! Puzzled!
Plates bearing ‘K' code have also been in high demand with clearance rate posted as high as 70 per cent; which prompted RTA to consider issuing a new code. I can understand wanting easy numbers like 10000 or 55555 or your birth date or anniversary date but not sure if its fashionable /superstition or what that prompts this fascination for certain alphabets! Intrigued!
RTA website talks about "distinguished number plates" with code M. I mean its a number plate, how distinguished can it get?
Being the ultimate ignoramus, I obviously was completely unaware that you could chose your number plate - may have ended up with something far more exotic than my current one which is a nightmare to even remember with not even one number repeated and in some random order! I am perennially walking back to check the number while paying parking - clearly, am numerically challenged!
They actually hold an auction for which you need to put down a deposit of Dhs 5000, have a "file" with RTA, and bid for the number plate you want. I believe the 73rd number plate auction in October 2011, collected Dhs 21 million for coveted "distinguished" number plates with just 124 bidders across categories! J-90 got sold for Dhs 1.24 million :-( Huh?
So far so good,but why didn't they tell me about this when I got my number plate done? Then I might have had a distinguished one with my initials and the number of petunias in my garden on my number plate!
P.S. I am still trying to get the "distinguished"bit?
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Birthday cakes!
Its my son's birthday next weekend and I am struggling to find a place close home which
a/ does really good cakes
b/ can manage to do a cricket cake (despite an ICC what the kittens is that?)
c/ can deliver the cake home
My fumbling around has just driven home the fact that unlike our earlier sojourns, I have invested really little time in discovering Dubai! I've always prided myself on being quick to figure where, what and how but for some strange reason this time around, I've been terribly lethargic! Hubby, not so charitably, is convinced its the onset of premature menopause! I am curious to know if I display most signs symptomatic of one, but then that's another story!
After googling for hours have come up with a list - all of whom seem to do fabulous cakes, but an interesting cricket one, continues to be elusive!
House of Cakes
http://www.houseofcakesdubai.com/store/
Actually the website is quite professional. Which is just as well, cos the bakery is located is International City, China Cluster.
Huge gallery of cakes to choose from, you can order online, they deliver right at your doorstep and you can even specify the time that you want the delivery! An additional charge of Dhs 95 for delivery in Dubai. They even had a cricket cake but somehow it was not so inspiring! Well not for a 11 year old anyways!
I am still trying to explain to him that his mother is not exactly Betty Crocker so he better make do with what he gets - in any case its the taste that matters, right?
Home Baked Treats
http://www.homebakedtreats.com/
A home based bakery business, the gallery of cakes is very interesting and they seem to do a lot of 3 dimensional cakes. Now if only my son was into cars! I mean a 3 dimensional cricket bat for a cake, while might be a culinary possibility, will be a cutting and serving nightmare! But seriously, the cakes are very nice and quite reasonable. Dhs 260 for a 20 servings.
Based in The Lakes, they do not do home delivery but are luckily close enough for me to pick up the cake!
French Connection
http://www.fcdubai.com/en/index.asp
Based on Sheikh Zayed Road, they do a whole variety of dessert and concept cakes. They are a little on the expensive side but are an established store. Though I am not sure how great they are on kids' cakes. The story behind the name is quite cute - French for the French pastry products served and Connection for the wireless Internet access that is provided throughout the Cafe. Though now its quite common, I believe in 1997, when it opened doors, it was something new!
Tel:+971 4 343 8311
Sugarbox
http://www.sugarboxonline.com/
This one says its an Emirati enterprise owned by Sheikha May Al Qassemi. Now I have no clue who she is, but I am assuming the Sheikha bit is important. Not that it has any relevance whatsoever to the cakes! But the website is very professional, actually very neat and uncluttered and they had some really good sport cakes.
I think they are based in Sharjah but do have an outlet in Mercato Mall in Dubai
Tel: +9716 5660901
Sunday to Thursday 9am-9pm. Saturday 1pm – 9pm
Nukku's Cakes
http://www.nukuscakes.com/about.html
The designs are absolutely adorable. One of her pink cakes actually tempted me to think about having a girl! Well OK, maybe that's stretching it a bit, but attend a baby girl shower /birthday for sure!
Tel: +971 504518365
Mister Baker
http://www.misterbaker.com/
A big favourite I believe especially for the little ones, it offers the option to order online.The copy functions are disabled so no picture of any of the cakes! The wedding cakes in particular look nice and this was recommended by a friend! The website is still under construction so much of the data is not available, so you need to call them. But they are quite reasonable and do home delivery
Tel: 00971 4 3958711
7:00 am to 12:00 pm
a/ does really good cakes
b/ can manage to do a cricket cake (despite an ICC what the kittens is that?)
c/ can deliver the cake home
My fumbling around has just driven home the fact that unlike our earlier sojourns, I have invested really little time in discovering Dubai! I've always prided myself on being quick to figure where, what and how but for some strange reason this time around, I've been terribly lethargic! Hubby, not so charitably, is convinced its the onset of premature menopause! I am curious to know if I display most signs symptomatic of one, but then that's another story!
After googling for hours have come up with a list - all of whom seem to do fabulous cakes, but an interesting cricket one, continues to be elusive!
House of Cakes
http://www.houseofcakesdubai.com/store/
Actually the website is quite professional. Which is just as well, cos the bakery is located is International City, China Cluster.
Huge gallery of cakes to choose from, you can order online, they deliver right at your doorstep and you can even specify the time that you want the delivery! An additional charge of Dhs 95 for delivery in Dubai. They even had a cricket cake but somehow it was not so inspiring! Well not for a 11 year old anyways!
I am still trying to explain to him that his mother is not exactly Betty Crocker so he better make do with what he gets - in any case its the taste that matters, right?
Home Baked Treats
http://www.homebakedtreats.com/
A home based bakery business, the gallery of cakes is very interesting and they seem to do a lot of 3 dimensional cakes. Now if only my son was into cars! I mean a 3 dimensional cricket bat for a cake, while might be a culinary possibility, will be a cutting and serving nightmare! But seriously, the cakes are very nice and quite reasonable. Dhs 260 for a 20 servings.
Based in The Lakes, they do not do home delivery but are luckily close enough for me to pick up the cake!
French Connection
http://www.fcdubai.com/en/index.asp
Based on Sheikh Zayed Road, they do a whole variety of dessert and concept cakes. They are a little on the expensive side but are an established store. Though I am not sure how great they are on kids' cakes. The story behind the name is quite cute - French for the French pastry products served and Connection for the wireless Internet access that is provided throughout the Cafe. Though now its quite common, I believe in 1997, when it opened doors, it was something new!
Tel:+971 4 343 8311
Sugarbox
http://www.sugarboxonline.com/
This one says its an Emirati enterprise owned by Sheikha May Al Qassemi. Now I have no clue who she is, but I am assuming the Sheikha bit is important. Not that it has any relevance whatsoever to the cakes! But the website is very professional, actually very neat and uncluttered and they had some really good sport cakes.
I think they are based in Sharjah but do have an outlet in Mercato Mall in Dubai
Tel: +9716 5660901
Sunday to Thursday 9am-9pm. Saturday 1pm – 9pm
Nukku's Cakes
http://www.nukuscakes.com/about.html
The designs are absolutely adorable. One of her pink cakes actually tempted me to think about having a girl! Well OK, maybe that's stretching it a bit, but attend a baby girl shower /birthday for sure!
Tel: +971 504518365
Mister Baker
http://www.misterbaker.com/
A big favourite I believe especially for the little ones, it offers the option to order online.The copy functions are disabled so no picture of any of the cakes! The wedding cakes in particular look nice and this was recommended by a friend! The website is still under construction so much of the data is not available, so you need to call them. But they are quite reasonable and do home delivery
Tel: 00971 4 3958711
7:00 am to 12:00 pm
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Intrenational Food Festival
There seems to be a tradition that almost all American international schools follow - at least the two that my son has been at, do! Something that celebrates the multicultural ethnicity that is the hallmark of any international school. And Dubai American Academy (DAA) is no exception! Except that the one at DAA seemed much larger in scale.
The International Food Festival or IFF is one the biggest events that the parents association of the school hosts. Hosting stalls representing countries across the world, the food at each of these stalls is unique, typical to the country, put together painstakingly by the parents involved.
This year was no exception and for a change I was behind the scenes, part of the organising committee and its been brought home with great wonder at the amount of organisation, planning and effort that goes into organising such an event.
IFF is open to students' families and their friends and a ticket needs to be purchased to enter the venue. Once you are inside, you can taste food from any of the stalls inside without any additional charge - be it the nachos with beef and cheese from Mexico, koshary from Egypt, tea time treats from Great Britain, samosas and tikkas from India, biryani from Pakistan, meze and falafels from Lebanon,the list is endless with 38 countries finding representation this year.
Not surprisingly, the event kicked off with a flag parade with students from each country carrying their country's flag. It never ceases to amaze me, the sense of pride that one feels as one watches one's national colours or hears one's national anthem. No matter how long you have been away from home, there is always a bit of home that you carry with yourself!
There were over 3000 people in the school grounds with kids running all over the place, drink stalls, games for the children and as icing on the cake - an entertainment program by each country! Mostly it was the kids from the school who put up acts that were very typical of their country or that represented some part / culture of where they came from, be it the Korean dance, the Indian fashion show, the rustic Pakistani dholkis, the Spanish flamenco or the absolutely stunning tannoura from Egypt!
Long queues next to the henna lady as she tattooed patterns on hands and arms- young and old!
The atmosphere is one of a big carnival or fair and a lovely scene of bonhomie. Of course, looking at how seamlessly it comes together, its difficult to imagine how much effort goes into organising this - both by the organisers as well as the parents who volunteer time and effort! And its obviously a day out for families with friends - saw countless groups where people had come in a big group with friends to make an evening out of it!
So if you have friends whose kids are at DAA, make sure you are there next year!
The International Food Festival or IFF is one the biggest events that the parents association of the school hosts. Hosting stalls representing countries across the world, the food at each of these stalls is unique, typical to the country, put together painstakingly by the parents involved.
This year was no exception and for a change I was behind the scenes, part of the organising committee and its been brought home with great wonder at the amount of organisation, planning and effort that goes into organising such an event.
IFF is open to students' families and their friends and a ticket needs to be purchased to enter the venue. Once you are inside, you can taste food from any of the stalls inside without any additional charge - be it the nachos with beef and cheese from Mexico, koshary from Egypt, tea time treats from Great Britain, samosas and tikkas from India, biryani from Pakistan, meze and falafels from Lebanon,the list is endless with 38 countries finding representation this year.
Not surprisingly, the event kicked off with a flag parade with students from each country carrying their country's flag. It never ceases to amaze me, the sense of pride that one feels as one watches one's national colours or hears one's national anthem. No matter how long you have been away from home, there is always a bit of home that you carry with yourself!
There were over 3000 people in the school grounds with kids running all over the place, drink stalls, games for the children and as icing on the cake - an entertainment program by each country! Mostly it was the kids from the school who put up acts that were very typical of their country or that represented some part / culture of where they came from, be it the Korean dance, the Indian fashion show, the rustic Pakistani dholkis, the Spanish flamenco or the absolutely stunning tannoura from Egypt!
Long queues next to the henna lady as she tattooed patterns on hands and arms- young and old!
The atmosphere is one of a big carnival or fair and a lovely scene of bonhomie. Of course, looking at how seamlessly it comes together, its difficult to imagine how much effort goes into organising this - both by the organisers as well as the parents who volunteer time and effort! And its obviously a day out for families with friends - saw countless groups where people had come in a big group with friends to make an evening out of it!
So if you have friends whose kids are at DAA, make sure you are there next year!
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