Eid Greetings from the UAE

Eid Mubarak everyone!


Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Abu Dhabi

Just a wink of an eye, and Ramadan’s coming to an end. Looks like it's back to the hectic days very soon…

Anyway, wishing all a happy and blessed Eid Al Fitr. Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri! Wish all travelling, a safe and relaxed journey.

Putting some photos of Abu Dhabi here for the occasion.


Walkways around the central courtyard of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque – June 2017 (it’s only 2 years late ahem)


Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque at night – this is the ummm let’s see... 3rd or 4th time we visited the mosque (coz it’s just so elegant, …and it’s FREE!!!) Check out this old post


One of the many fountains at the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque


Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, from the nearby Wahat Al Karama War Memorial


A monument at the Wahat Al Karama War Memorial, Abu Dhabi






Yas Mall, Abu Dhabi – This is where I sometimes come for lunch during my stint working in the Abu Dhabi Airport Project


Anu at Yas Mall, Abu Dhabi


Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Abu Dhabi, UAE

To all those celebrating Eid, don’t be rash, don’t overeat, and have a wonderful time! Alright, signing out till after the Eid holidays. Enjoy!

The Kingdom of Two Seas

National Theatre of Bahrain, at night (obviously), Dec 2017 – It’s just beside the Bahrain National Museum

Since we’re on museums, here’s another short and quick post! Here’s our visit to the Bahrain National Museum on our 1 day transit in Bahrain in Dec 2017.

By the way, Bahrain means Two Seas in Arabic. Hence the title. My apologies for the short-cut way in titling my posts. As you can see, I’m on a blogging spree nowadays, thanks to Ramadan, and to the fact that I am no longer (finally) Acting Project Manager of the ITS2020 Project. (I’ve been transferred). I’m struggling to find good titles. If you have suggestions, please tell, or the titles would become increasingly crass, especially for places in the UAE with interesting names like Abu Dhabi (Father of the Gazelle), or Umm Al Quwain (Mother of Two Powers), or Ras Al Khaimah (Head of the Tent).

Anyway, here goes.




Bahrain National Museum, Manama, Bahrain

This ain’t nothing like the Louvre. It’s not an art museum for God’s sake. So, you’ll get scenes of village life …like this, below.


Scenes of Bahraini village life in the past. By the way, you’ll see similar scenes in all the Heritage Villages & Museums in the region, …Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, you name it


A vintage car, Bahrain National Museum

And this was our hotel, Bahrain International Hotel...


Anu, all dressed up in the national colours of Bahrain, for Bahraini National Day celebrations. …Hehe, kidding, it was just a coincidence. But we did visit on the exact day of the National Day, without knowing beforehand!


Wow, diamonds the size of ping pong balls, …the plastic variety


At a playground at the Avenues Park, across the road from the World Trade Centre (that building at the back, with the big ass fans)


Manama Skyline, Bahrain


I HEART BAHRAIN, Manama Souq

Alright, Ma’a Salama! Till we stopover again! For more Bahrain photos, check out this old post.

The French Museum in Arabia

The Louvre Abu Dhabi

Ahem, again taking the easy way out of blogging. Since we’re at museums, here’s the most famous one in the UAE currently, the Louvre, Abu Dhabi!

It’s associated with the world famous Louvre Museum of Paris. Yup, even museums have franchises now!!! (The only recollection of my one visit to the Musée du Louvre in Paris in 1994, was waiting for the crowd to clear to see the Mona Lisa painting… All this hassle to see a painting of an unknown lady??? And what’s so grand about the Venus de Milo statue, it doesn’t even have hands?)

But I still like museums in general, coz I can hang around, look at strange things and waste my time… (I’m a lazy bum after all, who likes to be entertained, in whatever way…) The missus? You dunno how much coaxing we did to make her agree to visit the museum… (But I think, she quite likes this one...)

Here’re some of the exhibits. We got audio guides for the visit (for Justin and I), and I used it for about 3 exhibits before giving up… Hey, I have a 3 year old kid with me, OK? What d’ya think a 3 year old boy will do in a place full of strange odds and ends… Seriously, museums should think of how to keep toddlers entertained enough, so that they don’t put their itchy hands on the thousands of interesting “toys” on display…


A two-headed monster! …Nah, it’s actually the oldest statue known to mankind, dating back to friggin 6,500 BC! (How do I know? Friggin Google man!) …Does that prove that two headed Ettins actually existed?! (Ettins - giants from my fantasy role-playing days in the 80’s. …Remember Ultima IV?)


Some Egyptian artefact – Why is that Baboon looking at that poor chap? Is it an object from the Planet of the Apes??


Pharaoh Ramses II, the stony version


Umm …Is this a Sphinx?


Some Chinese dragon? Lizard? Maybe a baby dragon? – It’d be really interesting if something like in Night at the Museum happens, huh?


Someone’s paper weight from the past probably… Maybe my cellophane tape dispenser, or photo frame of my wife and kid would be in a museum 2,000 years from now? Who knows?


It’s a …Monster? Mask? Alien? With a fish in its head? Maybe it’s one of those coconut monsters from the cartoon Moana (the Kakamora?)


Some chandelier thingy which people called art… Actually it’s, hmmm let’s see… The Fountain of Light, by Ai Weiwei

Now, for some paintings…


Napoleon Crossing the Alps


Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of a woman… OK, it’s not Mona Lisa, but at least we have one…


One of Van Gogh’s Self Portraits


Wait, what’s that? It’s a famous painting?!? My kid could draw that! Piet Mondrian’s Composition in Blue, Red, Yellow and Black, 1922


Anu, at the Louvre Abu Dhabi


C’mon, let’s go! It’s getting dark… And that’s how we spent our Chinese New Year’s Day (of 2018) in a museum! Cool, eh?

Much Ado about Sharjah

Sharjah, during a sandstorm… See the sea water on the promenade?? Yup, the wind was that strong! – View from the Sharjah Aquarium

Ramadan Kareem everyone!

Yeah, that time of year is upon us, again, where work hours are short, and schools start late (in the UAE where I'm at anyway, hehe). Productivity drops, traffic accidents increase, tempers flare (when they aren’t supposed to), and malls go quiet in the day (and become a hive of activity in the middle of the night!) Huge changes, but it’s a time a lot of Non-Muslims look forward to. (Why? When else can you get an excuse to get off work early???) I dunno about Muslims (coz I ain’t one), but I always feel a general calmness, an acceptance by the bosses and the higher-ups of laying off the work pressure (a rare thing in a society like Dubai), and a re-orientation of priorities towards family, friends and …God (instead of bloody work). A welcome change, wouldn’t you say?

I’m putting some pictures of our neighbouring emirate, Sharjah. Sharjah may be crowded, jammed up and disorganized in some way, but the ‘poor man’s’ version of Dubai has quite a lot of things going on that’s worth a visit, especially when you’re looking for something affordable. I’d say, its attractions are definitely more people-orientated (than the commercially driven attractions of Dubai). In fact, the kids love it. Here, have a look!


Underwater Tunnel, Sharjah Aquarium


Jayden and a sea turtle


A guitarfish!


Sharjah Aquarium – notice how small the kids are, especially Jayden? …That’s because this was taken more than 2 years ago, i.e. Jan 2017


Sharjah Maritime Museum, which is right beside the Sharjah Aquarium


Whoa?! Who are these men in white?


Pearls! Yup, that's what the UAE used to survive on...


Pearling industry - tools of the trade

We also visited the Museum of Islamic Civilization on the same day as our visit of Sharjah Aquarium and the Maritime Museum. Click on the link for a look.


The Central Souk, Sharjah (aka the Blue Souk) …honestly, looks more brown to me than blue


Sharjah Desert Park, which contains a children's farm, wildlife centre, natural history museum, Islamic garden, …etc. That background in the photo by the way, is a prop!




Arabian Wildlife Centre, part of the Sharjah Desert Park


A camel ride at the Children’s Farm


Islamic Garden …let’s go! It’s night already! – This is more recent – Nov 2018

To those who are fasting, have a blessed Ramadan, Selamat Berpuasa!