Life before the Pandemic

Eid is done. Trudging back to work is a pain, but we’ve only got 2 friggin weeks before the Project completion date!!! If we don’t finish by then, it’s a whopping 102,500 dirhams penalty per friggin day!!! So, we’ve gotta do what we gotta do!

Doesn’t stop me putting up a post though. It’s my yearly people post. Our gatherings of 2019. I guess you won’t see that happening anytime soon this year… with COVID going thru the roof! Well, here’s to remembering a time when gatherings were OK… Dunno how long more it’ll take for the world to get back to normal. …With all the hype and scare about the pandemic, will it ever get back to normal?!? Will we stop shaking hands forever? Looks like the sanitizer and mask makers are in for a bonanza year!


Started off 2019 with a birthday party, for little ummm… forgot her name, the little daughter of Dilip, colleague of our niece Karishma. At the Orchid Vue Hotel, Bur Dubai


Jayden and his best old friend, neighbour Romaisa, of our International City England Cluster home. This was just before Romaisa and parents shifted back to Pakistan for good. Bye-bye


Jayden at Newlands School with teacher’s assistant, Ms Balisado, on International Day (or was it International Mother Tongue Day?). She’s from the Philippines


Farewell Newlands School. Jayden graduates from kindergarten. That’s Jayden’s favourite teacher, his FS2 (Foundation Stage 2) class teacher, Ms Leila Borich, from Bosnia


A gathering with old friends, parents of Justin’s Year 1 classmates. From left: Jasna (Mashel’s mom), Madhavi and Roby (Aria and Vivah’s parents), Anu & niece Sweety. Where’re the kids? There, Jayden’s at the back playing with a phone, and the others would be mucking around since they would’ve finished their food. This was our third outing of the year with the group. At Da Vinci’s Italian Restaurant, Millennium Airport Hotel, Garhoud, Dubai


And here’re the kids at our new Motor City home! – from left: Vivah, Aria, Mashel, Justin & Jayden. Aria and Mashel are Justin’s age, and Vivah is Jayden’s age. This proves that girls are taller than boys. At least when they’re this age! Or maybe, our kids are just smaller sized, ...what the heck, they'll grow up fine!


See, another proof of girls being taller than boys – Mikaela (first left) has grown so much. She’s a few months younger than Jayden. At church. The last they met was about 9 months earlier (we’re not very good church goers), and she was about the same height with Jayden!


Bumped into my Chinese colleague Jia Weimin’s son at Mirdif City Centre. Their parents call him Jia Jia (we just called him Teddy, because he looked just like a teddy bear when he was small)


Jia Jia now has a little brother!


The kids’ new teachers at GEMS Metropole School – Here is Ms Sophie Hunter, Justin’s Year 5 Class Teacher


And this is Ms Louise Higgins, Jayden’s Year 1 Class Teacher. Both the teachers are from the UK


Justin’s new friends – Anton (middle) from Vietnam and Matei (right) from Romania. At Adventure HQ, Galleria Mall, Al Barsha. On the occasion of another classmate’s (Shaun Linz) birthday


There, that’s the birthday boy, Shaun Linz. He’s Indian


Justin meets an old friend – Justin with his Year 1 classmate from Royal Dubai School, Leah from Ethiopia. That’s Leah’s younger brother. At the Kenken National Round Competition in Dubai Knowledge Park. Leah’s paternal grandpa used to be the governor of Asmara (now capital of the independent country of Eritrea), before Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia. By the way, Justin also met another old pal at the Kenken Competition, Rayaan. None of em made it to the International Round though…


Enough with the kids’ friends. Here’re my colleagues from the Project I’m currently in, ITS2020/1B. Celebrating last year’s Eid Al Fitr at Patiala Restaurant, Souk Al Bahar, Dubai. From left: Evika (with head turned backwards), Francheska, Trinu, Kevin Williams, Jaicin (front), Ayush (behind), Naveed, Habeeb, Yours Truly, Ramakrishna (I think), Laith, Parthiban (behind), Baber (kneeling), Hussein Shawkt (standing, he was the PM before I took over), Abdul Saleem, Selvam (I think), Antoine (in suit), Ibrahim Dib (kneeling), Ahmad Kefry (behind), Someone I Don’t Know, I Think This Is Santhosh (half hidden), Vijith (Sr VP of Scientechnic’s Mobility Division - Scientechnic is our JV partner in this Project), Mubashir (kneeling), Bernar (behind), Abhishek, Qamar (behind), Shahid Alam, Devansh (kneeling), Sarvesh, Nawaz (directly behind Sarvesh), Half Hidden Face, Aliasgar, Mukadas (kneeling), Another Half Hidden Face (behind), Haider, Jagan Johnson, Someone I Don’t Know, Harinder (with turban), Hidden Person behind Turban, Rathinavel and Dilawar


And finally… Dad and Hazel visited us in Dec – Oia Residence, Motor City, Dubai

That’s all for now folks! We'll meet again soon (hopefully...)

The Return of Old Malaysia

Eid Mubarak! Selamat Hari Raya!


Masjid Zahir (Zahir Mosque), Alor Setar, Kedah

My favourite month of the year (Ramadan) is coming to an end. After Eid, it’s gonna be all out work again, sigh... But, at least I still have a job!

I’ve decided to post pictures of some mosques from the Northern Malaysian states, Kedah in particular. Malaysia is going thru an upheaval. Again. No, not particularly COVID related. COVID is just a coincidence, a passing event. It’s the political upheaval that I’m talking about. We thought we had finally put an end to the past corruption, nepotism and racism with the defeat of the then ruling party in 2018. And now, they’re back! Thru the back door (through defections, not thru an election)! Bravo!

What now? Who knows? Getting tired of the whole drama. Muhyiddin (the new PM) seems to be doing OK. And the Health Director-General, Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah (who isn’t a politician by the way) seems to be the exact person we need to steer Malaysia out of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Can’t say much for the others in the new government though. I hope we don’t go back to the previous practices of muffling the media, and non-transparent transactions, etc. One comforting thing that happened after the last election, is that I started trusting Malaysian mainstream media more than the online media! Never knew I’d see that day, but it happened! And that is a big achievement!

Coming back to Kedah. Kedah is Dr Mahathir’s home state. Dr M’s son is the Chief Minister, till a few days back. He lost his majority when a few fellas went over to the new (old) government. It’s the fourth state to change hands without an election since the elected federal government was ousted in February this year. What can we say now? Let’s hope for the best.

For the time being, enjoy your Raya / Eid holidays! Here’re the photos. It’s from our road trip to Langkawi, during our home trip last July. Have fun!


Masjid Zahir, Alor Setar, Kedah, Malaysia


Entrance to the Kedah Royal Museum (former Palace of the Kedah Sultan)


Balai Besar (the former Royal Hall)


Masjid Zahir Square (Dataran Masjid Zahir), Alor Setar, Kedah


Hello! Papa and sons at Alor Setar – We made a short stop at Alor Setar, en route to Kuala Perlis, where we caught a ferry to Langkawi Island


Finally, Kuala Perlis… Mommy at the Kuala Perlis Cape Lookout Point. Behind, in the horizon, is Pulau Langkawi


Masjid Al Hussain, Kuala Perlis, Perlis, Malaysia


Now back in Penang, this is the Floating Mosque (Masjid Terapung) of Tanjung Bungah, viewed from the Tsunami Village (what a name?!?) Seafood Restaurant. We had a family dinner here just before going back to Dubai

Wishing all a Blessed Stay Home Eid! Stay Home Stay Safe. Selamat Hari Raya! Maaf Zahir & Batin

Inferno Ground Zero

* * * SPOILER ALERT * * *

To those who have not read (or finish reading) the book Inferno by Dan Brown, or watched the movie of the same name – this post reveals the ending. So stop reading this post now if you don’t want to know.

This COVID-19 Pandemic brings back memories of a novel I finished reading just last year, Dan Brown’s novel, Inferno. I actually bought the book years ago, but hadn’t made time to read it till last July when we flew to Malaysia on an Air Arabia flight. (Air Arabia is a low budget airlines, …meaning no friggin online entertainment, …that’s why the book, hehe).

Anyway, the book is about a mad eccentric billionaire scientist who thinks that overpopulation is killing the world, and created a virus to release to the world in order to bring the world’s population under control. He committed suicide in the beginning of the book, but left a macabre message that set the heroes and the WHO (World Health Organisation) out on a wild goose’s chase to find ground zero, the place where the virus would be released.

In the book, the scientist succeeded. The hero and the WHO found the place but realized that the date given by the scientist was the date the virus infection would reach critical mass, not the date of the virus release. He just wanted all to know where the infections actually started, devious rascal…

In the movie, WHO managed to contain the virus. Nope, I didn’t watch it. I had the book and didn’t want to watch the movie before I finished reading the book. Then, I found out that they friggin changed the ending in the movie, and the critics were scathing in their reviews. And I don’t like movies that change the ending, so sorry, not gonna watch it. Which is too bad actually, since it starred Tom Hanks and Irrfan Khan (who died aged 53 just a couple of weeks ago). Maybe if played on TV… might change my mind.

Guess where Ground Zero is? Istanbul! (By the way, I guessed the exact site inside Istanbul before the book revealed it! And I also started doubting the hero’s partner long before the book revealed that she was bad). Here’re some photos of our trip to Istanbul in err… 2010, exactly 10 years ago! (Time flies huh? Just look at how tiny Justin is!)


Ayasofya (Hagia Sophia), Istanbul, Turkey


Interior of the Hagia Sophia. Hagia Sophia was first a church, then a mosque, and now a museum. Clues found in Venice, Italy, led the hero of the book to the tomb of Enrico Dandolo, Doge of Venice, in the Hagia Sophia


This is the actual Ground Zero in Inferno, the Basilica Cistern – an underground cistern for storing water for the city since medieval times


One of the sites mentioned in Inferno, the upside down Medusa head in the Cistern

Here’re more miscellaneous photos of Istanbul –


Taksim Square, Istanbul, Turkey


Papa and little 5-month-old Justin at Topkapi Palace


And here’s Mommy! Topkapi Palace, Istanbul


Sleepy little Justin, with one of the aunties of the hotel we stayed in – I think it’s the Empress Theodora Hotel. It’s the first ever hotel I booked using Booking.com. Before that, I would just pop up and ask for a rate


Family pic, Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmet Mosque), Istanbul


Inside the Blue Mosque…


Suleymaniye Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey


View of the Galata Tower across the creek called the Golden Horn


What’s Istanbul without a cruise on the Bosporus?

Check out this old post for more pictures of our 2010 trip to Istanbul

Escape to Middle Earth

Hobbiton, Middle Earth…

I AM BACK!!!!

So… March and April went by real quickly. And now it’s May! And Ramadan. I missed all those fabulous occasions which I usually post… Spring Equinox, Songkran, Easter, start of Ramadan…

Not much of a celebration this year though, with COVID-19 everywhere. While many around the world are in lockdown with nothing much to do, I have been working my ass off, now that I am finally no longer ‘Acting’ Project Manager. Yup, yours truly finally got the PM post…

So, I’m one of the lucky ones you could say, because in the UAE, the construction sector happens to be a vital sector (no joke), exempt from the lockdown. Ummm, you know you need roads and bridges to get to your coronavirus victims?! Because of this, I’ve been in and out of self-quarantines due to bumping into people who are COVID+! But praise God, nothing’s happened to me… yet. Exciting, init?

But being a PM is not all fun, COVID or no (especially, when there's no salary increment!). For one, I find that I have no friggin time to do any personal stuff, banking, errands, etc. Not to mention surfing and blogging… I’ve not logged onto Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc since time immemorial. But I can’t let the blog idle. So, here goes…

Going from Matmata (Tunisia) to Matamata (New Zealand) to another movie set… Middle Earth from the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the Hobbit! How I sometimes wish I could escape the pressures of work, and the worries of COVID-19 to go into another adventurous holiday… Sigh, it’ll have to be photos until the world gets back to normal.


Hobbits in Hobbiton


Oh, the Hobbits have parents…


A stroll in Hobbiton… Hobbiton Movie Set, Matamata, North Island, New Zealand


Anu in Hobbiton, NZ


Kim with Skye


And here’s Hazel


Justin chopping wood


Hey everyone! Photo time






Houses of the Hobbits – Don’t ask me which one’s Bilbo’s. I have absolutely no idea…


Here's where the Hobbits get their fish


Fancy some ale at the pub? (The Green Dragon, Hobbiton)

Going back to work now. May the Force be with you (oh, that’s from Star Wars) …but what the heck, it’s Star Wars Day! (May 4th as in May the Fourth …Be with You). No wait, it’s already May 5th! Damn, one day late!