Baby-Zanga has a new hobby..
Throwing everything, and anything in the dustbin.
Thank you Baby-Zanga... for making my life even more interesting! Haha!
18 hours ago
Thursday, 22 December 2011
Sunday, 18 December 2011
Photographically Challenged
I studied photography at sixth form college as one of my subjects. I really, really enjoyed it, and even whilst at university I would check for photography classes where I could get my juices flowing.
I cannot draw. I cannot paint. I cannot sculpt. Photography allowed me a way to explore my creativity and imagination in a visual sense without needing the beautiful skill of being able to shape something with my hands.
I have a deep, deep appreciation for art. I love nothing more than walking through a gallery or exhibit and just appreciating the feast that artists offer my eyes.
Camel Man is not as appreciative unfortunately, and so trips to museums, galleries and exhibits can be like pulling teeth. When we went to the Louvre - he rushed me through all the beautiful corridors to go and visit the Mona Lisa... which was overrated(le gasp!), and then for the rest of the afternoon he would get bored if I spent longer than 3 minutes looking at a painting. Some of those paintings were metres and metres high by metres and metres wide... it would and does take longer than five minutes to breathe in and appreciate all the details. Camel Man thought I was crazy! Haha!
So any ways, I have decides to embark upon a photographic challenge. A challenge to take a photograph every single day - for a month. To be honest, I wanted to do this for a year - but I'm terrified that I would be unable to keep up with this, or put too much pressure on myself that it ends up becoming a chore. So yes, a month it is - a month at a time hopefully.
Joining me in my photographic adventures is the very brilliant Emma - from STARdrought Photography. You can find her at http://stardrought.blogspot.com
If you'd like to follow my month long photography challenge - you'll find me at http://pic-challenge.blogspot.com
I cannot draw. I cannot paint. I cannot sculpt. Photography allowed me a way to explore my creativity and imagination in a visual sense without needing the beautiful skill of being able to shape something with my hands.
I have a deep, deep appreciation for art. I love nothing more than walking through a gallery or exhibit and just appreciating the feast that artists offer my eyes.
Camel Man is not as appreciative unfortunately, and so trips to museums, galleries and exhibits can be like pulling teeth. When we went to the Louvre - he rushed me through all the beautiful corridors to go and visit the Mona Lisa... which was overrated(le gasp!), and then for the rest of the afternoon he would get bored if I spent longer than 3 minutes looking at a painting. Some of those paintings were metres and metres high by metres and metres wide... it would and does take longer than five minutes to breathe in and appreciate all the details. Camel Man thought I was crazy! Haha!
So any ways, I have decides to embark upon a photographic challenge. A challenge to take a photograph every single day - for a month. To be honest, I wanted to do this for a year - but I'm terrified that I would be unable to keep up with this, or put too much pressure on myself that it ends up becoming a chore. So yes, a month it is - a month at a time hopefully.
Joining me in my photographic adventures is the very brilliant Emma - from STARdrought Photography. You can find her at http://stardrought.blogspot.com
If you'd like to follow my month long photography challenge - you'll find me at http://pic-challenge.blogspot.com
Saturday, 17 December 2011
Kevin Spacey in Doha
Well - let me just say... I am super, super, super jealous of all those Qatari ex-pats and Qataris who will be enjoying Kevin Spacey as Richard III in Doha this afternoon!
I wish I had found out about it earlier in the year - as I would have tried to make plans to go watch it!
I wish I had found out about it earlier in the year - as I would have tried to make plans to go watch it!
Wednesday, 7 December 2011
A Zoo, a Birthday and a Tambourine! (Oh yeah... and beaches too!)
During the long weekend we decided to take a trip to the Abu Dhabi Kid's Park (Zoo) [I have not placed those brackets there... that is how it appears on the signs lol).
It is a good 25 minutes drive away from the island, and is a fairly small little park, but even so, I was pleasently surprised to find an array of wonderful creatures. It is right by Bahia - and to be honest, as you're driving to it, everywhere just looks so forsaken, dry and barren. And even as you approach the park there is a huuuuge wall that has not been finished, and so it does all look a little... war-zoneish!
I took loads and loads of photographs of all the animals -
and as my friend flicked through them all she said quite cynically 'why do all the animals look like they're trying to escape?' It just then dawned on me, that they really, really did look like they were trying to escape...
Let me show you!
Yesterday was baby-Zanga's birthday. She turned a WHOLE year old.
We had decided to gather our friends around to enjoy this little event. We met up at Fuddruckers and enjoyed a variety of foods. We had also ordered a cake from Mr. Baker - an AWESOME bakery that creates an array of excellent..... and very delicious cakes!
We had chosen the cutest little Hello Kitty cake - which was nom nom nom delicious!
Moist - and not too sweet.... and, the icing you see up there... it's like sweetened, coloured cream rather than that disgusting icing you find on cakes in Tescos and Asda!
Now some of you may be wondering why we would choose to go to Fuddruckers, and you would be correct in your wonderings, but I shall reveal to you why... of all the places in the UAE, we decided to go there...
The singing. The tambourines. The accents. The excellent staff. The warm family atmosphere. Oh... and did I mention singing and tambourines? Yes! They sing! The staff come over when it is somebody's birthday and sing this BRILLIANT rendition of Happy Birthday! Half of them don't know the words, and they have the lyrics on a piece of paper... and mumble sometimes, but it doesn't matter! They're chirpy, have great accents, and are just in a word... BRILLIANT. It was worth it all - just to hear them singing 'hey, it's your birthday... happy, happy, happy birthday!' Oh - and they bang on tambourines too!
The singing. The tambourines. The accents. The excellent staff. The warm family atmosphere. Oh... and did I mention singing and tambourines? Yes! They sing! The staff come over when it is somebody's birthday and sing this BRILLIANT rendition of Happy Birthday! Half of them don't know the words, and they have the lyrics on a piece of paper... and mumble sometimes, but it doesn't matter! They're chirpy, have great accents, and are just in a word... BRILLIANT. It was worth it all - just to hear them singing 'hey, it's your birthday... happy, happy, happy birthday!' Oh - and they bang on tambourines too!
Also - I have taken a couple of trips up to Jumeirah Beach Park in Dubai. The beach is so clean, the sea is turquoise and impeccably clean.
Y'see on Mondays they have a 'Ladies Only' day! Yes! I mean, really... and truly a women only day! Not like in England where they say 'Women only swimming session' and there are male lifeguards...
I mean, a real ladies ONLY day - the lifeguards are women, the workers at the cafe are women, the gardeners are women, the person who gives you a ticket is a woman! And - it is only for 5 dirhams for the whole day!
There is a male guard at the front gates shooing away any and all men... but that's fine!
Any ladies planning on popping to Dubai on a Monday - I recommend going to lounge about at the beach.
Saturday, 3 December 2011
The 4th of July ain't got nothin' on this....
Yes!
It was National Day yesterday! A day when regular Arabs and foreigners alike have an excuse to use up all their money on petrol, spray foam and loads and loads of flags!
It was great! And I took loads of photographs! But here are the ones I liked best!
The workers from the sub-continent were also given the day off, and they were happy about it too! Many of them would get out of their cars with their flags and dance out on the street.
There had also been fireworks the night before, and a ceremony marking the 40th Anniversary of the birth of the UAE!
Congratulations UAE!
It was National Day yesterday! A day when regular Arabs and foreigners alike have an excuse to use up all their money on petrol, spray foam and loads and loads of flags!
It was great! And I took loads of photographs! But here are the ones I liked best!
The workers from the sub-continent were also given the day off, and they were happy about it too! Many of them would get out of their cars with their flags and dance out on the street.
There had also been fireworks the night before, and a ceremony marking the 40th Anniversary of the birth of the UAE!
Congratulations UAE!
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