TravelStream™ news feed for member elizabeth7901 on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/elizabeth7901 en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 20 Jul 2008 06:31:23 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1216545240/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1216545240/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1216545240/tpod.html Sun, 20 Jul 2008 06:31:23 -0400 The Sandbox

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Manama, Bahrain

A - Arabian Gulf. It may be known as the Persian Gulf elsewhere in the world, but GCC countries aren't too friendly with Iran and prefer not to give them any credit in body-of-water nomenclature.
B - Bakshish. This translates to "request for tips" -- also known as bribing. It's a pretty common transaction around here but maybe nowhere more famously than Kuwait. The tiny country gets the brunt of the heat in the region, making necessary a law which prohibits anyone from working outside if the temperature hits 50 degrees Celsius or above (122 degrees Fahrenheit). In the mad rush to develop, it behooves some to give the official temperature readers a little bakshish to keep the workers working. If you are ever in Kuwait in the summer, turn on the radio. I bet you hear that the official temperature is 49.5 degrees Celsius.
C - Camels. They are charming and true marvels of nature. Also, cars. I can't get over the way people spray-paint them (see pictures).
D - Dhow. Traditional boat. They are everywhere in Bahrain and perhaps one of the few remnants of the Kingdom's past. Fishing and pearl diving used to be the main economies here -- until black gold and cultured pearls were discovered elsewhere.
E - Electricity and other utilities. They are subsidized here. Can you imagine what your A/C bill would be in the summer if the season low (at night) were 87 degrees?
F - Fares in cabs. Totally negotiable.
G - Gulf Air. The Bahrain airline that guarantees to either cancel your flight or be several hours late.
H - Hypermarkets. The Wal-Marts of Bahrain. Geant, LuLu, etc. You can find everything here, from spices to shoes, widescreen tvs to sheeshas.
I - Indian. It seems to be the adopted national cuisine and I'm glad. I've never enjoyed it as much as I have here. The spicier, the better. The more dhal and naan, the happier I am.
J - Juffair. This is the neighborhood in which we live. It's probably the ugliest part of town; it's home to sandlots (good for football games), too many coffee shops (Starbucks, Seattle's Best, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, and Caribou -- all in the same block), and the US Navy 5th Fleet.
K - Kindness. Most people really are nice. Last week, we got a little lost trying to find the Gold Souq. We stopped a man and asked for directions; he turned around and led us five blocks out of his way to our destination. It was 107 degrees Fahrenheit.
L - Land reclamation. There's a lot of it going on here. The Gulf Hotel used to be a beach front property -- now it's a mile to the water. Bab al-Bahrain (the gateway at the old customs pier) used to oceanfront, too.
M - Muezzin. Cantor who sings the call to prayer. You can hear him as you're driving around town which, I guess, is the point.
N - Nirvana. Wonderful and aptly named Indian restaurant. Make reservations in advance and go.
O - Oliveto's. Our favorite Italian restaurant on the island. If you're ever here, go and make sure you get some bruschetta.
P - Petrol. It's just about the only thing that is cheap around here.
Q - Qawha. Coffee. Traditional coffee is very, very strong. Despite the numerous American coffee shops around, it is very difficult to find a decent cup of brewed coffee. Starbucks is so terrible that we recently threw out our Venti coffees and walked down the street to another coffee shop.
R - Road signs. Some translator in the Bahrain Department of Transportation is flexing his/her poetic muscle: "We're on the move to improve!" "Proud to serve our nation - thanks for your cooperation!"
S - Skype. We can make unlimited calls to the US for $5/month. Brilliant -- except that it some weeks it works, some it doesn't.
T - Thursday night. The Saudi work week is Saturday - Wednesday. The Bahrain work week is Sunday - Thursday. These two factors make Thursday night the night to go out in Bahrain; Saudis cross the causeway in droves and every restaurant and club is packed.
U - US Embassy. We dropped them a line to let them know we're hear. This is the email we got in return:
"To send a message to all the people currently subscribed to the list, just send mail to xxxxx. This is called "sending mail to the list," because you send mail to a single address and LISTSERV makes copies for all the people who have subscribed. This address (xxxxx) is also called the "list address." You must never try to send any command to that address, as it would be distributed to all the people who have subscribed. All commands must be sent to the "LISTSERV address," xxxxx. It is very important to understand the difference between the two, but fortunately it is not complicated. The LISTSERV address is like a FAX number that connects you to a machine, whereas the list address is like a normal voice line connecting you to a person. If you make a mistake and dial the FAX number when you wanted to talk to someone on the phone, you will quickly realize that you used the wrong number and call again. No harm will have been done. If on the other hand you accidentally make your FAX call someone's voice line, the person receiving the call will be inconvenienced, especially if your FAX then re-dials every 5 minutes. The fact that most people will eventually connect the FAX machine to the voice line to allow the FAX to go through and make the calls stop does not mean that you should continue to send FAXes to the voice number. People would just get mad at you. It works pretty much the same way with mailing lists, with the difference that you are calling hundreds or thousands of people at the same time, and consequently you can expect a lot of people to get upset if you consistently send commands to the list address."
V - Vision -- apparently having it is optional if you want to drive here.
W - Windmill Building. It was built with three windmills in the middle to provide the building with energy. Unfortunately, because the engineers didn't take into account the fact that the windmills would shake the building, they are not used.
X - Excess (forgive the stretch, but "x" is a tough letter). I've seen more Maseratis, Bentleys, Ferraris, and top-of-the-line BMWs on this small island than I've ever seen in the US.
Y - Y'all. While it is an expression that goes unused in many parts of the US, people generally know what you mean when you use it. Say it here and be prepared for blank faces.
Z - Zed. Not zee. I don't know if I'll get used to that.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215588540/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215588540/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215588540/tpod.html Wed, 09 Jul 2008 03:48:55 -0400 The Sandbox

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Manama, Bahrain

1. For weeks Michael and I have noticed cars that are spray-painted to look like they have been dune bashing and are thus covered with sand. We've had fun guessing what the reason might be for the -- dare I say redneck? -- decor. Since sand covers everything here, was it a "can't beat 'em, join 'em" mentality? Do they just think it looks good? It turns out the reason is a much more practical one. When one drives on one of the highways out of town, the wind and high speeds can whip up the sand and really damage cars. The spray-paint forms a removable seal that protects the finish of the car. I'm working on a picture; words just don't do it justice.

2. I have mentioned the dry cleaner in a previous blog; I was commenting on my inability to effectively communicate the words "no starch" (which, I might add, is hard to do in the US -- laundry professionals L-O-V-E starch and can't fathom why one would voluntarily do without it). It turns out the dry cleaner here is wonderful; they interpreted my instructions and had our clothes ready at the specified time. When I went to pick up our clothes (parking on the sidewalk, of course), I noticed that our order was easy to spot. Just about every other item hanging up was a long, white robe (thobe, as it is actually called) making Michael's blue dress shirts quite conspicuous. In the US, we have been subjected to so many news reports that lump all Middle Easterners together; it's easy to start associating the millions of people who live in this region with the few Islamic extremists that make headlines. It turns out, the vast majority of people here are just like us -- they even park their cars on the sidewalks to take their dirty thobes to be laundered... without starch, I'm sure.

3. After hearing me speak, many people have asked me if I'm from the UK. To a non-native English speaker, I know it's a lot harder to pick up on accents. Actually, I sometimes can't tell the difference between a South African or Australian accent, so it's really not surprising. But I love knowing that I could fool people into thinking I'm a Brit! One phrase I'll have to keep in my arsenal for such occasions is "touch wood" (translation: knock on wood). A lot of people we know here, who have spent a lot of time in the UK, use it frequently and I've heard it in a lot of BBC interviews as well. I guess that also means a lot of people here are counting on luck.

4. On July 1, 2008, The Wall Street Journal published a story entitled, "Read My License Plate: It Cost Me a Fortune." The gist of the story is this: the government in Abu Dhabi has begun auctioning off license plates with low numbers (not the random five-digit number that regular drivers receive). There are so many nice cars in Abu Dhabi (Ferraris, Rolls-Royces, etc) and owners of said cars couldn't possibly place a standard-issue plate on such luxury. So, they put up big bucks to get a number like "1" (which went for $14 million, the current record high) or "5" ($9 million). You might be wondering where this money goes. The article says, "the government plans to use the money to build a new trauma hospital for traffic-accident victims." Ah, the irony.

5. My friend, Jessie, recently pointed out to me the frequency with which people say "no problem" around here and I realized she was on to something. Everything is "no problem" around here. Is there a petrol station nearby? No problem. Could I have turkey instead of turkey-ham (don't ask)? No problem. Do I turn left or right? No problem. At first I thought people were so accommodating; then I realized people want to be accommodating but they really don't know what you are asking. I decided to adopt the practice. The cleaning crew was at our apartment yesterday and one of the men asked me a indecipherable question to which I responded, "no problem." He smiled broadly, nodded his head, and finished cleaning. Who knows to what I agreed, but our apartment is clean, the crew left smiling and telling me to have a wonderful day -- they might even think I know what I am doing here.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215327360/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215327360/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215327360/tpod.html Sun, 06 Jul 2008 04:16:08 -0400 The Sandbox

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Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Our flight from Bahrain to Dubai actually arrived on time on Thursday evening, a rarity for Gulf Air flights. We made it through Passport Control without problems and caught a cab to take us to Al Qasr. The walk from the airport exit to the taxi stand was lined with industrial sized fans blowing fine mists of water in a failed attempt to cool the oppressive night air.

Driving through town, I was struck by the size and grandeur of Dubai. The city redefines urban sprawl. High rises drench the landscape and everywhere you look, another is being built. Burj Dubai, the tallest building in the world, is absolutely staggering - and construction isn't even finished yet! There are not enough Dirhams in the world to lure me to the top.

We received a very warm greeting upon our arrival at Al Qasr. Cold washcloths and strong coffee were offered to Madam and Sir (as we were called by everyone) as we waited at reception. Our room, 619, had Islamic architectural details (arches, carved wooden doors) and was beautifully appointed in what seemed to me to be authentic Middle Eastern furnishings. Five minutes after settling in to our room, there was a knock on the door and we received a fruit basket, chocolates, mousse cake, and a bottle of prosecco in celebration of our first anniversary. Apparently Michael mentioned our anniversary when he made the reservation and the hotel made a note of it (and would continue to do so throughout our stay). We enjoyed a glass of the sparkling wine, then made our way to Pai Thai, a restaurant within the hotel compound.

Pai Thai turned out to be an excellent choice for dinner. Again, we were offered a cool towel when we arrived - a real necessity around here - and then were taken to a table overlooking the canal which snakes through the resort. We ordered cocktails and a Thai appetizer sampler (fish cakes, chicken dumplings, beef satay, Thai spring rolls). Michael ordered his favorite, pad thai, and I had wok-fried beef with Thai broccoli. We asked for the check after the very enjoyable meal and received, along with the check, another mousse cake topped with lit candles and a chocolate that read, "Happy Anniversary!" It was comical (birthday candles for an anniversary cake? two mousse cakes in two hours?!) and slightly embarrassing, but we ate our cake anyway.

On Friday morning, our friends Jessie and Mo visited from Abu Dhabi which is a little over an hour away by car. Jessie and Mo are moving to Abu Dhabi in August and were on a house-hunting trip. The four of us enjoyed coffee on the veranda and then set out for a dune bashing expedition which Jessie organized. Our driver took us about 30 minutes outside of the city to sand dunes. After letting air out of the car's tires, he drove us over the dunes with daring speed. I don't really know what I was expecting, but this was more frightening than the scariest roller coaster on which I've ever been -- we had white knuckles, queasy stomachs, and a plethora of foul-mouthed outbursts. The worse it got, the more our driver chuckled. I think he was probably in his mid-30s and he said he has been driving the dunes since he was 15 and has never rolled. That seemed impossible but I clung to that fact just as I clung to the ceiling handle in the truck.

Towards the end of our safari, we stopped at a camp to drink some water, lower our heart rates, and ride a camel. This camel was not as charming as the Bahraini camels Michael and I had visited the week before. He was wearing a muzzle and seemed to be trying to spit at us as we mounted. I can't say that I blame him; he was old and it seemed hot, even for a camel. We all enjoyed a short ride before driving out of the dunes. After air was added back into our tires, we made our way back to Al Qasr.

Michael and I went to Friday brunch (judging by the crowd, this is apparently the social event of the week for expats) and Jessie and Mo went to the Mall of the Emirates to check out the ski slope and buy bathing suits. We met back at the hotel and went to the beach. We swam in the Arabian Gulf for a while (like tepid bath water but somehow still comfortable) and then hung out by the pool. We're not sure if our skin is toughening up or if it was just a cooler day, but we were outside for a few hours and were able to enjoy it.

Jessie and Mo left around 6 to head back to Abu Dhabi. Michael and I walked around the hotel souk (just one of the many things that made it feel like a Vegas hotel) and then took a taxi to Raffles Dubai, another hotel complex. We enjoyed drinks on the outdoor patio of Crossroads Cocktail bar and then went to dinner at Fire and Ice (not to be confused with the Mongolian Barbecue chain in the United States).

Dinner was incredible -- we ordered the seven-course tasting menu and are hoping the menu will be emailed to us, as requested. It really was phenomenal -- from foie gras explosion (it had pop-rocks on it!) to wagyu beef, we savored every last bit and left the restaurant about three and a half hours after we arrived.

Saturday morning was lazy. We went to the airport a little early and walked around duty-free, which is like a mall in itself. An American magazine was 15 USD, so we just browsed. Our flight, which we were told was delayed an hour, ended up leaving on time. It felt good to be back in Bahrain -- it was a beautiful, clear day and it almost felt like we were home.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215071940/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215071940/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215071940/tpod.html Thu, 03 Jul 2008 04:22:30 -0400 The Sandbox

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Manama, Bahrain

I ventured out yesterday to run a few errands -- namely, the cleaners and the gas station. The woman that works at the front desk of our apartment building gave me great directions to the cleaners. It is so close that had the temperature been 20 degrees lower, I could have walked. Instead I drove my Toyota Yaris hatchback (a great little car) and, trying my best to fit in with the locals, parked on the sidewalk. I basically played a game of charades with the man working and will find out today after 3 if I was successful in my depictions of laundering and pressing but not starching.

The gas station would have been less intimidating if I had not been on fumes trying to locate it. I did find it, however, and was rewarded with a full tank of gas that cost me BD 3 (about 8 USD).

Last night, we went to a dinner with Michael's coworkers at Bahrain's best Italian restaurant, Oliveto's. As with a lot of things in Bahrain, the restaurant was not much to look at from the outside. We pulled into the parking lot and I immediately felt like I was doing something sketchy by being there. We stepped into a very pleasant -- almost swank -- interior, however. The food was wonderful -- pesto, sundried tomatoes, and bruschetta to start and then tagliatelle with beef tenderloin and mushrooms. Michael and I have both put it on our list of things to do again.

I learned a lot at dinner; it was the most diverse group of which I have ever been a part. France, Pakistan, Australia, Lebanon, Canada, India, and Turkey were countries represented and the conversation was delightful. The only disturbing part of the evening was finding out that every so often, a water truck is sent out to nourish the Tree of Life!

We're off to Dubai for the weekend -- I'll write another report from the UAE...
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215035040/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215035040/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/elizabeth7901/1/1215035040/tpod.html Thu, 03 Jul 2008 03:38:13 -0400 The Sandbox

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Manama, Bahrain

It's been a week since I touched down in Bahrain and, after conquering jet lag and a touch of culture shock, I've formed some first impressions...

The heat over here is beyond anything I've ever experienced -- and that's coming from someone who has been to South Georgia in August. It's like hanging out in a convection oven all day. Michael and I were saying last night that a 100-degree day would feel like a treat right now. The humidity has only just begun to set in, too. I think you get used to the the heat in the summers but not the sandstorms. The latter produces blizzard-like conditions which leave a film of sand on everything, including your skin.

Driving has been an interesting pastime. Bahrainis are crazy drivers and actually make Boston and Cobb County drivers seem downright responsible behind the wheel. My favorite thing about driving here is the stoplights. They go, as in America, from green to yellow to red. But, in an interesting twist, they also go from red to yellow to green. If you don't start driving when the light turns from red to yellow, other drivers honk at you -- keep in mind that elsewhere in the intersection, some other driver is speeding through a light turning from yellow to red. It's all very sane.

The food has been quite good here. We had a wonderful Iranian meal at the Gulf Hotel on Thursday night: kebabs (my favorite was minced lamb), various types of rice, mast-o-khiya (almost identical to tzatziki), and flatbread. Friday night we ate at The Meat Co, which is a South African steakhouse chain. Michael and I both had petite filets along with the typical accoutrements, and red wine. We seemed to have plenty of company on the drinking front. We also had a delicious lunch at Trader Vic's -- just as old school as the one in Atlanta, David, Domino's pizza for dinner, Starbucks coffee for breakfast, and even Chili's. In other words, we've run the gamut from International to embarrassingly American.

The grocery store, Al Jazira, offers the same foods as Kroger: Amy's Organic frozen meals, Coca Light, Folgers, Splenda, Boursin, Carr's Table Crackers, organic eggs, limes, tonic water, even pork bacon, although it is found in a section marked "Food for non-Muslims". The liquor store, with it's exterior completely devoid of any markings (except a sign on the door that reads something to the effect of, "According to law, we cannot sell to Muslims") feels more like a seedy speakeasy than the clean and tidy oasis that it is inside. They have a good selection of Old and New World wines, as well as all the standard liquors. We purchased a fat bottle of Hendrick's Gin to accompany the limes and tonic from Al Jazira. Just the thing to get one through a sandstorm.

On Friday, we toured the island and saw what there is to see in about two hours. Bahrain is a very small kingdom. We went halfway across the causeway to Saudi Arabia (a little frightening to be so close to such a different place), photographed the Tree of Life (I almost wilted after 2 minutes in the desert -- how it has stood in such weather for so many years is indeed a wonder), hung out with some camels (they were very charming), drove past an aluminum smelting plant, and walked around the mall (truly insane crowds -- even for this experienced shopper).

So, my first impression is that this place is small but interesting, quirky but endearing.
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