Beyond Dubai....

Because of the Eid holiday, I told my driver to dress up for our trip to Al Ain yesterday. Al Ain is known as the Garden City of UAE. Again on a good day, it's about one and the half hour ride from Dubai. Not many high rising buildings like Dubai but many interesting tourist spots to make you want to come back again and again.....

http://www.asiatravel.com/uae/al-aininfo.html

The long and winding road up Mt Jabal Hafit makes me nervous...all the time. You see...I have altitude phobia. It's worsened by the crazy antics of my daredevil driver. Anyway, once u reach the top, you will be thoroughly swept away by the panaromic view. Being Eid holiday, it was exceptionally crowded. Saw a group of pakistani guys....happily dancing away (you can see a small crowd from the pic above)

http://www.arabianwildlife.com/nature/natu_ems/en32.html

"Excuse me..I like your dressing. Can I take a shot?"

Clicked.

"Where are u from?"

"Afghanistan."
"Ok...Abdul...time to go. You have taken 20 shots already! Im not your photographer.Let's go to the zoo!"

Angels and Demons...

Not by Dan Brown. I think there's a bit of both in all of us. We have a dark side.

Marcus, from the Philippines, works in a photocopying shop in Dubai. He has an IT degree but he is only doing printing job. 3 months into the job...he's already restless. Back in Manila, he was working part time as a dancer in a gay bar for 3 yrs until his family found out.

Out of curiosity...

"So....you have to put on a costume while doing the erotical dance?" I asked. "like what? feathers? G...." I stopped, trying to control my laughter.

He was avoiding my question...I sensed his embarassment. But, I probed further.

"How many have u bedded? I mean with the clients?"

"More than 200?" He nodded.

"Why you did it?"

Finally he replied: "For my family."

Recently, he has a new GUESS watch given by a Lebanese lady (in her 40s) for a 3 hrs service of you know what. And a pair of NIKE shoes from a Chinese lady (also in her 40s).

By the way...he's only 24.

(The above photos taken in a hotel at Bur Dubai. One of my favorite haunts...for authentic japanese food!)

Goodbye Summer...

Back in Dubai for almost a week. Thank God...the heat is getting much bearable. And to all muslim friends in UAE and abroad...Happy Eid Mubarak ! ( Blessed Festival after the fasting month..Ramadan) Back home, it is known as Selamat Hari Raya Idul Fitri (which falls on the 13th October instead). Early this morning, I was taking a slow walk...and it was surreal to see people eating again after a month of fasting..:) The storeman lose 5 kg...I saw a much reduced tummy yesterday.

Re-visited the Dubai Museum in the afternoon...it was crowded with tourists mainly from Europe and the foreign workers. I observed most of them took less than 15 minutes (on the average) to complete the entire tour! I must admit it is not up there with the LOUVRE or other world renowned museums but nonetheless it is quite good...sufficient to understand a bit better about Dubai. I like it. Meanwhile, in the courtyard, I found this pile of chocolate nuggets...any good guess what they are?

Back home....

The least I could do...from Dubai.

"At about 1.30pm today (Oct 8), police arrested 4 members of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party for protesting against the Singapore government’s involvement with the Burmese junta.
The 4 were Mr Gandhi Ambalam, Dr Chee Soon Juan, Ms Chee Siok Chin and Mr John Tan.
Holding aloft placards with the words “No Arms, No Deals, With The Junta” and a picture of Aung San Suu Kyi, the four stood on the opposite side of the Istana. Swiftly, the police came and gave them warning that what they were doing was illegal and advised them to disperse.
The four declined. Shortly after, 2 police vans arrived and the officers proceeded to arrest the four, one by one – starting with Dr Chee Soon Juan."

http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/10/08/toc-breaking-news-4-sdp-members-arrested-outside-istana/#more-537