Yaku · Tating · Balot

YESTERDAY marked the start of the month-long Ramadan. To my Muslim brothers and sisters around the world who are celebrating this very important month, Ramadan Mubarak! It was my first time to spend Ramadan in a predominantly Muslim country, and it was quite an interesting experience. Restaurants were closed for most of the day. Roads were mainly quiet in the mornings. And of course, you don't see people taking a drink or chewing on a bite anywhere. Non-Muslims have to refrain from eating and drinking in public as a sign of respect to our Muslim friends. Observing Ramadan timings, we got off work early. For one who walks home from the office, it was still a little too hot outside for me. So I just took it real slow and decided to get some cool air at the nearby Deira City Center. At 4 pm, the restaurants and coffee shops were mostly closed for dining patrons, offering only takeaways. A lot of people were also lugging around shopping bags and pushing carts containing food and...

I AM NO food connoisseur, but I adore food. Who doesn’t? I love food of all kinds, most especially food that is not “boring.” Bland food is bleh. Give me food that offers a thrilling adventure for my palate, and I’m in -- hook, line and sinker. Balut, anyone? I love food that drives my tongue crazy. It doesn’t have to be so good it makes me close my eyes in its sheer delightfulness. If it’s salty or sour, I’ll have it. If it’s spicy, I’ll devour it. If it’s completely new to me, trust me to be totally giddy over it. I’ve had quite a gastronomic adventure during my first month here. I plan to write about them one by one. For now, I’ll give a shoutout to the food I’ve had at the office.  During my first few days at work, my dear officemates here in Al Wasl offered me a taste of some really interesting and scrumptuous Pakistani and Indian food. I’ve had some mutton mince curry with chapati, chicken and mutton biryani, paratha with yoghurt, burfi and other Pakistani sweet...

MAYBE it's just me, but I have always thought that all Arabs are Muslims, practicing only the Islamic religion, all of them. I have always thought that all who live in these Arab countries are somehow "born" or "sworn" to practice only Islam. How wrong I was. (Duh!) I owe this stereotyping to the simple fact that I have very limited exposure to Arabs. Sure, I've been to the US, some countries in Europe, and India. I have worked face-to-face with Americans, Europeans, Indians and Chinese over the years. However, I haven't really interacted much or worked with Arabs before. Muslims yes, Arabs no. So what brought on this realization? Last week, I was hurrying to catch the 12 NN mass at  St. Mary's Catholic Church  here in Dubai thinking that all 12 NN masses are English masses. Imagine my surprise when I arrived (late because this mass apparently started at 11:30 AM) and was seeing Arabic characters projected on the big screen. The churchgoers we...

ONE of the attractions that I was looking forward to upon coming to Dubai was the famous dancing fountains just at the backyard of the Dubai Mall. Dubbed as the largest choreographed fountain system in the world, the Dubai Fountain was designed by WET Design, the same company responsible for creating the fountains at the Bellagio Hotel Lake in Las Vegas. Here in Dubai, the mesmerizing fountain is set on the 30-acre Burj Khalifa Lake. There are daily performances coming in at 30-minute intervals in the afternoon and evening, and it's free! The world's largest dancing fountain at the world's largest mall near the world's tallest building. They don't do things half-heartedly here, huh? First time I went there, I was with my BFF Bujoy, and I was undeniably enthralled and touched by its beauty I almost cried. For real. We only get to watch one show though because we were in a hurry to catch the Metro train back home. (Also, we were watching "X-Men: ...

IT HAS BEEN a month now since I came to Dubai, flying in from Cebu with my niece Irish. Everything was overwhelming at first (it still is sometimes), but I'm learning to adjust slowly everyday. Dubai is indeed a city of extremes and superlatives. For someone coming from a third-world country in Southeast Asia, it was difficult to keep my jaw from dropping and my eyes from popping out every time I stumble upon something new and amazing. I am literally a "promdi" (Pinoy slang for "from the province") here, breaking my neck looking up at the towering skyscrapers and massaging my calves after strolling around the world's largest mall. But what the heck! The world is ours for the taking, right? We shouldn't apologize for being so "green." I am going to enjoy this whole new world that I have the fortune of being immersed in now. I am going to embrace it and bask in it with such childlike wonder, it will hurt and make me go insane. Speaking of ins...

Photo from www.e-architect.co.uk. I NEVER THOUGHT I'd miss stringing words together into informative (and hopefully, effective) prose until I got my fingers a-typing like crazy for my current workplace, Asia Pacific. Well, we're a travel and tourism company in Dubai offering yacht cruise, sport fishing, desert safari, and all other tourism services in the UAE. My first attempt at a 250-word blog post is about the top wonders of Dubai. It was so hard writing concisely about stuff that are simply beautiful, stuff that you'd like to get carried away writing. For a first-timer in Dubai, I admit to be the proverbial wide-eyed tourist. Everything here still amazes me. Anyway, all is well eventually after hours of trimming it down from 700 to 300 words. While not exactly my best work, I think it's not bad for a comeback piece. If you're in Dubai, check our yacht cruise services out.

So here I am about to start a new blog again. How many times have I tried but failed to sustain it in the past years since my last blog, Faery Dancing, was created about five years ago. Now that I am in this enchanting desert paradise, I think it's fitting that I chronicle my adventures (or misadventures!) here, there, and everywhere. This is a totally new environment for me, so it would be such a pity to let all the fun pass by without putting them in writing or at least capturing them in pictures. Setting them in stone, so to speak. What am I a writer for! So wish me luck. And may the odds be ever in my favor. Insha'Allah!