Cat Got Your Tongue

We went to the movies today and saw a romantic comedy. It was really great. While we were in the theater, we perused the movie posters and cardboard cutouts for the upcoming releases.

Imagine my surprise when I saw this one.

Instead of "Puss In Boots", the movie poster says, "Cat In Boots". I'm guessing that there is one of two reasons for this. 1) Puss is not a term that is recognizable for kitty cats in the Arab world; or 2) Puss is considered offensive. Either way, the title of this movie has been changed for release in the Arab world.

One of the reasons that I find this amusing is that the movie is in English, with Arabic subtitles. I'm guessing that throughout the dialog of the movie it will still say "Puss". Based on the Shrek movies, it will say it alot. They could have just replaced that word in the Arabic subtitles, but I guess that wasn't good enough. That's why I'm guessing that it was offensive to some censor somewhere.

In a country where they want you to cover up your shoulders and knees, it shouldn't surprise me that a movie is retitled. But it did.

Before you ask, we saw "Friends with Benefits" and it was really charming. Two Thumbs Up.

--Sandee Wagner

Building Codes

There are some things that Americans take for granted. After living as an ex-patriot for a year now, I feel like I can comment on at least one of these. Building codes. We have them. Other countries, not so much.

Or if they have codes, they don't have codes like we are used to--which is more likely. Case in point: electric outlets.

In the states, most buildings have an outlet on the wall every 12 feet or so. In an average bedroom, you'll generally have a plug on each wall. Each of these plugs will have two receptacles where you can plug something in. In a kitchen or a bathroom, there will be GFCI rated outlets, which have fuses that will reset because of the nearness of a water source to that electric outlet. It's a safety issue.

When we first moved to Dubai, I noticed that the plugs in the rooms are a little different. It's a 220 volt, three pronged system. Okay, we need adapters but how hard can that be? Not hard, they make really robust adapters that take all plug types. So we bought a handful and thought we were set.

But them you begin to look around. In each bedroom there is only one or two outlets. And each of those outlets has a single receptacle. It's centered up on the wall where you are most likely to put a headboard. And that's it. If you want to run a TV at the other end of the room, good luck.

Each wall outlet has an on/off switch. You can cut off the electricity to the outlets you are not using. That seems like a very 'green' approach. Especially if you were not using some outlets...but when you don't really have enough outlets and you're using all of them, it's a wasted extra.

The bathrooms actually are the most stunning to me. When we first arrived in Dubai, I did a lot of furniture shopping. I noticed that the middle easterners bought a lot of dressing tables. It seemed like a furniture item that I didn't need, so I moved right past them. Then I realized that the outlet built into the wall of the bathroom (the single outlet in each bathroom) is designed expressly for men's shavers. It has a special receptacle. It will ONLY accept shavers or electric toothbrushes. You can't plug in a blow dryer or flat iron or curling iron. Not at all. No adapters allowed.

All of a sudden I can see why gals need a dressing table. I'm blow drying and curling my hair out in the bedroom... where there aren't enough outlets.

Dubai could use a building code that required a few more outlets. And perhaps a GFCI equivalent would make the bathrooms a little more blow dryer friendly. Just sayin'.

--Sandee Wagner

The Wharf

In the Mina A'Salam hotel, there is a restaurant called The Wharf. Before you give me a bunch of back talk about eating at hotels, let me tell you a little something about living in 'the land of sand'. The ONLY restaurants that are allowed, by law, to serve alcohol are associated with hotels. So, when we make arrangements to meet someone for dinner (and drinks) the only destinations are usually restaurants associated with hotels.

The Mina A'Salam hotel is one of a line of properties that front Jumierah beach right next to the Burj Al Arab. They are connected by a canal and the local water taxis motor folks back and forth to the Madinat Jumeirah, the Wild Wadi water park and several hotel properties.

We drove up, parked the car and walked into the lobby. We were met with the most succulent fragrance. We walked to the center of the atrium and saw a fountain that had rose petals floating on the surface. The smell was fantastic. Later on we saw some wedding regalia, so I don't know if this was done for the specific event, or if it's a normal part of the hotel routine, but WOW! It was scrumptious.

We wandered downstairs and out the back doors of the hotel, alongside the canal. The Wharf was there, with lots of outside tables and seating. It's still a little too hot for that, so we decided to kill some time looking over the property before going into await our friends.

The beach was just lovely at sunset. The staff was furling the umbrellas and clearing up for the day. We strolled around to see the views, enjoy the sea breeze and architecture. They have a huge gazebo near the pool with a stunning view of the Burj Al Arab and the Palm Jumeirah. The hotel was designed to look like traditional Arab dwellings and is filled with art and furniture that appear antique and authentic.

It's a stunning place. I'd like to take some time to ramble around and really get the lay of the land. Or perhaps take one of the water taxis for a tour. The canal area had a few surprises. One was a built in water habitat for rehabilitating sea turtles. There was some signage promoting the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project and we watched the water until we actually identified two sea turtles swimming around. It's an honorable effort and all the signs pointed out that sea turtles are completely protected by the Emirates. They also had satellite tracking of the turtles they'd released into the wild. It was a fun find while we were just killing time before dinner.

The Wharf restaurant was delightful. Based on an old English pub, the food was fun and flavorful. I got the fish and chips, which was delivered to me wrapped in newspaper (no plate!) Which is fine, until you spill your glass of water, then it's really less convenient than one might think.

Our friends had a discount coupon, so I'm not sure how much the meal would have cost without it, but it seemed to be very well priced and delicious. I would certainly go back. It also appears to be a place that would be great to take visitors. So, come on out and visit me in Dubai. We'll get your picture taken next to the camel. Yeah, just like the penguins in Tulsa, these things are everywhere.

--Sandee Wagner

Dinner Out

We met some friends for dinner. They picked a restaurant in the Madinat Jumeirah called the Al Hambra. It's a Spanish themed Tapas restaurant.

The first fun option was riding the abra, a water taxi, to the hotel from the shopping center. We just had to show our reservation number to the abra skipper and he motored us right to the door. The waterway between the shopping areas and the hotels along this canal is lit up with fairy lights and lanterns. I am quite taken with the light wrapped palm trees.

The Madinat Jumeirah is designed to look like an authentic middle eastern dwelling. It's really impressive. Especially at night. Lights cast up the adobe walls and showcase the height and breadth of the edifice. After the quick trip from the shopping center over to the hotel, we navigated our way through the swanky hotel. It was quite a schlep to find the Al Hambra.

On the way, I enjoyed the amazing sights inside the hotel and it's environs. DH had a couple of meetings in this hotel and he wanted me to see the 'biggest chandelier ever'. It was super big. You get no idea of the scale on this picture, but it hangs in a three story atrium. It's gorgeous.

There is a big sweetheart staircase that descends down into a huge ballroom/dining area. In the center of the twining stairs is a giant fountain cascading down. It's a lovely sound. In the desert, fountains take on a whole new importance. Most major buildings have at least one. Many have multiple water features. It's very restful. Another thing that comes in abundant variety in the glamorous digs are flowers.

Lots and lots of colorful flowers.
Large scale flower sculpture and centerpieces fill the common areas. I had DH stand next to one so you could see that it's way taller than six feet. There were several of these lining the lobby area of the Madinat Jumeirah.

The lobby had glorious marble floors and columns. The colors were vibrant and eye catching. Over the top. I think in the middle east, they invented over the top design.

Oh, and dinner was really good too! The Spanish restaurant was nice. We had tapas and paella. There was hard cheese marinated in olive oil and rosemary served with crusty bread. Rustic and really tasty. All in all, it was a delightful evening with a really nice, welcoming couple. I can't wait to try some of the other restaurants in that area. Lots more to explore.

--Sandee Wagner

A Fitting Memorial

Today is the tenth anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City. For my generation, it has become the 'where were you?' moment we all remember. I will never forget that day, watching as the news unfolded and witnessing the tragedy as the towers collapsed.

Since then, much has been made of the planned memorial, the fundraising, construction and even the invitation list for the dedication. Everyone has an opinion. I can remember when the Viet Nam Memorial was being planned for Washington, DC. So much fuss. So many people objecting to the black basalt wall inscribed with names. It was ugly and too modern and not suitable. But then it was unveiled. And the families and friends started coming. And photographs surfaced of veterans laying their hands on the names of their friends, sons and daughters rubbing an impression of their father's name. And hearts broke across this nation. Because a memorial has architectural structure, but its not the building or edifice that anchors the memories. It's the people. Now, no one cares about the controversy that the design caused, they just come. They remember.

Today, a memorial is being unveiled in New York City's Battery Park neighborhood. I don't know all the details. I remember some of the plans that were suggested. Some of the people involved wanted to build edifices on the site that were bigger and higher than the originals. They wanted to thumb their noses in the faces of the terrorists. Prove that we would rebuild, be better, higher or more opulent than before. What I've seen of the memorial is more park like. It includes two of the largest man made waterfalls ever constructed. They outline the footprint of the original two trade center towers. It appears to be a beautiful, peaceful place.

A memorial, a monument is just an anchor for the feelings, emotions and memories of the people who experienced an event. Nothing ever suitably replaces what was lost. No man made sculpture or building will ever make up for lives lost, families impacted or the long term effects of trauma. During that day, and months and years afterwards, people in New York City, Washington DC, and rural Pennsylvania faced the horror of terrorism and no one in our whole nation has ever been the same since.

We all experienced it. We might not have been there working like the EMTs, police and firefighters. We might not have been first responders or rescue aid workers. But we all watched, waited and prayed.

When I look back ten years ago, I feel the angst. My eyes well up with tears and I realize that we all lost a little innocence that day. We thought it couldn't happen here. But we were wrong. It can, and does, happen everywhere.

Monuments mark the spot. But it's the people like us who keep the memories. When you think about it, it's a fitting memorial. Talk to the younger generation, tell your stories. Explain your feelings. Make a trip to the 9/11 memorial and honor the fallen. The fight has been brought to us and it's up to all of us to remember.

--Sandee Wagner

Speaking My Language, Wait...

One of my very favorite things about living in Dubai is that I could quit the Rosetta Stone French lessons. DH is still working on them, but he took years of French in school, so it's all a review for him. My accent is so dreadful, I had trouble passing through any lesson. I got as far as "my bicycle is yellow" and "that apple is green". When I said those phrases to the taxi drivers in Tunis, I got a lot of laughs. Everyone who travels extensively says that trying to speak the local language is always the way to go. I found that it at least broke the ice with the cabbies. So, my French sounded like Julia Childs and Rosetta Stone expected better of me.


English is prominent in the United Arab Emirates. Most signage is Arabic and English. All the advertising includes text in both languages. I can survive here without being completely in the dark. Bonus!

But then, I read the signage and wonder. Are they speaking my language? There are a lot of half built projects around this time. Apparently, there was a big surge in building, lots of stuff got started, then the world financial crisis caught up to Dubai, and the building halted. Most of the larger projects have tall fences erected around the base of them. This large wall provides billboard space for advertisement. Lots of the projects still have ads posted advertising their developments.

I drive by this one on the way to the hardware store. Each time I read it, I think, what? The words say: "This hoarding will not change for another year. After that, Media production will change forever." The International Media Production Zone stands behind the wall. So, they were advertising that when they were finished building, things would change in their field. I get that. I totally do. But 'this hoarding'? What does that mean?

So, I looked it up. And sure enough, way down in the meanings, there is a definition that says a hoarding is a temporary fence enclosing a construction site. Now, I get it. Boy, speaking the same language is supposed to make things easier, right?

--Sandee Wagner

El Dorado

The City of Gold. Something Conquistadors from Spain traveled across continents searching for... also, an unattainable goal. Like good Mexican food half a globe away from Mexico.

In Tunisia, we found a nice Cuban cafe where all the food LOOKED right, but tasted wrong. It was like someone had pictures of popular Mexican and Spanish dishes but no recipes to follow. Or more likely, couldn't get the ingredients that made the food taste authentic. Either way, we ate there because it was good, it just wasn't right.

Today, we walked into Casa Maria in the Green Community in Dubai. It's a small place with just a few tables inside and out. When we first approached the door, it was 1230 and the signage outside said "Open Daily 11:00 am to 10:00 pm". We tugged on the doors, but they were locked. As we walked away scratching our heads, a waitress unlocked the doors and called us back. Apparently, they just forgot to open the doors.

An inauspicious beginning. I'll give you that.

The place was decorated like every Mexican restaurant everywhere, except maybe in Mexico. Exposed wood beams, adobe walls, bright colored paint and lots of hand carved wood furniture. It called to my Texan soul.

We perused the menu, poking excited fingers at our favorites and mulling our choices. Pages of the menu were devoted to explaining the 'terminology' for the unfamiliar. It gave descriptions of all the different types of chiles, the regional foods in Mexico and a biography on the two Mexican chefs who own and run the store. That's right. Authentic food. Right here in our neighborhood.

It was GREAT. I had chicken enchiladas with verde sauce and DH had a beef fajita burrito. Both were tremendous. The guacamole was a little shy of actual avocados, but I'm guessing they are imported just for that dish. All in all, my new favorite restaurant. I give it two thumbs up.

I can't wait to try their fish tacos. Umm... I don't really feel like I've found a lost city of gold, but I do feel like I've found a treasure.

--Sandee Wagner