Almost forgot !
a shoutout to J-MONEY in the BX !!!
he's our new blog reader !
Thursday, October 28, 2010
TGIT !!!!
How's everybody doing? I hope you're all doing well.
Have been away from the blog for a little bit, but everything is good.
The TGIT title comes because today is Thursday ! In most places in the world you wouldn't be that excited but here you do get excited, why? Well 'cause Thursday here is like Friday in the U.S. You see the weekend here is Friday and Saturday. It use to be Thursday and Friday like in Saudi Arabia, but they changed because that way people doing business here with the U.S or Europe would get an extra day for business with those countries.
So this also means that the first day of the workweek is Sunday; still getting my head wrapped around that, but you do get use to it because Sunday here is not only the first day of the work-week but you feel it like its a Monday in the US, weird I know.
By the way, I got a job interview coming up..yep Job interview baby !!! So my job interview is this Sunday at 10:00am. Its like I'm going to church.
Its for a Music Teaching position. I'll let you know how it goes.
Ah the weather ! Man, its getting really nice here. It's like late May/Early June in NYC. In other words...PERFECT.
no new pics on this post, but heres a lil' video...
Have been away from the blog for a little bit, but everything is good.
The TGIT title comes because today is Thursday ! In most places in the world you wouldn't be that excited but here you do get excited, why? Well 'cause Thursday here is like Friday in the U.S. You see the weekend here is Friday and Saturday. It use to be Thursday and Friday like in Saudi Arabia, but they changed because that way people doing business here with the U.S or Europe would get an extra day for business with those countries.
So this also means that the first day of the workweek is Sunday; still getting my head wrapped around that, but you do get use to it because Sunday here is not only the first day of the work-week but you feel it like its a Monday in the US, weird I know.
By the way, I got a job interview coming up..yep Job interview baby !!! So my job interview is this Sunday at 10:00am. Its like I'm going to church.
Its for a Music Teaching position. I'll let you know how it goes.
Ah the weather ! Man, its getting really nice here. It's like late May/Early June in NYC. In other words...PERFECT.
no new pics on this post, but heres a lil' video...
Monday, October 18, 2010
the weekend ...
Lots of partying.
The Abu Dhabi Film Festival is going on and we were hanging out with friends and the next thing you know we are at the gala party.
Lesson of the day is that whenever you go out at night in Abu Dhabi you should be at least "well dressed" 'cause you really don't know where you will end up, and the next thing you know you're "THAT GUY" wearing shorts.
The party was lots of fun, they also gave out awards for their scriptwriting competition....oh and free alcohol and food : )
The day before I got my hand on some Montecristo Cigarrillos so I was rocking them
Me and Eddie; another fellow Dominican and super cool dude. That was his 30th time in the UAE.
Met tons of cool people at the festival party including some people from NYC. Even met a guy from the BX !!! Fordham Road. He's been here with his wife for 5 years, and works for the Film Commission.
What else??
Oh ! Lots of Lebanese food here. Including this super cheap all you can eat spot:
By the way, there's actually a long canal connecting this entire hotel. Its like a mini-Venice, and its kinda cool. Here's us riding it to the main Hotel.
I'm also loving the Shisha Pipe. Its really great here, you get this whole package that includes a Shisha Pipe, with Tea and a plate of fruits. Really, really good.
by the way this is my view while smoke the Shisha:
Last night at the festival I saw Patricio Guzman's latest film titled "Nostalgia De La Luz." A great film by the way.
Going tomorrow to check out more films.
The Abu Dhabi Film Festival is going on and we were hanging out with friends and the next thing you know we are at the gala party.
Lesson of the day is that whenever you go out at night in Abu Dhabi you should be at least "well dressed" 'cause you really don't know where you will end up, and the next thing you know you're "THAT GUY" wearing shorts.
The party was lots of fun, they also gave out awards for their scriptwriting competition....oh and free alcohol and food : )
The day before I got my hand on some Montecristo Cigarrillos so I was rocking them
Me and Eddie; another fellow Dominican and super cool dude. That was his 30th time in the UAE.
Met tons of cool people at the festival party including some people from NYC. Even met a guy from the BX !!! Fordham Road. He's been here with his wife for 5 years, and works for the Film Commission.
What else??
Oh ! Lots of Lebanese food here. Including this super cheap all you can eat spot:
By the way, there's actually a long canal connecting this entire hotel. Its like a mini-Venice, and its kinda cool. Here's us riding it to the main Hotel.
I'm also loving the Shisha Pipe. Its really great here, you get this whole package that includes a Shisha Pipe, with Tea and a plate of fruits. Really, really good.
by the way this is my view while smoke the Shisha:
Last night at the festival I saw Patricio Guzman's latest film titled "Nostalgia De La Luz." A great film by the way.
Going tomorrow to check out more films.
Friday, October 15, 2010
there they are ..
So 3 weeks later I finally saw clouds !!!
No rain, but lots of clouds. Which is fine because I actually don't really miss the rain.
The weather is starting to get really nice. Last night we were out at our favorite little bar, and there was a very nice breeze. Weather was around 85F, but with a nice breeze. You could still see the clouds at night.
Sunset pic from a couple of days ago. Took it from our balcony.
We're really excited about the start of the Abu Dhabi Film Festival and OKTOBERFEST. Yep Oktoberfest in Abu Dhabi.
No rain, but lots of clouds. Which is fine because I actually don't really miss the rain.
The weather is starting to get really nice. Last night we were out at our favorite little bar, and there was a very nice breeze. Weather was around 85F, but with a nice breeze. You could still see the clouds at night.
Sunset pic from a couple of days ago. Took it from our balcony.
We're really excited about the start of the Abu Dhabi Film Festival and OKTOBERFEST. Yep Oktoberfest in Abu Dhabi.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
some updates ...
We're doing good over here. Slowly settling in and getting used to life here; though in reality it is more like "our version" of it.
After all, we're in a hotel. We live in an apartment but we get all the hotel perks; like the Gym !
By the way I've lost about 2 Kilos (that's like about 5 lbs) and I'm rocking the Kilometers in the treadmill. Yes I know...everything here is in Kilos, Km, and Celsius. We're slowly getting used to it which is nice. I kinda like the whole Kilo thing. When I got here I was 220lbs ! which is only about 100kilos, so you know, it sounds like "less."
Either way I'm losing the Kilos ! We are ! Madeline is also hitting the gym though she spends more time in the Jacuzzi than on the treadmill.
Another great perk of the whole "Hotel-living" is that they come by and clean our place 3 times a week ! and by clean I mean CLEAN..they even do the dishes ! So yeah, that kinda rocks too, since I've become quite the chef.
Man, I am rocking the lamb ! I even got Madeline into to the whole lamb thing since I'm getting better at cooking it.
When cooking here you kinda have to get used to the seasoning. Everything tastes different, in some cases not necessarily better, just different. Even the salt tastes different.
One great thing of being here is that I can get really good hummus everywhere. Its also very affordable. Olives are very affordable as well, and they are AMAZING. We've become addicts to these Egyptian Olives with Spice mix:
A-MA-ZING !!!
By the way the price translates to about 5 Dollars for 2 lbs. 2 lbs of olives !!!! We never get pounds of em' but we do get 'em often.
I've also been rocking some Non-Alcoholic beer which you can get anywhere here. Em...so yeah, its just nasty. When its really cold you can kinda get use to it. So far my favorite has been the Bavaria one, but I've seen some Budweiser here that (sigh) yes, I might "have" to try.
AND .... we found the PORK SECTION !!
I will be doing a full blog post on the pork section.
Its funny because I'm a huge pork lover but haven't really missed it.
I do miss having a beer at home but, its ok; not a big deal since we can always go outside and grab one.
We have an amazing little bar right on our backyard. The bar is next to the "beach" and since its starting to get nice outside we can sit outside and grab a Stella (WITH Alcohol)
We can also get a Hookah while you sit outside by the beach, so I might be doing that soon.
By the way, here's a pic I took of the Grand Mosque, I never get tired of looking at it. One of these days we're going for a visit and full tour.
Hope you're all doing good !!!
After all, we're in a hotel. We live in an apartment but we get all the hotel perks; like the Gym !
By the way I've lost about 2 Kilos (that's like about 5 lbs) and I'm rocking the Kilometers in the treadmill. Yes I know...everything here is in Kilos, Km, and Celsius. We're slowly getting used to it which is nice. I kinda like the whole Kilo thing. When I got here I was 220lbs ! which is only about 100kilos, so you know, it sounds like "less."
Either way I'm losing the Kilos ! We are ! Madeline is also hitting the gym though she spends more time in the Jacuzzi than on the treadmill.
Another great perk of the whole "Hotel-living" is that they come by and clean our place 3 times a week ! and by clean I mean CLEAN..they even do the dishes ! So yeah, that kinda rocks too, since I've become quite the chef.
Man, I am rocking the lamb ! I even got Madeline into to the whole lamb thing since I'm getting better at cooking it.
When cooking here you kinda have to get used to the seasoning. Everything tastes different, in some cases not necessarily better, just different. Even the salt tastes different.
One great thing of being here is that I can get really good hummus everywhere. Its also very affordable. Olives are very affordable as well, and they are AMAZING. We've become addicts to these Egyptian Olives with Spice mix:
A-MA-ZING !!!
By the way the price translates to about 5 Dollars for 2 lbs. 2 lbs of olives !!!! We never get pounds of em' but we do get 'em often.
I've also been rocking some Non-Alcoholic beer which you can get anywhere here. Em...so yeah, its just nasty. When its really cold you can kinda get use to it. So far my favorite has been the Bavaria one, but I've seen some Budweiser here that (sigh) yes, I might "have" to try.
AND .... we found the PORK SECTION !!
I will be doing a full blog post on the pork section.
Its funny because I'm a huge pork lover but haven't really missed it.
I do miss having a beer at home but, its ok; not a big deal since we can always go outside and grab one.
We have an amazing little bar right on our backyard. The bar is next to the "beach" and since its starting to get nice outside we can sit outside and grab a Stella (WITH Alcohol)
We can also get a Hookah while you sit outside by the beach, so I might be doing that soon.
By the way, here's a pic I took of the Grand Mosque, I never get tired of looking at it. One of these days we're going for a visit and full tour.
Hope you're all doing good !!!
Saturday, October 9, 2010
some pics ...
Its a rug, and yes.... its hand made.
truly amazing
Partying it up at Etoiles in Emirates Palace:
We're actually not in the photo.
Shopping
us ... : )
truly amazing
Partying it up at Etoiles in Emirates Palace:
We're actually not in the photo.
Shopping
us ... : )
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
...and then it hit me.
Today is 2 weeks since both Madeline and I moved to Abu Dhabi; and then it hit me, its been 2 weeks since I've seen a cloud !
I know, we are in the desert, and yes it rarely rains in the desert; I'm cool with that, I knew that already, but not seeing clouds its kinda weird, don't know how to describe it.
A funny thing is that we have these thick hotel curtains in our bedroom so when we wake up and its dark in the room my mind assumes that is also dark outside, so it feels like when I open the curtains its going to be cloudy outside, but of course; its not ! Its da' effing desert !
I wish you guys could experience this, its kinda freaky not seeing rain, and its only been 2 weeks !!!!
I wonder how someone from London must feel.
I know, we are in the desert, and yes it rarely rains in the desert; I'm cool with that, I knew that already, but not seeing clouds its kinda weird, don't know how to describe it.
A funny thing is that we have these thick hotel curtains in our bedroom so when we wake up and its dark in the room my mind assumes that is also dark outside, so it feels like when I open the curtains its going to be cloudy outside, but of course; its not ! Its da' effing desert !
I wish you guys could experience this, its kinda freaky not seeing rain, and its only been 2 weeks !!!!
I wonder how someone from London must feel.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
shwarma !
Its been a while...
So last week we went for a Shwarma. I love shwarmas and Time Out Abu Dhabi had reviews of local spots, so we went to the only place that they gave 5 stars. Al Safadi ! (see pic below..oh and by the way, to the right? you see the red writing in Arabic? yeah, that says Burger King)
Well, there was only one little problem with Al Safadi, the place was SO LOCAL that we didnt even know how to order AND our waiter couldn't speak much English.
(On a side note I always get greeted in Arabic here, which is funny because at first I use to reply with an English "hello" which probably made me look like I was "trying to be American" as opposed to being American and not Arabic. Soon enough I realized that they just assume that I am Arabic, and so I started answering in Arabic, and then I continue in English. Its funny because for some weird reason whenever I reply "wa 'alaykum as-salām" it makes me think of Corona. Remember when he use to yell that back at the TEP House? Old TEPS remember this)
So anyway...we order our food and it wasnt exactly what I think shwarmas are, but the food was still pretty amazing, specially the delicious plate of olives that comes with your meal. Basically as soon as you seat down someone comes with a plate of Olives, and another plate filled with veggies.
When we got our food we actually didnt really know how to eat it.
We didn't really know what was the proper way to eat it, so we just stared at how other people were eating it. Basically with you hands you grab some meat, bread, and veggies and make little "sandwich-like" bites.
Madeline just piled it up into what we know as a Shwarma:
Either way the food was great, CHEAP, and it was cool being the only expats (well, other thean the Filippino servers) in the room.
After dinner we went to the Emirates Palace to meet some of Made's coworkers for drinks.
The Emirates Palace? man...I dont even know what to say, just do a search online. Its basically a 7 Star Hotel, yes, not 5; 7 !
Theres everything there, I mean the place is enormous !
Oh and yeah, you see the golden color at the top of the columns?
Yeah thats gold covered.
Theres also restaurants, bars, etc, etc
Next night we went to our first "House Party" in Abu Dhabi!
Meet some really cool people. Mostly Germans that work with Madeline. Some had been here for over 2 years, so we had tons of questions for them.
oh..and we had delicious German beer. yummmyyy !
So last week we went for a Shwarma. I love shwarmas and Time Out Abu Dhabi had reviews of local spots, so we went to the only place that they gave 5 stars. Al Safadi ! (see pic below..oh and by the way, to the right? you see the red writing in Arabic? yeah, that says Burger King)
Well, there was only one little problem with Al Safadi, the place was SO LOCAL that we didnt even know how to order AND our waiter couldn't speak much English.
(On a side note I always get greeted in Arabic here, which is funny because at first I use to reply with an English "hello" which probably made me look like I was "trying to be American" as opposed to being American and not Arabic. Soon enough I realized that they just assume that I am Arabic, and so I started answering in Arabic, and then I continue in English. Its funny because for some weird reason whenever I reply "wa 'alaykum as-salām" it makes me think of Corona. Remember when he use to yell that back at the TEP House? Old TEPS remember this)
So anyway...we order our food and it wasnt exactly what I think shwarmas are, but the food was still pretty amazing, specially the delicious plate of olives that comes with your meal. Basically as soon as you seat down someone comes with a plate of Olives, and another plate filled with veggies.
When we got our food we actually didnt really know how to eat it.
We didn't really know what was the proper way to eat it, so we just stared at how other people were eating it. Basically with you hands you grab some meat, bread, and veggies and make little "sandwich-like" bites.
Madeline just piled it up into what we know as a Shwarma:
Either way the food was great, CHEAP, and it was cool being the only expats (well, other thean the Filippino servers) in the room.
After dinner we went to the Emirates Palace to meet some of Made's coworkers for drinks.
The Emirates Palace? man...I dont even know what to say, just do a search online. Its basically a 7 Star Hotel, yes, not 5; 7 !
Theres everything there, I mean the place is enormous !
Oh and yeah, you see the golden color at the top of the columns?
Yeah thats gold covered.
Theres also restaurants, bars, etc, etc
Next night we went to our first "House Party" in Abu Dhabi!
Meet some really cool people. Mostly Germans that work with Madeline. Some had been here for over 2 years, so we had tons of questions for them.
oh..and we had delicious German beer. yummmyyy !
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