Lantern Festival

Tonight is the 15th day of Chinese New Year - and it is kind of a big deal. It is the last hurrah of the holiday, and people are going all out, with a ton of fireworks outside. I hope we can get to sleep!

The weather was great today - in the 70s. We took a nice walk through the neighborhood. Lots of people were out, between the weather and the holiday. Old men were playing the erhu, kids were flying kites...just a great day!

-alan

Hot is the word of the week

The past couple days have brought heat, though not in the same ways.

Yesterday, we went out looking for dinner - so we decided on Baidu Kaorou, a chain restaurant where you grill your food at your table. We went there when the place opened last year, and had not been back since.

Apparently, we should have gone back earlier, because it was gone.

So instead, we went off to a nearby place we had never been to - but is notable for its year-round outdoor seating. It was crowded inside, so we took a table in that area. On one side of our table was a 4 foot glass wall facing the street; on the other, a walkway for servers and the window into the restaurant. The heat was in the table, literally; the center of the table was a flaming pile of charcoal, which kept us mighty warm throughout the meal.

The menu was diverse, and without pictures. We ordered a few things we knew they had, and then asked for a recommendation. In theory, I like asking servers, because they should know what is best. However, in China, that often does not work. Rachel asked for something not too spicy, and without many bones. So what did we get? Pork knuckle stew. It actually tasted pretty good, and we fished all the veggies out of it. But there was still a lot of pork knuckles in there when we left...

We are calling it the Shao Kao Date Restaurant - because it has food like you get in the night market, but in a setting that is worthy of bringing a date to. You actually get a real chair!

The second heat came in the form of weather - today the sun came out, which brought scrumptious warm air and a pleasant afternoon. I'm hoping that winter is breaking!

-alan

1st day back

If you can survive the first day back to school after vacation relatively unscathed, then it is smooth sailing from there.

Rachel is kinda sick, though, so I cannot speak for her day. She started out by going long at morning devos (bad move on a Monday morning before school, after break!) and spent much of the morning in a zombie-like catatonic state (from what I heard). However, she recovered enough to hold the first after-school meeting for MUN, eat some Korean (let's not order that spicy dish again, please!), and catch up on episodes of Lost (which is fading fast in my eyes).

I had a good day back, anyway. I was underprepared for most of my classes, but hey...some days you just have to wing it.

-alan

2 days in Kuala Lumpur (KL)

Flying out in the wee morning hours from Abu Dhabi (3am to be precise) we traveled to KL for a 2 day stopover. We stayed there with Anand, our Malaysian friend from Northwestern. Much of the time, he was quite busy - but we did get to spend some time with his family, which was quite fun. Like him, they are an outgoing, charismatic bunch.

Last time we were in KL, we stayed in a hotel downtown, and never really ventured out much into the city. This was mainly due to lack of time, energy, and knowledge - at the end of our trip last year, we just did not have much will left to go out and explore. So, we left the city with a lackluster opinion.

This time, we stayed in a real neighborhood, and did some real exploration of the city. We also ate some good food (traditional southern Indian, Malay, Japanese, American), which is always a plus.

One neat thing we did was to take a tour of "old" KL. Anand is thinking of starting a tour business, so he offered us a free private tour with his potential tour guide, Leroy, in return for our feedback. We gladly accepted :)

The city is not old - 200 years, if you go WAY back, but it has only been a true city for 100+. It is not an ancient city, but rather a colonial city, inhabited first by Chinese immigrants and their Malay landlords. So we wandered through what is left of the original Chinatown, and subsequent British-controlled colonial KL. We learned some interesting stories, and walked...a lot.

That afternoon, we went to the theatre to take in our annual Chinese movie - we cannot watch Chinese films in China, because there are no subtitles...but in Malaysia, they do. Unfortunately, the theatre was packed, so even though we bought tickets 2 hours ahead, we were stuck in the front row (they sell individual seats, like a sports event, so it is not first-come-first-serve). It was ironic, because the film, 14 Blades, was filmed in Mandarin but shown in Malaysia dubbed into Cantonese.

The next day, we toured some of KL's green spaces, starting with the Bird Park. There was a host of tropical birds all fluttering around. Thankfully, we were not pooped on - though the mosquitoes feasted on our bare legs. Bug spray would have been wise.

Here is one bird that sounded more like a dying cat:

From there, we traveled through some gardens and headed towards the Islamic Art Museum. Rachel marveled at the sky all day.

And of course, no trip to SE Asia is complete without monkeys.

The museum was of high quality. Rachel especially likes Islamic geometric patterns, which are a mainstay of their art.

From there, we went out to lunch - our last hurrah at Chili's - and off to the airport. The ride home was a little crazy - the AirAsia flight crew had some trouble controlling the rambunctious Chinese crowd (generally loud and noncompliant with "remain seated" requests). But we were in the relatively quiet front section of the plane, and we were home before we knew it.

So KL round 2 was MUCH more pleasant. Now, I think it is a fine city.

-alan

The house

In Al Ain, we stayed at what American would call a "mansion." Or a "McMansion" if you are a suburbanite. This house was huge. 8 bedrooms, 9 baths. Plus 2 kitchens, 2 living rooms, an office, a game room, and an awesome spiral staircase leading up to a stain glass skylight.

This place was a party waiting to happen.

The house is purposefully large, because it is used as a guesthouse. But since we were the only guests there at the time, its size was striking. The inside was nice, too - polished tiles covered all the floors, and Ikea was clearly the primary interior decorator (which I have no problem with).

The house is average size for affluent Emeratis, who tend to live with extended family plus servants. So for an average family of the UAE elite, the sizeable house is put to good use.

In the city center, there were more condos and apartments, though the city as a whole looked more like an American suburb (spread out, with wide avenues) than a city.

-alan

Home safely!

At midnight, we arrived home in Chengdu. Now, we still have 3 days to recover and prepare to return to work!

Closing thoughts are still to comes, and a recap of our time in KL.

-alan

look mom a tattoo!

While in the Middle East I felt like didn't have a great chance to see local women both because of their modest dress and coverings and also because there seemed to be less women out and about.

I was happy for a chance to go to an all ladies saloon and some interaction. Saloon is not a place to drink (as that is generally frowned upon) but how they spell salon on all the signs. Going in there was a bustle of activity with women getting hair done and henna. I guess women get really dolled up for weddings and there is a separate place for the women to all be together and dance without the veil or abaya. It was great to see the beautiful hair styles of the women and all the really cool henna designs on the hands and feet.

For those of you who don't know henna is a dye that looks like mud when applied and leaves behind a stain on the skin lasts well over a week. Below are pics :-)

-rachel

Camel time...

What is a vacation to the desert without some connection to camels? In the few days we were in Al Ain someone set up a makeshift camel pen. Each day the number of camels grew from the original 2 and by the end there were goats as well!

I made some kissy faces at the one with a lot of mucus and a lot of flies. As the camel approached, I made sure our lips had NO contact.
I thought it was ok to pet the camel's head and luckily there was no spitting :-)

-rachel

Still kicking

We arrived in Kuala Lumpur today, and are melting in the heat and humidity. I must say, it is nice to be wearing shorts (since it is impolite in the UAE).

We are staying with our old friend Anand (NU '04) and his family for a few days here. We will tour around the city tomorrow and learn some historical info about Malaysia and its colonial roots. Should be stimulating.

Abu Dhabi was....an adventure, to say the least. More on that later. For now, it is time for bed.

-alan

Offroading in Oman

On Saturday, we made a spur of the moment trip to Oman. The Al Ain Oasis is really made up one city, split down the middle by the international border between Oman and the UAE. This border is somewhat open - if you are only going a short distance into Oman, you do not need to clear through customs. It is only if you go several dozen kilometers in that you will finally come across the Omani border post. So though we did not venture past such a checkpoint and have no stamp in our passport to prove it, we were technically in Oman for a day.

We drove off the highway and across a flat open field, following a stone path. We drove until we reached the base of a mountain. The ride was a little bumpy, as you can see!

http://www.blogger.com/video-play.mp4?contentId=9735d3e36140faf8&type=video%2Fmp4


Our destination: the Hanging Gardens (of Buraimi)


We had with us a book with some nice GPS maps, and directions for how to hike to our final destination. However, the book was quite large, so we left it in the Jeep. That was wise, because the terrain was rougher than expected...but perhaps it would have been useful later in the day!

We set out with our cameras and a bottle of water. We looked all around for "a lone tree," at which point we were supposed to start our climb. We found many lone trees, like this one:


So lacking a proper landmark, we decided to begin our ascent. The climb was somewhat tiring, but not grueling. There was no defined trail, but we did not really have to climb. It was more like walking up stairs (but replace the stairs with ever-shifting rocks and sand).


Halfway up:

After some time, we arrived at the cave at the top of the hill. The cave was nothing special - just some pigeons - but the height afforded some wonderful views in the late afternoon.

From inside the cave:

Rachel sees a man here. Do you?

Resting at the top:

Great blue sky! We do not see this in Chengdu!!

Cool rock formations (see the erosion of the rock wall?)

After some time at the top, we took stock of the waning sun and realized that we must get back down soon. We remembered from the book that there was an easier way down - supposedly less steep. So while it was slightly more out of the way, we figured that we could make up the distance by moving faster on flatter terrain. So, we set out.

Rachel does not like going down. I got a little bit ahead! Notice it getting darker?

We got to the bottom - well we thought it was close to the bottom - and finally saw why this place was called the Hanging Gardens. Above the wadi (riverbed) that we were following, plants were growing from the side of the cliff. We also heard running water - a shock to the UAE residents, since you do not hear much flowing water (other than fountains) in the desert.


Rachel reaches out to touch the dripping water:

This is where things got interesting. We were actually only halfway down, and at this point the light was fading fast. It was twilight. We had no lights, unless you count 2 cell phones. We were also following a dry riverbed, which means that the rocks were loose - so every step caused you to slip and slide as the rocks shifted under your feet as you stepped down.

We fumbled our way as best we could - I fell a few times, causing some scrapes and the accidental busting of our camera's LCD...oops!

But without too much permanent damage, we reached the bottom and made our way back to the car. Of course, we got lost a few times trying to follow the path back to the road...but we made it. That's what counts, right?

We then had some well earned biryani rice, chicken, and lamb with tea; served the traditional way, sans utensils. Eating rice with your fingers while sitting on the ground is in no way elegant; thankfully, there are no pictures of the mess we made. :)

The camera is still usable - we have a viewfinder, so only the LCD was affected. Of course, there is some sand in it too from the dunes....but we have a new camera awaiting us when we return to Chengdu. Yay!

Tomorrow we will travel to Abu Dhabi for the day, and then back to KL for a couple days. More to come!

-alan

Sand dune adventure

Rachel said, "This was the best day ever!" When I reminded her of our wedding day, she stepped back a little bit from this comment. But only a little.


We set out in the late afternoon (on Friday) for the nearby sand dunes, in hopes of spending some time in the sand and seeing the sunset. We parked on the edge of the dune and brought our gear up to a sandy plateau.



The dunes are in a line, and are 100+ meters tall, at their peak. It was an very fine-grained, orangey-yellow colored sand, that felt great between your toes. The sun was just dipping over the horizon as we set out the picnic blanket, dates, and tea.


The sun did not disappoint, thanks to some wispy clouds (the first we have seen in a week!).


I took some video of some guys riding around on ATVs, when I saw a dune buggy approaching from above. The driver, Hussein, braked next to our blanket, got out, and said, "you want a go?"

We assumed he would drive. But no, he wanted us to have the full experience. Unfortunately, is was a manual transmission so we could not do it...

But we did get to ride!





This was a great example of Arab hospitality at its finest. The dune buggy did get stuck once, sadly, requiring some digging to free it up. I was covered in sand. But it was fun!

Afterwards, we walked up to the top of the dune to see the city lights and look at the stars.



-alan

Dubai in a day

Having already paid to fly to the US over Christmas, this trip is one on a budget. We do not have an actual budget, per se, but more an understanding to not spend money unnecessarily. For this reason, we chose to make a day trip to Dubai, instead of getting a hotel room (very pricey) and staying multiple days.

We took a minibus from Al Ain, which took us to the city center in Dubai (90 minutes away) for around $5 each. A pretty good deal, I think - especially considering some of our cab rides within Dubai were more expensive than this!

Our first stop was to walk through Old Dubai, which is centered around a small creek that acted as a harbor when the town was first settled.



We saw some pictures of the city in the 1950s, when it was nothing more than a small trading and pearl diving center. There is certainly a huge contrast, in a very short period of time! We took a look at a recreation of a traditional Bedouin settlement. The Bedouins are still around in this area - a large group with roots in Sudan travels with their camels up to this area to buy, sell, and trade their animals.



From there, we shopped a little bit in one of the souks (open-air markets) in the area.



After touring around, it was time for lunch. We popped into the Basta Cafe (passing up the opportunity for camel burgers at the place next door) for some comically oversized salads and sandwiches. The cafe was shaded and quiet, which was a nice break from walking all morning.



From there, we tried to take the Metro to the Burj Khalifa, the brand new tallest building in the world. However, though the Metro is operating, only a few stations are open. The station we were by was not yet open, so we had to take a cab. The strange part about that was that our driver, when we asked to go to the tower, had to call for directions. That was confusing - the building is big enough to see from anywhere in the city, and it is certainly a famous spot. So why did he not know how to get there?

Once there, it was an amazing site. The building is a spectacle, for sure - it is unbelievably large. It stretches skyward on a scale that easily dwarfs anything else in this city, which is chocked full of modern skyscrapers.



The outside is done, but the building is not open yet. The observation deck was open, but closed this week due to electrical problems. So, we could not get into it. Instead, we walked in the new mall next door - which was clearly higher class than we could afford.

I was expecting a lot of construction, but it was astounding to see how much of the city was still in the process of being built. Outside of "Old Dubai" it seemed that more buildings were fenced off, awaiting completion, than were open. I'd say that this place needs a few more years to mature - that is, if the city has the money to finish it all!

We took the Metro from the Burj Khalifa to the Mall of the Emirates. We ate some ice cream, and walked over to check out the world-famous "Ski Dubai."



This winter wonderland had skiing, snowboarding, sledding, and a host of snow-related activities for all ages. The area was full of families, bundled in identical parkas, frolicking in the cold. We missed the big storm in America, so I guess this is as close as we will get.

Dubai decadence - the fanciest hotels, the tallest buildings, the most outrageous land reclamation projects - but perhaps it is best epitomized by mall skiing!

We also went out to the beach to see the Burj-al-Arab and to watch the sunset. We set our feet in to the Persian Gulf, so that we have now been in the water in both sides of the ocean (Singapore, last year).



Though not spectacular, it was fun to watch the sun go down over the water. Here, you can see the "7-star" Burj-al-Arab, one of the most opulent hotels in the world. (Note the helipad on the top left - my favorite part!)



Finally, we headed back to mall where I ate a big Papa John's pizza, which tasted great with beef sausage and beef pepperoni.

Exhausted, we headed back to the bus station, and finally arrived home in Al Ain shortly after midnight. What a day!



-alan

A few more days of fun

Our trip has picked up considerably in activity, if our frequency of blog posts is any indication. In terms of travel, we took a day trip to Dubai yesterday, which I will post about later. We are trying to make plans for another day trip Sunday to Oman, then to Abu Dhabi on Monday. From there, we fly on a redeye to Malaysia.

So, I will post some pictures / videos from our activities in and around Al Ain.

Compared to Dubai and Abu Dhabi, there are less foreigners in the city - but compared to Chengdu (which has so few) there is a nice mix of South Asians, Europeans, and Arabs. There are lots of mosques around, and the call the prayer (5 times per day) is easily heard even inside. The dress is conservative overall, but varied; some women in vails, some not; some men with headscarves, others not; some in Western clothing, some in traditional robes; but few (if any) people wearing shorts, tank tops, or tight-fitting clothing. The few that do are often American/European and they tend to stand out.

The weather is awesome - warm, powerful sunshine but it is pleasant in the shade. The nights are also cool. So really, pants are great to wear, and we do not miss shorts at all.

Al Ain does not have many internationally-renowned attractions, but it has been fun to see some of the local sights.

On Tuesday, we went to Jabel Hafeet, which is the mountain that towers over the city (and looms in the distance out our bedroom window). We drove out there and had a picnic lunch at a park at the base of the mountain (Subway for Alan and Arabic food for Rachel, along with fresh picked dates and tea. Rachel ordered a Shwarma sandwich and falafel, but when she arrived and opened her food, found that they replaced the falafel with liver. Surprise!)

In true ironic UAE fashion, the whole park is irrigated (and lit at night).


All that green is grass, which is irrigated to turn the sandy desert into a lush playground. There were acres and acres of parkland. However, to be honest, all the green grass made the place look great and a lot more fun for the kids who were scattered throughout the area.

After lunch, we dipped our feet in a hot spring, and then scampered up on to one of the nearby rocks for a look around.


Next came the drive up the winding road to the top of the mountain.


We stopped at a few points along the way, including the parking lot at the top of the mountain. It is a little anticlimactic to drive straight to the top - it seems like you should have to walk at least a little - but anyways it was cool to stand up there. The sun was SUPER bright - which stunk since Rachel's sunglasses broke earlier in the day - and the wind kicked up sand, which obscured the view, but all in all we do not get to go on mountains all that much, so it was memorable.



The other sights in town included a stop at the Al Ain Museum, which is the former residence of the current ruling royal family. We learned some about the family, and about life in the UAE prior to the oil boom of the last 50 years. Since the country is less than 40 years old and its development is quite new, it is interesting to compare the UAE today with its relatively simple past.


Again, there was nicely tended landscaping - doesn't she look beautiful with her matching yellow tree?


The house was spacious, organized into several sections with courtyards in the middle. The furnishings were spartan - ample searing, but few appliances or tools beyond the basics.


The last stop for this post is the Al Ain Oasis - this town sprung up largely thanks to the large oasis in the center of it. When you are in a desert, water is everything. And in this oasis, water is vital for raising animals and for growing food - in this case, date palms. We drove through one working farm in the oasis, which uses small stone channels to direct the underground water towards the trees. (larger date plantations also exist around town, which are irrigated artificially) The palms created a cooling canopy, which blocked out much of the mid-day sun.


And we have not had many dates in our lives, but the ones from here were pretty tasty :)

More to come - Dubai, the sand dunes, and our awesome lodgings!