Singapore: Days Twelve & Thirteen

Posted by Kanga.

With only two days to go and a long list of things we hadn’t done, I had to beg off for a bit of a rest, so most of day 12 was spent with my feet up. Then, it was time for dinner.

Our friend, Adrianna, guided us on our evening repast adventure. First we stopped for a snack of sashimi. Our final destination was a small Japanese restaurant (Restaurant Chako) in which it is best to call/email ahead to get your order in, because everything is prepared fresh, even the sauces. Therefore, dinner can take a few hours to complete. (We all forgot to take pictures of the appetizers – oops! We had edamame [soy beans], shishamo [small grilled fish], and maguro yamakake [raw tuna with yam sauce])

DaddyBird’s dinner was yosenabe (claypot soup with seafood, chicken, mushroom, and tofu).

Adrianna’s dinner was unatamaju (broiled eel on scrambled egg and rice).

I had the Chako set meal (mackerel, breaded chicken, breaded cuttlefish, rice, cabbage salad, potato salad, miso soup, etc.).

We added tempura moriawase (shrimp and vegetables). It was all very delicious. Everything was prepared fresh and it doesn’t get more authentic than this.

We capped it all off with several desserts. Above is coffee flavored gelatin, below is green tea ice cream. Not pictured – cappuccino ice cream and black sesame ice cream. The black sesame ice cream was really interesting – almost more savory than sweet.

Our plan for the last day was to go to the bird park, but when we woke up it was raining heavily, so change of plans. The Asian Civilizations Museum was within walking distance of our hotel and offered an escape from the rain.

The rain had let up briefly, so it was a pleasant walk down the riverside.

We joined a tour that was starting when we arrived. The subject was the influence and use of Chinese art and style in other cultures.

This elephant is Chinese porcelain that was then modified in Turkey with the addition of the metal parts changing it into a hookah base (shisha pipe).

The museum presents all cultures and religions of Asia.

This bowl was made in Iraq attempting to emulate Chinese porcelain, but instead creating a unique and beautiful piece with a style of it’s own.

We left with a long list of places we didn’t go and things we didn’t do, but we enjoyed Singapore very much and will probably go back again.

Sharjah Archaeology Museum

Posted by Kanga.

Our local vacation included a visit to the Sharjah Archaeology Museum.

The museum presents the history of Sharjah from the stone age up to 611 A.D. The museum is nicely arranged, fully bilingual, and multi-media. An audio tour is available and worthwhile.

Each time period includes a diorama showing a typical abode.

It is always amazing to see how delicate the gold work was in early times.

In addition to shells and pearls, carnelian was a common component of jewelry.

There are many petroglyphs in the Hajar Mountains. The stones develop a red pateena. Chipping this red layer off is a fairly easy way to leave behind art. The above image is a bull tied to a post under a crescent moon. The crescent moon is a common image in area petroglyphs.

These ancient metal bracelets are very similar to those used not too long ago.

The two parts of this sculpture of a man holding a bird were found on two separate occasions and reunited here.

Mother of Pearl gathered along with pearls was used in these carvings.

These gold decorations were amazingly small.

We recommend the museum. It is very well done, very educational, and well worth your time.

Arabia’s Wildlife Centre

Posted by Kanga.

Yesterday, we ventured to the Sharjah’s Arabia’s Wildlife Centre. It is located between Sharjah and Dhaid. The centre is part of the Sharjah Desert Park which also includes a children’s farm (we’re assuming this is a petting zoo) and a natural history & botanical museum. Entrance to the park is 15 AED for adults ($4.00 US).

Photography is strictly forbidden in the wildlife center, so all you will get in this post is this picture of camels crossing the road which we encountered on the way there.

We highly recommend the wildlife center. It is very well designed and most of the animals were visible and active. Included are animals of all kinds native to different areas of Arabia, not just the U.A.E. – snakes, geckos, lizards, frogs, mice, rats, gerbils, grasshoppers, locusts, beetles, scorpions, foxes, wolves, wildcats, sand cats, jackals, porcupines, hedgehogs, honey badgers, gazelles, ibexes, oryxes, ostriches, flamingos, pelicans, owls, bats, and so much more. If only I could have used my camera, I would have so many desert hare pictures – bunnies everywhere!

On our way out, we passed the big animal enclosures. Starting with the baboons. It was feeding time, so they were quite busy. The next enclosure had desert wolves, who can look over the pit separating the enclosures and see the baboons. They were pacing up and down undoubtedly thinking “those baboons look tasty.” Next door to the wolves were striped hyenas also pacing up and down looking at the wolves thinking “those wolves look tasty.” Next to them were the cheetahs. If the cheetahs don’t fancy a hyena meal, they can also see an enclosure of gazelles. I’ve never been so close to a cheetah, separated only by glass. And, last, but not least, came the leopard. He, being the king of all, was just chillin’ out.

This is definitely a value deal. Give yourself plenty of time. The exhibits are extensive and you’ll want to stop and watch the active animals. One little Egyptian Spiny Mouse had a grub and was being chased mercilessly by her roommates. I hope she got to eat it in peace, eventually.

Dubai Tourist for a Day

Posted by Kanga.

I’m on two weeks vacation now, but we are staying local. We needed to go into Dubai to do some bank business at our original brach, which only took a few minutes, so we had the rest of the day to be tourists.

So, we went to the Dubai Museum, which is in Bur Dubai, the oldest part of town. It is housed in Al Fahidi Fort. Admission is 3 AED ($0.81).

The museum also has an underground section. It is very well designed, providing a recreation of a market and city streets. There are also pearl diving, boat building and fishing displays. The problem is that the museum was set up in one shot and is not being updated or developed. (At the very least, they should dust the stuffed animals.)

We headed over to the Dubai Creek where we met this lovely stray cat. She enjoyed some getting some attention.

We took an abra across the Creek to the Deira side. The price is still 1 AED each ($0.27) There was a parade of tourist buses unloading travelers transferring to the abras.

Then we took a walk down the creekside where boats load cargo. We did this same walk about three and a half years ago. There was significantly less cargo, but that may or may not be a sign of anything.

We road back across the Creek on another abra.

We ate dinner at Bayt Al Wakeel restaurant which has a wooden deck that hangs out over the Creek. It is a nice view, but I cannot recommend the restaurant. The service was not particularly good. The bread was not freshly baked. The meat (both chicken and lamb) was tough. And, worst of all, they chased away the stray cat.

All in all, it was a pleasant day.

To see all pictures from the day – click here.

Pearls Museum

Posted by Kanga.

A new museum has opened in Ras Al Khaimah.

The main floor focuses on the history of pearling in the area, including a full sized 40 foot pearling boat. Information is very well presented.

The second floor is devoted to the cultured pearl industry. Not surprising, since the museum is owned by RAK Pearls Holding, LLC.

We wondered around a bit before finding the museum, so, if you are interested in checking it out for yourself, here is a map to help. The museum is open 10 am – 6 pm and costs 100 AED per person (which includes lunch/snack at the cafe).

Metro Museum

Posted by Kanga.

Here is another metro train station museum. This is at Syntagma Station. A long section of wall recreates the layers of excavation showing several graves throughout the years.

Several showcases display pottery, oil lamps, and  grave stones.

Athens, Greece: Day Thirteen

Posted by Kanga.

We finally got to the National Archaeological Museum during open hours. It is always interesting to see ancient artworks and how finely detailed they sometimes are. This lion and bull are from royal graves in Mycenae ca. 16th century B.C. (approximately 3500 years ago)

DaddyBird got to hang out with Poseidon.

I found this fellow below compelling. This is part of a full size sculpture of a philosopher. He was found in a shipwreck. Only the bronze bits survived. Just imagine the artist spending numerous hours/days/weeks/months creating this, but before it can be installed in its intended display place, it goes down with the ship. If only the artist could know that over 2000 years later it would be one of the most photographed items in a museum. I sat and watched as others came through the doorway, saw him and immediately pulled out their cameras.

How many tries did it take to get a picture of this horse and rider without someone walking through the picture? At least four. It is a rather amazing piece.

They don’t seem to be able to make up their mind whether this is Zeus throwing a lightning bolt or Poseidon throwing his trident. Since the weapon is missing, there is no clue.

The woman standing to the left was interesting to watch. She was almost floating around the room with a beatific look on her face.

To see the rest of the pictures, click here.

How Not to House Hunt

Posted by Kanga.

Trips to Fujairah for house hunting have begun. There are currently two routes. The Sharjah-Kalba road is the route of choice. There is less traffic and an interesting variation of scenery.

Our first trip involved absolutely no actual viewing of rental housing, because we had not prepared and contacted real estate agencies ahead of time. So, we decided to make the most of our day. We went to the Fujairah Museum which has some nice displays of artifacts from ancient settlements.

I don’t know why I continue to be surprised by proof of the impact of America on the region, but locally minted coins with American presidents or Apollo astronauts on them always catch me off guard.

There were several postage stamps depicting Charles de Gaulle. This one also has John F. Kennedy.

As usual, there were signs that some things never change.

On our second trip we visited the central souk (market). There is an amazing display of lovely vegetables. That box of ripe tomatoes is priced 10 AED ($2.70). Yes, the BOX.

We did eventually look at three apartments in a new building on the east end of town. The living rooms and bedrooms were large. The kitchens varied. The maid’s rooms, however, were astonishing. The first one was so small and poorly arranged that it would not be possible to get a small bed into it.  How a human is supposed to live in there, I don’t know.

The apartment/villa hunt will continue.

Abu Dhabi Heritage Village

Posted by Kanga.

We recently spent a day in Abu Dhabi and went to the Heritage Village. We were there close to closing time, so made a quick visit. The highlights include examples of different traditional housing, like the goat hair tent above and the rock mountain house below.

Palm fronds are also used to construct barasti housing. Due to the desert environment these can last 20 years despite being 100% biodegradable.

There is also a small museum. We had to speed through it in about 5 minutes as it was closing time. It is worth going back for, so next time we’ll get there earlier and start with the museum first.

DaddyBird paused briefly to admire the coffee pots.

There were some very beautiful items on display.

This battle axe was impressive. However, I think if I was going up against an axe like that one, I would want a bigger shield.

Happy National Day!

Thirty-eight years ago today the United Arab Emirates came into being. It existed prior to that, but it was referred to as the Trucial States and lacked a centralized government.

We recently visited Shindagha (a second time) and toured the house of Sheikh Saeed bin Makhtoum al Makhtoum (grandfather to the current ruler of Dubai) which is a very nice and educational museum. We highly recommend it. They have a nicely displayed collection of photographs, coins, currency, stamps and documents.

Large homes of this period are a series of rooms around a courtyard. Three, possibly four generations lived here at one time. This house fell into disrepair, but underwent a detailed and thorough reconstruction in the 1980′s. The structures with the poles sticking out of them are wind towers which funnel any breeze from any direction down into the house as a form of early air conditioning. This particular area is right on the coast, so there is a fair amount of breeze, even in the hot months.