After the rain

Another trip to the "Edge of the World

I'm sure there is a proper name for this place but the expats call it The Edge of the world.

Its a bit short notice but the men decided that it would be interesting to see the desert after the rain. The problem with making last minute plans is that some of us would be more prepared than others.

M@rk could not find a 4x4 to rent and asked if he could tag along. We knew that the trip could be done with a 2x4, so we told him why not. He'd just have to be really brave.

The weather forecast predicted rain but we thought to push ahead anyways and turn back should the weather turn.

Of course we did not realise that the sand would be soft after the rain and the terrain would be rather muddy. Literally 3 minutes off road, M@rk's car got stuck in some soft sand.

First the men tried pushing, but the rear wheel just sank in.

Then they deflated the tyres and tried to put the sand ladders under the tyres. But that didn't work either.



Then they had to shovel some of the muddy wet sand off the tires. Thank God we brought one shovel. We used to have 3 but we returned the other one to its rightful owner (well we didn't need to use them the 10 times we borrowed it!) and the other owner didn't think he needed to bring his shovel. As a result, one man shoveled while the rest watched.

Luckily he had a cute butt ;)


So they had to regroup and plan the next course of action. My DH's crash course in desert driving with R/yadh Rovers is proving to be rather useful! More still, all the desert driving equipment he purchased from the colleague who was leaving (which had been taking up a lot of space in my store room!) OK I shan't complain anymore!

So they had to use the last option (or second last if this option didn't work.) To tow the car out. They hung the carpet in the middle to weigh the tow rope down in case it snapped.


Luckily it worked and M@rk's car got unstuck!

We scout the route for a little bit more and decided to ask M@rk to ditch his car. The track was just too soft and muddy and he had little or no traction on most parts of the route. M@rk parked his car under 2 trees before the river bed (we think that that part of the desert used to be a river bed as there are more trees there and the track is extra soft.) We marked the location on the GPS to make sure that we can find it later. (I'm sure 2 trees look alike in the desert!) And off we went.

The terrain looked considerably different. There was a lot more green and it loked that new trees have sprouted just overnight after the rain. And there were some areas that looked like a stream, with water on them, a rare sight in the desert that is normally parched and all dried up.

We reached the viewpoint at about 11 am. (We started off at 6 am.) By this time both children and adults alike were hungry!



It has always been windy every time were there. I remember my first trip here and did not bring warm clothes or proper shoes. But I am more prepared for this trip.

But the weather was glorious! Despite the cold wind, the sun was shining and we had blues skies for a while.



But the view from up there was just amazing. I was a tad worried that the little one would venture too near to the edge so I kept a watchful eye on her of course. I reminded her that the wind blew her hat off her head and then off the cliff the previous time we came.


For someone who lived on the 13th floor when she was growing up, I'm one of those people who have no problems climbing to great heights but for some reason unknown to me, I have difficulty coming down! So I decided not to climb up, but to watch the other kids in wonder as they climbed up and down the cliff.



In the meantime, Little Amir took The Little One under his wing while some mum and dads had their own entertainment:



Meanwhile, some of us tried to find some privacy.



As you can see, there are no bushes to hide behind or a tree to do it under.



So when everyone has had enough of the view and knocked off enough golf balls down the cliff, we looked for a suitable spot to have our brunch. It was cold and everyone was rather hungry after the pushing, shoveling, climbing and golfing.




We enjoyed the nasi lemak, mee goreng, baked chicken, donuts, potato salad, sandwiches and all sorts of desserts we brought with us.

But the dark clouds began to roll in and we decided to call it a day. Normally we would have ventured to the other 2 viewpoints but we didn't do so this trip round in case it started to rain.

We drove back to M@rk's car to find it safe and sound. But M@rk's new challenge was to drive his car back to the tarmac.

We scouted round for some hard ground but made a judgement error. Some parts were rather soft so we told him to be brave and drive fast. We reminded him that even if he thinks he has no traction, instead of slowing down and braking, he should just continue moving.

And he managed to do so! We all cheered for him although when he rolled his windows down we could see that his face was as white as sheet.

Just as we were leaving Sadous we saw lots of cars driving into the desert as the locals were just about ready to have their picnic.

Overall it was a good day out and we all had a good time.

And it rained after we unpacked the car. I was so grateful that the weather cooperated.


PS Joy, do you guys miss R/yadh yet? ;)



Incidentally, as I was browsing through our old pictures, I discovered the one above, taken on 07 Nov 2006, almost 2 years to the date of our most recent visit.

How quickly the time flies and see how much The Little One has grown!

Trip to the Edge of the World

First weekend in Ramadhan

The evening was filled with relaxed conversation. The men obviously having a good time themselves because their laughter filled the room, so loud that we ladies could hardly hear ourselves speak. The Little One was out with our hosts' teenager daughter. Its lovely that she offered to babysit.

At that point I could not help but be so grateful. Grateful that I have friends who enjoy my company and whose company I enjoy. Who are willing to share the snippets of their lives with me. Who accept me for who I am and I in turn accept them for who they are.

The food on the counter was just overflowing. Laksa lemak (which I love), bubur lumbuk (which I craved), telur ikan goreng (which I havent had for a while), kolak (which i miss), kuih kosue (which i adore and cannot make myself); just to name a few. Alhamdullilah. ALhamdullilah. Alhamdullilah. How blessed can I be?

I had endevoured to make some of MIL's kuih bakar. But my first batch turn out to be pandan chiffon my mistake. So it turns out 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar and 1 cup eggs + pandan flavouring yields pandan chiffon cake. In my dehydrated stupor I had decided to make the kuih without peeking at the recipe first, only to my dismay found the texture very different until the help pointed out that I had forgotten the coconut milk.

My DH started laughing really loudly and immediately declared that he will call his mum to tell her of my misadventure.

My daughter however was teased by the smell of fresh cake out of the oven requested for a slice. She took two bites and said, "Umi, the cake is very delicious! Thank you for making it for me."

Awww, this one really can really say things to make my heart melt.

So I had to make another batch, almost wiping out the whole tray of eggs I bought. This time I left the help run the show.

In the meantime I decided to make fried popiah from scratch, kari daging and roti jala. Not a good idea when I brought my DD for a nap at 3 pm and I woke up at 4 pm, realizing I lost an hour napping with her when all the other stuff was not done! Thank god for hired helps! So we had a devision of labour. I did the mixing and she did the jala-ing of the roti jala. In the meantime I started with the curry and started rolling the spring rolls and immediately try to fry them.

Of course as we got in the car to leave, I heard the azan call and I rushed back inside again to pick up some cake and dates so we could break our fast and push on.

And we were welcomed with friendly smiles and delicious food.

Conversation after dinner focused on what our holiday plans were. Some will go back to Singapore. Others will stay in Riyadh in anticipation of their ski trip to Chamonix.

I know that I will miss my friends and my friendships most when the time comes for me to leave this city. But that day will be inevitable. In the meantime I am truly grateful for Allah's and their generosity.

So how has your Ramadhan been? I hope your Ramadhan will be as fruitful and joyous as you want it to be.

Whipsnade Wild animal park

Location: Whipsnade Zoo
Dunstable
Bedfordshire LU6 2LF
Tel: 01582 872171
Fax: 01582 872649


When we found out by chance that Whipsnade will have a special night opening we decided to make that special trip to Dunstable and stay at the weekend there.

We found Whipsnade 1 and half years ago after visiting the London Zoo. At that time The Little One was 1 year old and we wanted to expose her to other living creatures big and small. Her then favourite book was Eric Carle's "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you See?" so we thought it would be apt for her to see a brown bear in person.

We had a wonderful day out that winter day and when I found out about their special "once a year" night opening in the summer, we decided that the opportunity was too good to be missed. Afterall, surely it was a stroke of good luck that they had the night opening when we were in town!

We rented a car and drove over 2.5 hours to Dunstable and checked in at the Travellodge Dunstable Hockliffe at GBP53.50 a night. Hockliffe is somewhat between Whipsnade and Woburn, and we were going to Woburn the following day.

We arrived at Whipsnade early and was really excited to get in. The Kiasu and Kanciong part of me was afraid that they may have limited tickets for the night and wanted to be in the front of the queue to make sure that we could get in.

I had tried to buy the tickets online in advance but was not able to do so. We called the zoo about the ticket sales and they assured us that we could buy them when we get there. But hey! We've come a long long way to turn back and miss this opportunity.

Of course the minute we got in, I had to head off to the toilets first! The weather was slightly chilly and I was so glad we didn't forget our jumpers!

First we saw the Lemurs. I must say that the whole night opening was very well organized. There were many zookeepers and volunteers, all friendly and smiling. Willing to tell us about the animal friends.



They were feeding the Lemur raisins as we were at their enclosure and one even came up close and almost personal to The Little One. But of course we didn't have the camera ready for the Kodak moment. And these Little creatures are so nimble and so quick indeed!


We then decided to walk over to the Elephant enclosure for the Elephant show. Elephants, being the Little One's current favorite animal is a must see animal for the evening.


The Little One's last trip here was when she was 12 months old, and there she was in my Ergo carrier. Carrying her high up with us was part of our attachment parenting style. So that she is more aware of what does on at our level.






And here she is now at 30 months old! Talkative, inquisitive, curious, full of questions and imaginative play. I think the attachment parenting bit paid off. She shows attentiveness and at her age she does speak quite well and is able to express herself clearly. She can tell us when she is happy, sad, scared and what it is exactly that she wants. (Normally its ice-cream.)




And then that customary ride on the steam engine train. She has been watching Thomas the Tank engine and is very curious about trains. Afterall she doesn't get to sit in one very often here.

I could not resist the smell of fish and chips nearby and got some for our dinner. I forgot how quickly food gets cold over there but it was really nice to have a good fish and chips!

The Little One insisted on playing at the play area for while. She just loves running and going down the slide. We didn't object as it would allow her to release some steam and burn off excess energy.

Time just seemed to fly by when you're having fun and before we know it, the sun was setting and the closing time was not too far off.

We caught the fire show by "Flame Oz" and I must say that I found them thoroughly mesmerizing and enjoyable.

But alas the beautiful evening had to come to an end and we were excited to rest for the night as next on our agenda was another animal park which we have never been to before.

PYO Strawberries

Location: Hewitt's Farm, Hewitts Road, Orpington BR6 7QR Kent
Tel: 01959 532003

We first discovered Hewitts farm about 8 years ago on our way to M25. I had often noticed the PYO sign but never knew exactly what they meant. Until I noticed a huge strawberry sign with pick your own on it.

And we've been in love with that place since. We missed it terribly the past 4 years. I will always remember and appreciate the smell and taste of fresh fruit, those just plucked from its tree. The juiciness, sweetness is just amazing. Nothing like the fruits sold in the supermarkets. I never did like peas nor was I too crazy about corn. Before Hewitts I would never have thought of eating them raw. But peas and corn are so sweet when you just pluck them off the trees. I totally support the movement of eating local!



We were lucky to get some sunshine for us to go to Hewitts 2 days in a row! Checkout how red and juicy the strawberries looked! That way we know that the strawberries we picked are exactly ready to be eaten, instead of being plucked just before it ripens only to be sorted out in conveyor belts and transported to supermarkets.

The Little One saw an episode on Tweenies how they went to a farm to pick their own strawberries and she got that idea stuck in her head that she wants to go to a strawberry farm to pick her own strawberries!

One morning we woke her up for a drive to Bahrain and she sleepily asked us, "Mummy are we going to the strawberry farm?"

I was really flabbergasted. The only answer I could muster just not to disappoint her was, "If we saw any strawberry farms along the way, we will stop and you'll get to pick them."

Sorry darling Mummy knew all too well that strawberries didn't grow in the desert.

So my DH decided that the first week of July would be ideal for a trip to Hewitts when they'd have strawberries for picking! And here she is!




The beauty of PYO is that tasting is free, otherwise strawberries cost GBP1.50 a pound.



Check out the Little One tasting the strawberries! Never mind about washing them! They had 2 patches of strawberries, one variety was bigger, juicier and slightly sharp, the other smaller and much sweeter.

To be little again and allowed to taste as many strawberries as one likes!



I think she was in strawberry heaven!

We managed to go to Hewitts 3 days in a row before the weather started to turn wet all week. The farm is very easy to find and does have a big carpark. They even allocate an area for picnic/bbq which you could use for a fee and does get somewhat busier at weekends during the fruit picking season. Not busy at all on the week days.

She opens 930 am to 5:30 pm in the summer.

My child, I promise to listen to you more

We were having lunch, just the two of us, DH was off to Dubai on business trip. I was missing him terribly.

Out of nowhere, she said,"Abah is happy."

Really? I wondered.

"What about you?"

"Not happy." she said a matter of factly.

"And umi?"

"Not happy," she declared.

(We were both missing him that Friday where we would normally have lunch as a family.)

I was curious, so I texted my DH.

"Your child says that you are happy. Hope you are having a great time."

And his replied was, "My daughter is psychic."

Apparently he was happy because the meetings were over.

The beauty of the uncluttered mind. How instincts have priority over knowledge and logic.

Its just amazing how she would just know when I would leave her or when my mind is preoccupied with something else. Just this afternoon, as she was having her afternoon nap, I decided that I would take the afternoon bus out. Just as I grabbed my bag, she woke up and cried for me.

I will remember that you have strong instincts my child.

And I hope your instincts will bring wealth and abundance to your life my love, not just material things but wisdom, love,golden opportunities and friendship too.


*****************************

Guess what I found when my back was turned?



Her first attempt at wearing lipstick. Perhaps you'll get better as you grow older?

Iris field of Tuma?r

Last Thursday we drove out 1.5 hrs out of R]yadh to Tuma/r to witness the Irises bloom during mid-afternoon.



Would you have thought that the Desert could be this green? Well spring is here, after a cold winter and lots of rain, there is a lot of green.


When we first arrived all we saw were bits of purple. We had our lunch and then saw some activity amongst the flower. At about 1 pm, the petals were slowly unfolding. We all stood up, gathered near the areas where there were lots of buds and stood or sat waiting to watch for the Iris to bloom.


And then suddenly the petals opened up, releasing a beautiful smell in the air.


As you can see, the little one is excited too! She was happy to pick on some of the flowers.




I know this picture doesn't do the place justice, but suddenly, there was a sea of purple patches!


Here the Irises are in full bloom. As you can see, the flowers are up to 2 year-old Ray's knees.

Would you believe that Irises grow in the wild in the desert if you didn't see these pictures? I wouldn't have.

These flowers bloom during this time of the year for about a month before they wither and perish under the scorching heat in the desert.

Masyallah! Many praises to Allah for the beautiful world he has created for us.