Family Beach
Every now and then, I get a good giggle. Usually it is a European family, and it only happens once . . . they go to our local beach. They are in normal beach attire – swimsuits. And they head for the “Family Beach.”
They haven’t been here long enough to know that “Family” is a little different here, it means mostly women in abayas and scarves, or some form of head covering.Even for those not in abayas, it means body parts are modestly covered, at the very least, with a Tshirt. You will see women swimming in abayas and scarves, floating in inner tubes, fully covered.
There is usually a wide circle of empty space around the European family; people regarding them with fascinated horror. I rarely see them come back. I am hoping they find other beaches, maybe more private.
Dusk in Kuwait
Dusk anywhere is one of my favorite times of day. In Riyadh, my husband and I would head down to the Dira’a souk, usually arriving just before the Isha call to prayer. We would buy a couple felafel sandwiches and a juice drink and sit in the large courtyard by the fort and eat our sandwiches while all the shops were closed for prayers. The sky would go from deep blue to a very deep blue purple, and it was that moment we waited for – the stars just visible and this just-before-black incredible color.
In my mind there is also a hush, but that is unlikely, as there were usually women and their children waiting in the same area for the men to finish their worship, and the children would be playing.
We are still looking for felafel sandwiches that taste that good. We would laugh; eating out for under $2 and it felt like such luxury.
In Kuwait, we are usually on our way to meet up with friends or somewhere around dusk. I always have my camera handy – you just NEVER know what you might see.
This isn’t really dusk, but it is dusky, in the interiors/exteriors shop as you enter the Free Trade Zone in Shwaikh – I can’t help it, I love this shop:
Not crisp, but the skyline is so eccentric:
Dwarfed in downtown Kuwait:
Almost dark – the mosque in the circle, downtown Kuwait:
Zanzibar for Magical Droplets
Magical Droplets asked for shots of Zanzibar, one of our very favorite places to relax.
So near, who would think this tropical paradise would be so close? Most flights from here go through Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Dar as-Salaam, but sometimes you can find a flight that goes Muscat – Zanzibar direct. So you get to go to two really cool places instead of just one.
If Oman is fusion Arabian, influenced by Africa and India, than Zanzibar is fusion African, with heavy Arabian, Indian and British influences. We stay at the Zanzibar Serena, only because we never seem to be able to get into Emerson and Green’s, a very funky hotel, every room different (and nice and large) and where you try to be for sundowners on the roof. It’s tradition.
To get away from everything, we stay at Mnemba Island, which has only one hotel on the whole island, run by CCAfrica. You have your own bungalow, which is as big as a small house, and all the privacy in the world. You can even have all your meals in your bungalow – your butler brings them. They do daily diving trips, and they have their own marine reserve with more fish than I have ever seen in one place, even an aquarium. The food is fresh and fabulous. You are treated as a cherished house guest. They tell you when you land that you will not need your shoes the entire time on the island, and you won’t believe them (the first time) but it’s true! The weather stays in the high 80’s (F) year round.
CCAfrica specializes in maintaining a low ecological profile while providing all this luxury. The bungalow is full of locally crafted goods, and the small gift shop is full of locally produced soaps, papers, textiles, crafted items. . .It isn’t easy to get reservations, as it is a great favorite with post-safari travellers and with honeymooners.
For us, the greatest luxury of all is privacy. Mnemba Island is paradise. Ahhhhhh. . . .Zanzibar . . .
Zanzibar Serena
Mnemba bungalow
No Accounting for Taste
My Mother once joked that the definition of good taste was someone whose taste agreed with your own. Her house is all smooth, modern, elegant lines, while mine is all old, antique and semi-antique. She has clean lines and clear surfaces, and I am guessing that to her, my decor is cluttered. (Not that she criticizes me.) We just have different tastes.
My husband and I also have different tastes. Often, his eye will alight on something, say like a Masai shield 7 feet long, and he will say “wouldn’t that be great in our house?” and my response is “yes! In your den!” He calls his den The Adventure Man Museum, and says that the only thing the Tarek Rejab has on him is that they have had a couple more decades of collecting. But he is still working on it!
He LOVES these trees. He keeps threatening to buy a couple for our yards back home. I mention little things like shipping expenses. . . . or maybe he is pulling my leg – ya think?
So far, we agree that they look great in context. I am not so sure they would do so sell in a rainy climate.
And this is what I love:
You used to find these everywhere in the Gulf, even in the cities you would find them in the diwaniyyas. This is the only one I have seen since I came to Kuwait, and it is in a museum. I remember being out in the beit-as-shar in the desert (for my non-Arabic speaking friends: tents, literally, House of Hair because the tenting was woven of goat and camel hair.) I remember the sound of the metal clanging as the coffee was ground in the morter, I remember the smell of the wood fire when the coffee was brewing, and I remember the coffee being poured through branches that kept (some of) the grounds out. I miss that ceremony; I miss the sounds and smells and taste, because out in the desert coffee tastes different. It wasn’t that long ago – but I never see them anymore.
Do you?
Happy Birthday, Big Diamond
You were the one with all the courage, you were the one who never understood the word “no.” With your big, sunny smile, you went ahead and did just exactly what you pleased.
“Watch me! Wheeeeeeeee!” you shouted as you jumped out of the swing, breaking your arm.
“This is how you do it!” you yelled, sliding on the ice down the long wooden walk, falling and breaking the other arm.
Nothing stopped you. You look the impossible in the eye, and you spit.
And all these years later, you still do! You are the most amazing woman, indominable, unstoppable. You set a high standard for all the rest of us, with your energy, your clarity of values, and your generousity of spirit.
And today, your birthday, will also be the christening of your first grandchild.
How amazing, how wonderful. You are in my thoughts, dear sister, and I wish I could be there to celebrate with you.
Souk Mubarakiyya Art Fun
It’s no secret. I love the Souk Mubarakiyya, and I love all the handicrafts shops, the jewelry shops (it’s no sin! It’s also a handicraft!) and the food stalls. I even love the fish market, and the dark, seedy shisha place that looks like it is out of some bad movie.
Here is one of my favorite pieces of public art in the market. Not because it’s good, it isn’t. but it is a lot of fun. When you take guests to the souk, you can position one of your guests in front of the woman, and it looks like he/she is part of the market scene.
Magical Droplets says she is inspired, and has grabbed her camera to start shooting.
It’s summer. Not a lot going on . . . so here is my challenge to you, Kuwait Bloggers. Grap your camera. Show us the beauty you see, the beauty of your community, show us the beauty of Kuwait, even in the scorching, crispy heat of a Kuwait summer.
And please come back here and tell us when you’ve posted, so my non-Kuwaiti readers can also click through to take a look at what you see. Keep your camera handy – you never know when a perfect photo will come up.
Kuwait Beauty
“If you but have the eyes to see . . .”
There is great beauty in Kuwait. Here is the spire of a mosque I found in Hawalli when I got lost. (Yes, people look at me like I am out of my mind when I stop and take photos of these things they see everyday.)
Here is detail from the spire:
Here is an old-fashioned meshrabiyya window at the home standing over the Tarek Rajab Museum. Who can believe that such a museum treasure is open to the public for free, thanks to the graciousness of a private family, who sees the beauty in the Gulf Heritage, collects and preserves it.
Here is the globe near the entrance to Kuwait University, reminding us always that we are all connected in this world:
Dusk is my favorite time in Kuwait – the glare of the sun softens, and the colors glow:
Power Stations in Kuwait
I love public art. My little village in the US holds an annual Arts Festival, and part of the proceeds from this highly successful festival goes to fund public art. You can see some examples here: Public Art – October
Kuwait also has public art. I believe these squatty, square, non-descript buildings are power relay stations – and look what they have become! Once you start seeing them, you see them everywhere, and every one is different.
I love it that they are whimsical, and that some artist gets paid to design and paint all these stations! They reflect a respect and reminder for Kuwaiti traditions.
Kuwait Cool Spell
When I checked Weather Underground this morning for Kuwait, I learned we are going through a little dip in the temperatures. From the damp, excruciatingly humid heat we have been having, the dry weather has returned.
And today, a cool spell. The anticipated high today will only be 111 degrees F. (44 degrees C.), but tomorrow it will go back up to 116° F. (47° C) and Wednesday it will be 118°F (48° C). Thought those of you suffering “heat” in the US might enjoy the comparison. 😦
The heat is dry, though. When you go out, you reall really need to have water with you; you lose water through evaporation, and often, you don’t even sweat, it just evaporates right off you.
Here are signs of dehydration:
The following are the most common symptoms of dehydration, although each individual may experience symptoms differently. Symptoms may include:
thirst
less-frequent urination
dry skin
fatigue
light-headedness
dizziness
confusion
dry mouth and mucous membranes
increased heart rate and breathing
In children, additional symptoms may include:
dry mouth and tongue
no tears when crying
no wet diapers for more than 3 hours
sunken abdomen, eyes or cheeks
high fever
listlessness
irritability
skin that does not flatten when pinched and released
This is from The University of Maryland Medical Center website.
In Kuwait, and other Gulf countries, religious individuals, mosques and cities provide drinking and washing water as a courtesy to the public. You will find water stations everywhere, and people filling up their bottles for drinking later or drinking from a tin cup attatched to the sabille by a chain. They come in all shapes and sizes. When we spot a new shape, we try to get a photo. This one is a very common shape:
Marriage – A Great Adventure
I remember the day we looked at each other in astonishment, the day we realized we had lived with each other longer than we had lived with our own parents. We think of family cultures as the culture we grew up in, but in our years together, we have created our own family culture, haven’t we?
We chose one another, in itself, a great adventure. We chose a life full of change and risk. We stacked the obstacles against our survival as a couple, and yet we prevailed, by the grace of God.
We laugh at how young we were to have made such a lifelong commitment. We laugh at how we walked into parenthood – no, RAN into parenthood, joyfully, with no clues as to the huge responsibilities, the agonies as well as the intense delights.
Happy Anniversary, Adventure Man. I thank God for our marriage, and our partnership.
These are for you.
Morning in the bush
Picnic Stop
The thrill of the chase
The Great Migration
Zanzibar
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