Kenangan Zaman Kanak-Kanak

siapa yang membesar dalam alam kanak-kanak sekitar tahun 80-an dan 90-an mesti paham sangat gambar-gambar ini! jom kita naik time machine!~

 

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keropok ubi yang tak berkhasiat tapi asyik betul mengunyah sambil menonton thunder cat atau kisah bersiri citer cina petang-petang. krup krup. 20 sen je sepeket kan.

 

mak aku selalu tak kasi beli coklat doraemon dalam kotak ni sebab dia kata aku nak mainan dia je, coklat dia bukannye aku nak makan sangat. gile kenangan ni! ingat tak iklan dia – “tora datang lagiiiiiii!”

 

aku tak pernah ade benda ni, setakat main kat rumah cousin aku je so takde la kenangan sangat. tapi aku bubuh je gamba ni sebab skang ni anak-anak aku ade x-box, kinect, ipad – tapi aku benda sega ni pun takde. jadi anak-anak, you got it easy boys! syukur!

 

budak-budak pompuan kalo tak pernah main benda ni memang lah. semurah 10-30 sen je bole beli sekeping bergantung pada ketebalan. lepas main simpan dalam kotak kasut. aku punya la suka mainan ni, aku pulak suka melukis – aku siap penah reka aku punya fesyen sendiri, lukis dengan patung dia skali, siap kaler suma. memang beria betul la masa tu haha.

 

chewing gum rasa strawberi yang sedap sangat! mak aku kata jangan telan tapi degil kan, aku kadang-kadang telan jugak sebab sedap. ntahape kan. ade lagi tak jual chewing gum ni? lagi satu chewing gum yang aku ingat yg macam sekeping kaler pink, kat kertas dia ade gamba, kita letak air sikit kat gamba tu, lekap kat mane-mane nak, pehtu jadi tattoo kan kan kan? ingat tak? haha. lawak.

 

ni ade jual lagi tak?! serius aku rasa macam nak makan skang jugak! kadang-kadang amik sekeping pastu biar je atas lidah sampai cair kan haha. takde keja.

 

aku suka ni! belon harga 20 sen sepeket dapat 5 tiub. gile best. sempoi je kan. kalau ade lagi, memang aku beli untuk anak-anak aku. ingat lagi belon tu picit sikit bubuh kat hujung straw kecik kuning tu, pehtu tiup je. jadi belon. pastu sambungkan 2 belon jadi macam kembar siam. main-main sampai meletup, lepas tu penyetkan kat dahi sendiri kasi bunyi letup-letup lagi. wow. nostalgik gile. aku macam terbau-bau je belon tu.

 

gile klasik. masa skolah kalau aku kena stayback untuk kelab memang kena balik guna bas awam ni. kat ipoh masa tu ade bas kampar (besar, kaler hijau), atau bas ipoh jaya (bas pendek) atau bas rapat setia yang paling tak boleh harap sekali. aku rasa ade 5 jam sekali kot dia lalu bus stop skolah aku tu. dan konduktor dia mcm mat rock dan slalu mengorat akak-akak form 5 yang cun-cun. pastu tiket bas ni kena simpan sebab nanti tiba-tiba ade pegawai naik nak check tiket, kalo hilang kena beli lagi pulak.

 

kalo korang kaki tv, tak payah aku cakap la kartun ape yang best sangat ni. ni memang favorite kartun tengok pagi-pagi sabtu, selain dari ‘jem’, ‘my little pony’, ngan ‘carebears’. dah besa sikit baru minat citer remaja ‘save by the bell’, ‘ferris bueller’ ngan ‘parker lewis can’t loose’. lagi besa mak aku kasi tengok ‘beverly hills 90210’. hihi. dan semestinya citer-citer klasik lain pun menjadi ikutan macam ‘full house’, ‘macgyver’, ‘quantum leap’ ngan ‘get smart’!

aku memang minat gile ferris bueller dulu macam budak-budak skang ni minat kat one tree hill huhu.

 

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aku amik semua gamba ni dalam facebook page ‘kenangan manis kita dulu’, lepas member aku kak saniah bubuh kat wall dia. seronok aku tengok. excited bila ternampak gamba-gamba yang aku kenal sangat, dan dah lama tak jumpa. banyak lagi gamba-gamba best yang bole mengimbau kenangan masa kecik. check out ‘kenangan dulu’ di laman facebook korang ye!

Worst Sandstorm in Dubai in Years

dubai sandstorm attacked my kitchen this morning.




waking up, i was greeted with SAND in kitchen. the washed plates left to dry by my sink is dusty, the jam jars on the kitchen counter is dusty, the tikar felt really dusty under my feet, and you could really see small particles of sand everywhere, it's scary.


i definitely have to wipe, wash, clean everything from scratch. but not before i draw smiley faces on everything!


looking out the window, the sight was scarier - the sky painted dirty grey with sand and dust that i could hardly even see the building closest to mine. low visibility out there for those driving out - careful! even without opening the window i could hear the wailings of the winds, and it's really loud. i could see trees swaying fiercely against the wind.


sand and wind - not a good combo. sand was in my eyes as i stepped out to send khaleef to his school bus this morning. also, i could see sand on the outside floor - desert sand literally piling on the floor. cars are also covered with a thick coat of dust.


a friend of mine didn't send her kids to school this morning because of the sandstorm, as her kids had just recovered from fever - and i was thinking of khaleef too after he had gotten on the bus.


may Allah protect him from harm!





a friend of mine wrote in his facebook status, that this day "...reminds him that we are living in the desert," and another one calling it a 'sandday' instead of sunday! having desert sand in my coffee mugs and window panes of my living room - we ARE in the desert!


the sandstorm has been making its comeback in the UAE around this time of the year with the change of weather. last week, the dubai global village even closed its doors due to worsening weather.


at the time of writing - 12.30pm - the wind still hasn't subsided from morning, blowing ever strongly the sand and dust of ages right up to our homes. visibility seemed improved, though i can vaguely see the buildings on the far back.


with sand blowing right into my eyes, strong winds, my kitchen all dusty, dark skies and desert sand on the floor beneath my feet - it was by far the worst sandstorm i've experienced of my 3+ years here in dubai.


school-going kiddos, those out and about - be safe! click here to read more about today's sandstorm in gulfnews. aku nak kena lap-lap barang-barang dapur ni...

Glorious Msian Galore by FELDA @ Lulu Al-Barsha

mee goreng for rm16? rendang daging for rm25? and sambal sotong for rm29? all for sale at the 'glorious malaysian galore' - a colabo between our FELDA and lulu hypermart. (lulu is like tesco or giant in malaysia - it's everywhere!)

isn't it nice to see malaysian food sold at a hypermart overseas? what more when you see other expats and even locals buying the food and trying them out. i'm not sure how long they will be having this food 'galore' but for now i'm definitely going to get me some of that pretty soon!

this shot was taken by my dubai friend kak moi at lulu barsha. visit her blog!

there's also a FELDA product exhibition and sale at mushrif mall, abu dhabi happening now until 3rd of march. check it out!

What I Miss About BF Kazim

i have stopped breastfeeding kazim. he's now 22 months old. it was a moment of sudden emptiness, a pinch of sadness, and missing a lot of moments. yes, it's also a little bit of a relief since for the past weeks he had been latching on empty - and that creates a lot of pain on my part. so we both had to let go.

i will miss a lot of the closeness, the touches, his tiny body in my arms, the smile on his face after a good ‘meal’, the satisfaction on his face as he falls asleep after each feed. mostly, the indescribable beautiful bf bond of mother and baby.

i will miss him falling asleep while i breastfed him – i know every mothers will recognize this look on their baby – the lentok look, eyes shut in a heavenly bliss of full tummy filled with mom’s glorious milk, mouth sometimes open in deep slumber, sometimes with a thin trail of breast milk still hanging from his lips – adorable!

i will miss that no matter how LOUD he cries, or how badly he is hurt, how hard he fell down, he immediately went silent the moment he knows he’s getting nursed. boobies always saved the day! haha.

i will miss the wonder i have on his sleeping position – his little body contorted according to the uneven curve of my cross-legged position as i breastfed him, head resting on mom’s hard knee-bone, one hand holding dangling on the side, and STILL managed to sleep, thanks to mom’s milk – selesa ke tido macam tu? i always chuckle in amazement.

i will miss him playing with his ear-lobes in his little chubby fingers as he latched on, eyes fixed on his hopes and dreams. most probably hopes of finally climbing that dining table and dreams of rummaging through neatly-folded stack of warm clothes.

i will miss this habit of his, developed when he’s about 18+ mths old – whenever i look at him as he breastfeeds, he would cover his eyes with his palm! yes, this seemingly shy-away action is hard to comprehend – and until now i wonder why he did it. it’s not an invitation to a peek-a-boo game, he just seemed – well, shy!

right now, miss breastfeeding even more whenever kazim is inconsolable, and i knew in my heart that no matter how tight i hug him, it’s not as comforting as when he’s nursed – that’s when he will feel he is safe.

well, now i gotta make sure he knows he’s safe in my arms no matter what. BF or not, my arms are still here for him to cuddle in. my lap is here for him to sleep on. the hugs will still be there in abundance, the kisses will be infinite. yes, even until the day kazim leaves for work on some big hot-shot job one fine day haha.

nowadays, when he sleeps, he needs to hold my hands, play with my fingers, and then fall asleep. i don’t mind. after breastfeeding stops, it’s nice to know that mom’s warmth is still needed.

Anonymous, Bridesmaids, Contagion & Conviction

i LOVE the movies!

and in alphabetical order, i watched the period movie ‘anonymous’, the loud-out-loud comedy ‘bridesmaids’, the inspirational movie ‘conviction’, and a movie about a virus outbreak in ‘contagion’.

 

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william shakespeare is known to be the greatest writer in the history of english language and classical literature. the writer of many great plays like ‘romeo and juliet’, ‘julius caeser’ and ‘merchant of venice’. a poet of many wondrous sonnets and poems. history, romance, or comedy – he can pen them all in his masterpieces.

however :

• shakespeare wrote 37 plays and hundreds of sonnets and created thousands of new words in the english language BUT his parents cannot read nor write, and shakespeare’s daughters were illiterate too!
• for someone who is a great writer, in his will, shakespeare never left any books, or written manuscript
• NONE of the original manuscript written in shakespeare’s handwriting was EVER found. strange?
• his works were published SEVEN years after his death – why weren’t they published in his lifetime?
• half of his plays were set in italy, a place shakespeare never even visited!
• shakespeare was not a member of high society, yet he was able to write in great detail about life in court, nobility, of kings and queens

this is the conspiracy told through the movie ‘anonymous’. it claims that william shakespeare DID NOT WRITE any of his plays. instead, it was the secret work of a nobleman – the earl of oxford, who cannot put his own names on the written works because it’s inappropriate for aristocrats to write poems!

a highly controversial accusation, and was convincingly showcased in this beautiful movie. it dramatized the birth of great works like ‘romeo and juliet’ and ‘hamlet’ amidst fight for the throne of england in the 15th century. to make it worse, william shakespeare is potrayed in this movie as an obnoxious nobody who blackmails and a fraud. a downright jerk too.

as much as i was insulted in the shameful potrayal of the playwright master, i find this movie very entertaining. TOTALLY fictional, of course. but very dramatically entertaining. powerful performance by the actors (mostly unknown to me especially the guys), beautiful costumes, interesting references to shakespeare and his period. yes, i love period movie set during that era. a must-see for all english-language students especially.

william shakespeare remains to me, a creative genius!

 

  

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i haven’t laughed this hard watching a comedy for so long.

lillian is engaged and her bestfriend annie is appointed maid of honor thus responsible to plan the bachelorette party, accompany the bride to try out the wedding dress and everything else that comes before the wedding. too bad one of the bridesmaids decided to make it her mission to do everything better than annie – she’s richer, she’s gorgeous, she’s classy – leaving annie feeling left out, and total failure. trying harder only made it worse, with disastrous but ridiculously funny outcome!

the movie was nominated for two oscars – best screenplay and best supporting actress for melissa mccarthy who played the super funny loud-mouthed big-sized bridesmaid.

this is one of the best all-girl comedy ever. it will remind you of friendship, of best friends, of all the stupid fun girly stuff you did together, of being there for each other, and letting nothing come between.

 

 

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this movie reminds us to wash our hands as often as possible, because we never know.

yes, this movie is about a virus outbreak, people dying, people losing loved ones, people panicking, people wanting answers. the title of the movie says it all. the last great movie about this topic is of course ‘outbreak’ starring dustin hoffman. but i’m not much of a fan of virus outbreak. even in this movie, words like ‘pathogen’, ‘detox’ and ‘antidote’ got me lost. i just wasn’t into it. heck i don’t even like ER, chicago hope or even grey’s anatomy. *yawn*

but you guys might enjoy it. what more with a list of big names like award winners matt damon, gwyneth paltrow, kate winslet and marion cotillard (all three have won oscar for best actress) – in fact they are the only reason i’m even remotely interested to watch ‘contagion’.

also interesting there’s a character in this movie who is a blogger. correct me if i’m wrong, but this is the first movie that acknowledges a blogger’s influential role in today’s society. jude law plays a blogger who writes about current issues, and it puts the role of a blogger as important to tell a story, to uncover truths or to spin a story. bloggers’ words can be a powerful tool!

so, go watch the movie if you’re interested, and don’t forget to wash your hands as often as possible. coz you never know.

 

 

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how far would you sacrifice for your brothers or sisters? lend them your pocket money? cover for them when they wanna drive the car at night without mom’s knowledge? drive them all the way from johor to perlis? lose sleep babysitting their kids?

well, betty anne waters went to law school and became a lawyer just so that she could be the lawyer to try and set her brother free from a murder charge. yes, she enrols in law school when her brother was convicted of murder, and continues to pursue her law degree while he’s in prison, just so she could be the lawyer who help him be acquitted, and proved innocent.

this is the amazing true story of a sister’s love for her brother.

hillary swank is just one of those actors who can stir up your emotions in any character she plays. powerful acting by her and sam rockwell who played her brother. he should get an award already for his acting talent. i consider this a well-made movie with lots of emotions and the power of love and will.

 

 

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next!

Ayam Penyet Dubai : My First Attempt

the name ‘ayam penyet’ has always amused me, because the literal translation would be ‘smashed chicken’, or ‘flattened chicken’. whatever it is exactly, it’s a very popular chicken dish originating from indonesia. it’s usually eaten with hot steamed rice, soup and sambal – a spicy condiment made from chilli.

the other day i had actually tried to cook ayam penyet myself! teringin pulak! now, this trying-out-recipe is a big deal for me because i’m not THAT good a cook. i try, and just pray everything turns out alright!

 

 

a few things turned out wrong – i used tepung gandum instead of tepung beras (i didn’t have tepung beras) and the supposedly powdery-textured serdak on the chicken is supposed to be so halus, but mine turned out so big – but still crunchy! hihi.

also, some recipes stated that the rice is cooked like chicken rice, but i simply used plain steamed white rice instead. it went together just as perfect!

 

 

i found the ayam penyet recipe on the net, but forgive me i forgot the link. i apologize if tuan punya recognizes her/his recipe, and i thank you for sharing this so that someone in dubai was able to try out a new dish, and eat yummy indonesian dish in a foreign land. thanks!

AYAM PENYET

to make the ayam penyet itself, blend or tumbuk these ingredients to marinate the chicken later :

• biji ketumbar
• jintan kasar
• jintan halus (i only have something labeled 'jintan manis' so i used that instead – campak je lah! hihi)
• lada putih
• serbuk kari
• serbuk kunyit
• bawang besa
• garlic
• ginger
• sikit kiub ayam
  

marinate the chicken with the blended stuff, and set aside for a few hours before you plan to fry them. when you wanna fry the ayam, salut dengan tepung beras first (i forgot, but it turned out ok. also, i didn't have tepung beras anyway! if ade maybe ayam lagi rangup! hihi)

SERDAK

one of the yumness of ayam penyet is the serdak yang tabur atas ayam tu. how to make the serdak, and make it crunchy and small? first, mix these ingredients :

• sebiiji egg
• water
• tepung beras (but again, i dont have tepung beras so i used tepung gandum, sedap je rasanye tapi guna tepung beras lebih sedap dan authentic kot hihi)
• campur jugak rempah perap ayam tadi yg mula-mula tadi
• garam
  

make sure tak cair sangat :

• panaskan minyak banyak
• tebarkan bancuhan tu dlm pan
• cepat-cepat terus kacau to get the serdak-serdak jadi halus-halus (in my case tak jadi lansung halus-halus – tapi jadi gedabak! haha. tapi nasib baik crunchy!)
• biar sampai rangup
• angkat dan toskan

 

 

perfect to be eaten with sambal and hot chicken soup!

make the soup as you usually makes – tumis a blend of bawang merah, garlic and ginger; add chicken, water and chicken cube or sup bunjut – siap! sambal pulak, just make it whatever you like – tumbuk a lot of cili padi, or less. more red chilli or more bawang – in my case, i love tomatoes with my sambal so i cut-up tomatoes in little cubes to put in my sambal.

nasi pulak, some recipe buat nasi macam nasi ayam, but i prefer to eat my ayam penyet with simple hot steamed rice. yum.

i was glad it turned out delicious eventhough i didn’t put some ingredients or use different ones. most importantly, mr. khairul loved it too! mission accomplished!

selamat mencuba!

(click here to read my first experience eating ayam penyet at ayam penyet ria in sunway pyramid.)

Sharjah Light Festival : Al-Qasba

in malaysia, when i hear ‘festival of lights’, i think of deepavali. but here in sharjah uae, the ‘light festival’ is an annual event of colorful lights, laser show and music; running for 9 days, in 12 locations across sharjah. it runs from 7pm till midnight, FREE for all.

* sharjah is one of the 7 emirates (states) in UAE (united arab emirates). the other emirates are abu dhabi (capital), dubai, ajman, fujairah, ras al-khaimah and umm al-quwain.

 

the light show at al-qasba

 

last saturday we went to qanat al-qasba in sharjah, one of the 12 locations that hold the shows for this light festival.

qanat al-qasba is like the ‘venice of uae’ because of the man-made canal that runs through it, with rows of restaurants and cafe alongside it – dunkin donuts, thai restaurant lemongrass, japanese food sumo, nando’s and many more. you can enjoy your food with the view of the ‘river’, with occasional boats pasing by. a really nice place to hang out.

i’ve written about it here when we went with my in-laws on their visit here.

 

 

the show runs every 15 minutes – there’s a countdown on a building after each performance, so people can get ready once the countdown finishes. once the show starts, it runs for 9 minutes – 9 minutes of light play, music and laser show too. it’s like a kaleidoscope of colors which synchronized with the catchy beat that suspiciously sounded more hindustani than arab music!

very entertaining; something to be enjoyed on a lazy weekend, especially while enjoying your favorite meal, or just a cup of hot chocolate on this still-cool winter. the light show was really beautiful and my photographs DID NOT do justice to the wonderful sight and sound!

oh, and the light show is projected to both side of the building along the water canal so no matter where you’re sitting, you’d be enjoying the same show.

my boys loved it very much – khaleef even role-played that the lasers were lights from alien spaceship trying to catch them. so everytime the laser came up, he and kahfi would scream and duck behind their chair!

 

 

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the seating area to enjoy the show

 

there are 12 locations that feature this light festival all around sharjah but in al-qasba, you get TWO shows – one inside facing the canal, (with the cafes and restaurant) and one at the outer part of the building facing the road. there’s even a stadium-like seating space for people to sit and enjoy the show like in a concert.

it’s great that when the show on the inside is over, the show on the outside starts. and that’s how it is over and over. so if you’re just walking around the al-qasba area, you can catch both shows at the same venue.

really beautiful play of lights and sounds!

 

the other 10 locations are al hisn fort, palm oasis front, cultural square, al majaz waterfront, al majaz mosque, the courthouse, the central souq, sharjah consultative council, kuwait square and sharjah international airport.

 

 

the one that we saw

 

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we decided to have dinner at our favorite japanese restaurant sumo. luckily for us, sumo seemed to be the ‘less popular choice’, so it’s not as packed as nando’s and lemongrass. and when a restaurant is NOT packed, we can take our time, eat slowly, sit back and enjoy the show when it’s on.

like i mentioned, the light festival show runs every 15 minutes, for a duration of 9 minutes – so if the place is packed, and people are lining up to get seats, it’s difficult to lepak lama-lama once you’ve finished eating. also, you cannot eat slowly as you’re just being selfish hogging up the seats.

so again – we’re glad sumo was not that popular here! we just sat and sat until the show ends around midnight! it was so nice to sit around with the light show right in front of us.

 

nampak tak my nokia on the tall glass in front of him? haha

 

it was very dark, because, let’s face it – only in darkness we can truly enjoy a ‘light festival’, right? terang benderang kalu mane nak nampak kan!

but specky mr. khairul couldn’t fully enjoy his food in the dark, so i had to use my nokia’s ultra strong ‘torchlight’ to literally ‘light up’ the moment! hihi.

hmm honey where’s your BB? hihi nama je blackberry torch, tapi my 100dhs nokia jugak la yang berjasa malam tu! hihi. (mr. khairul wanted me to use his old samsung omnia, but no thanks – i’d rather use a really basic phone!)

 

as usual, i ordered my favorite chicken katsu with miso soup. yum. i’ve written a few reviews on our favorite japanese restaurant. click here for the branch in dubai media city and here for the one in jumeirah.

 

sharjah light festival will run until this coming friday, 17/2 so hurry-hurry! click here for gulfnews report on the sharjah light festival.

Dubai Pays Tribute to Whitney Houston

the irreplaceable whitney houston has died at the age of 48.

i absolutely LOVE her songs, especially the classics like ‘saving all my love’, ‘greatest love of all’, ‘i wanna dance with somebody’, ‘where do broken hearts go’, ‘one moment in time’ and of course the definitive hit, ‘i will always love you’. when she sings, it’s effortless, beautiful and awe-inspiring.

i also love her in the chick-flick ‘waiting to exhale’. the soundtrack was excellent too.

 

 

dubai did its own style in honoring the legend in pop – through the dancing dubai fountain in front of the world’s tallest building and the world’s largest mall. i’ve written about the fountain in this posting.

a beautiful clip; the fountain ‘danced’ and lights up along with whitney’s perennial hit, ‘i will always love you’. enjoy.

Turkish Ice-Cream : No Egg, No Cream

who doesn’t like ice-cream?

it’s winter so we don’t indulge ourselves too often with ice-cream. however we were hanging out at qanat al-qasba in sharjah when we came across this distinct turkish ice-cream kiosk, and was very tempted to try.

turkish ice-cream is called ‘dondurma’ which in turkey means ‘freezing’. also known as ‘maras ice-cream’.

turkish ice-cream doesn’t melt as easily as other ice-creams as they contain a thickening agent called 'salep' which is some kind of flour. this gives it a chewy stringy texture mcm melted cheese. it’s even referred to as ‘turkish GUM ice-cream’. even when we take a small scoop, a string of ice-cream will follow until we cut it out with the spoon.

 

we can see from the picture that the texture of the ice-cream differ from normal ice-cream

 

so many flavors, but my favorite has always been choc or pistachio!

• khaleef absolutely loves strawberry
• kahfi likes chocolate and strawberry
• mr. khairul will eat any flavor – though he prefer it not be boring or normal like choc, or vanilla. the more unique, the better!

 

 

what’s interesting about turkish ice-cream is the way it is ‘kneaded’ or ‘churned’ to create the elasticity texture.

ice-cream is put in containers. the mixture is then churned regularly with long-handled paddles to keep the texture. this dude would press and press and pull and press and pull and press.

 

 

other than the fetching turkish traditional uniform (the white t with embroidered vest), the staff at a turkish ice-cream kiosk is also famously known to ‘tease’ their customers with funny acts as entertainment.

sometimes they would serve the ice-cream in a cone ‘stuck’ to the long paddle, and when the customer tries to reach for it, they would turn the paddle around so that the cone is upside down, but would not fall off the stick! this is because of the structure of the ice-cream that is elastic and glue-like!

the impatient customer may get restless with this ‘cheeky’ act, but it surely would amuse others who are watching. click the youtube clip below to see a really funny presentation from the turkish ice-cream vendor, and the bewildered japanese customer. definitely will make you smile. or tensen. hihi.

 

 

we didn’t get any of the free-of-charge ‘entertainment’ – probably because i was buying the ice-cream in a cup instead of in a cone. *frust betul!* haha.

 

 

turkish ice-cream is said to be natural ice-cream - no eggs, no cream, no coloring. still taste so good, so creamy n so yummy!

i love the finishing touch on my 3-scoop ice-cream – a sprinkle of pounded pistachio on my pistachio-flavored ice-cream. i took the one in the waffle bowl, but unfortunately, the ‘bowls’ had been prepared for quite some time, so it was already quite lemau. not crunchy anymore.

it spoiled the whole experience, but the ice-cream itself was delicious, thank goodness.

 

Giraffe-Feeding @ Al-Ain Zoo

one sweet weekend, we went to al-ain zoo in abu dhabi, and feed the giraffes! what an amazing experience to go up-close (but not personal haha) with these magnificent creatures!

i’ve written about al-ain zoo here – one of the best zoos i’ve been to for sure, in terms of cleanliness, beauty and comfort. well, there we were, at al-ain zoo and we noticed an eye-catching giraffe-patches booth with the signage ‘giraffe feeding’. wow! this should be interesting!

 

 

refer to your zoo map as you look for this interesting activity, but the booth is hard to miss, with ‘giraffe’ patches all over its outer wall. besides, with them being the tallest living animal on earth, who could miss the awesome giraffes wandering in their enclosures?

we pay 25dhs (it’s about rm21 only) for 4 person, and we’re given 4 sticks of carrot in a cup, which ended up being 6. i think khaleef charmed his way into getting another 2 sticks of carrots with his loud ‘assalamualaikum’ and ‘maassalamah’ hihi.

(moral cerita : bersopan-santun lah anda walaupun anda di mana jua berada. hihi.)

 

there are a few water pipes right by the entrance, as the do’s and don’ts clearly state that we need to wash our hands before and after feeding the giraffes. other rules include :

1. don’t pet or startle the giraffes as this could make them aggressive
2. don’t feed them any other food than the one you get from the kiosk
3. don’t harass the giraffes with yells of whistles or throw anything at them

…and a few more about rubbish and smoking.

 

how tall are you standing next to a giraffe?

 

* * *

 

 

it was really a priceless experience. they were really close. we were reminded not to touch its head for any reason, but its head was VERY close as it bowed down to take our ‘offerings’. their fat green tongue waggling about to grab the carrot into its mouth! however, their tongue is not green, actually their tongue is covered with bristle like a brush – which helps them to digest food from thorny plants.

it was exhilarating! giraffes are really huge! their head is as long as a camel or horse but with that adorable antennae-like horns on their head!

do you know that those things on their head are really called ‘horns’, but looked ‘soft’ and covered with tufts of hair. these ‘horns’ are believed to be some sort of a cooling system for the giraffe’s or to protect their head from harm. whatever it’s for, it does give these giraffes a distinct appearance!

maybe they’re the real life version of the mythical one-horned unicorn!

 

 

my boys were SUPER EXCITED. enough said. even THAT is an understatement.

kahfi was screaming shrilly with a big amused grin as he felt the touch of the damp tongue on his tiny fingers when the giraffe eats his carrot. khaleef called one of the giraffes ‘melman’. urm, from madagascar? *wink*

when they’re older, i hope they appreciate this chance of seeing a giraffe so close like that! i don’t think they quite realized how incredible this is to see a wild animal LIVE right in front of your face. and not just ANY animal, but the tallest living animal on earth!

kahfi probably thinks it’s just like petting a cat or seeing a shaggy dog pass by!

 

 

as i stood there looking at them, i observe their calm face, and soft beady eyes. they’re so big and tall, yet they move gently and gracefully, slowly swinging their long necks as they move.

i run my eyes across their long slender body, admiring the lovely patches of their fur. the patches are really special, unique only to giraffes. really beautiful.

their fur is not long at all – it’s just a very soft covering on their skin. you can’t even call it fur, rather they’re just very short hair – so i imagine running my hands on their skin, it would feel soft and velvety rather than furry like when we touch a cat.

i looked at their very slim feet and clean hooves. imagine seeing them run! but right now, standing tall and majestic in front of me was enough to cause awe and amazement. mendongak tengok!

suddenly i was imagining tall dinosaurs…

 

let’s learn a thing or two about giraffes!

 

* * *

 

i won’t bore you with too many pictures of the animals we see – except for these two awesome creatures – the white tigers, and the cheetah.

the white tigers are the main attraction at al-ain zoo, and many come for a visit just to see these rare mammals in action. interestingly, white tigers ONLY exist in captivity, that means ONLY in zoos, wildlife park or preservation centers.

the white tiger is so beautiful, like a character in the magical land of narnia! it’s just a wonder to see!

 

 

mind you, these white tigers ARE NOT found in the wild. ONLY in captivity, under human care.

so then i was thinking : the normal orange-with-black-stripes tigers are now considered endangered because illegal poaching still continues and their habitat disturbed by human activities. well, what if a hundred years from now – our great-great-great grandkids will know the WHITE tiger as the original tigers because they see them often at the zoo (since white tigers ONLY live in zoos far from the harm of hunters), while the orange ones have become extinct – they became the rare one seen only in museums, old documentaries and history books!

long live the tigers!

 

 

* * *

 

 

…and then there’s the cheetah!

i love these shots because the cheetah was SO CLOSE to the boys – right smack in their face! without the glass, kazim would’ve mounted the cheetah and ran off somewhere hihi. or, instinct would suggest, the cheetah would gobble up the visitors for his meal…

but yeah – it was an exciting experience seeing a cheetah that close – even though it’s through a glass. observing them move that close just got me to one conclusion – they’re nothing but a big cat. with dots. and killer instinct!

 

amazing closeness. i SO wanna hug one! thank you for hanging around on that table long enough for me to take this shot. hihi

 

* * *

 

we took this chance to visit al-ain zoo because the weather is still cool and cozy.

you might notice my boys’ change of clothes. they first wore long-sleeved t’s because of the cool morning, but eventually got extremely sweaty as the day progressed, and after much running and jumping around excitedly at the zoo. so they changed to short-sleeved after that!

al-ain zoo is definitely one of the cleanest zoos i’ve been to and i’ve been to our national zoo, melaka zoo, taiping zoo, spore zoo and the ballarat wildlife park in aussie – al-ain is one of the top ones in terms of cleanliness of the animals’ enclosures (tak busuk!), beauty and comfort.

• there are ample sitting area, drinking fountain and food kiosk
• the walkway is very spacious
• and most importantly, the toilets are clean! (bab ni singapore pun menang jugak!)
• there are also zookeepers and guards everywhere we look to assist us, and ensuring the safety of visitors
• and there’s also a mosque inside the zoo (not just a surau!), and azan will berkumandang sepelusuk zoo bila masuk waktu.

the boys love looking at animals, and i enjoy al-ain zoo. this is definitely not the last time we gonna visit.