Khaleef’s First Horse-Riding Training @ Wadi Al-Amardi

bapak treated eldest son khaleef to his first horse-riding training on his birthday. we went to a humble little stable, somewhere in wadi al-amardi for khaleef to pick up a lesson or two in being a good horse-rider.

as we know, islam encourages its followers to follow the sunnah of prophet Muhammad SAW; to follow his practice and his good deeds. and one of the favorites of our beloved Rasulullah (SAW) is horse riding. horses and riding were a big part of the lifestyle of our beloved Prophet Muhammad SAW (peace be upon him); for transportation and sports. who knows khaleef might end up loving this sport and taking it up seriously?

well, for a start, it’s so wonderful that khaleef gets to ride, steer, pat and feed a horse! thanks to mr. khairul for this awesome experience, and hopefully a good start for something more!

 

“thanks bapak for this amazing birthday present!” haha. he wishes! this is ‘leader’, the horse khaleef used during his horse-ride training

 

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the stable

 

arriving at the humble stable somewhere in wadi al-amardi, not as huge and spacious as I expected, but turns out to be more intimate and small.

 

younger brothers waited on the side as big bro got the briefing before getting on the horse

 

the instructor, uncle ali prepared khaleef with a safety helmet. uncle ali might look fierce, but he’s really just very enthusiastic with his big booming voice.

 

lesson 1 : balancing

first lesson : balancing. you can’t ride a horse well without a good balance says uncle ali. khaleef did a lot of sitting-down and standing on the horse over and over again. gradually it became harder as khaleef must put his hand on his waist, and then on his head – while continuing to rise up and down.

 

uncle ali had a good exercise as he walked and followed the horse! he took khaleef on ‘leader’ round and round the training ground. first, he held on to the strap as he took khaleef around. after a few rounds, he slowly walked further away from them, and finally he just let khaleef ‘leads’ leader round the training ground.

 

restless! but they actually enjoyed watching the horses in action

 

lesson 2 : steering the horse

after the training on balancing, uncle ali taught khaleef how to lead the horse.

 

khaleef learned :

1. how to use the bridle and strap to steer the horse left or right
2. how to make the horse move or stop
3. and the sounds you can make to tell the horse to move and stop – sort of a clicking of the tongue to the teeth

khaleef definitely enjoyed this lesson more than the lesson on balancing. to balance on a horse, you need strong thigh muscle, and khaleef found it to be too tedious, tiring and sakit! yeap, he even cried because he said it was too much, too painful!

uncle ali the instructor might seem to be so garang and firm; and he does have a loud, rough booming voice; but he was really friendly, funny and kind. he talked to khaleef, pujuk and calmed him down. he immediately stopped the balancing lesson, and started on the horse-steering lesson which khaleef enjoyed more.

thanks cool uncle ali!

 

* * *

 

I love these series of shots. it shows a deeper connection between man and beast, that is unspoken yet pure and sincere. khaleef got to pet a horse so up close, and also gave him some ‘motivational talk’! haha. ‘leader’ is such a gentle, sweet horse and I hope that the next time khaleef comes for more training, ‘leader’ will be there waiting.

 

feeding the horsies

conversation with kahfi. hihi. love this shot!

 

time for the younger brothers to have their moment at the stable. they totally enjoyed feeding fresh crunchy carrots to the obliging horses.

 

* * *

 

taken from ‘muslim equestrians south africa’ website. for more hadith on horses, click here.

 

 

overall, khaleef cried during the balancing lesson, but he totally enjoyed steering the horse. I’m just glad that at the end of the day, he loved riding horses, and wouldn’t mind doing it again – minus the balancing!

happy birthday again, my little baby khaleef. hope you get to meet ‘leader’ again some day!

Jungle in the City @ Kuala Lumpur Bird Park : World’s Biggest Aviary

amidst the hustle and bustle of hectic KL, traffic jam, shiny skyscrapers and big fancy malls, there is a precious green gem called the ‘kuala lumpur bird park’ – or ‘taman burung kuala lumpur’, located in lake gardens (tasik perdana) kuala lumpur.

this awesome park is a must-visit for all proud malaysians.

that early morning we went out to send my abah and umi to KL sentral. they’re taking the train back to ipoh. since we were already in KL area, and and it’s still early morning, might as well jalan-jalan. so we decided to take an impromptu detour to the kuala lumpur bird park.

did you know that our own kuala lumpur bird park is the world’s LARGEST free-flight walk-in *aviary (sangkar terbang bebas terbesar di dunia)? very impressive!

here i am, living in dubai; the land of the world’s tallest building, and the world’s biggest mall, and the world’s highest fountain – when back home, we have the world’s largest bird park!

*an aviary is a large enclosure for confining birds. unlike cages, aviaries allow birds a larger living space where they can fly; hence, aviaries are also sometimes known as flight cages. aviaries often contain plants and shrubbery to simulate a natural environment. ~wikipedia

that means, when you walk into the kl bird park, you’re walking into the largest cage in the world! the birds live, fly, and play in their natural habitat, simulated in this large aviary.

it’s somewhat a ‘cage’ per-se, but the natural habitat that they ‘built’ for these birds are so good and real, that researchers often choose this bird park to study behavioral pattern of birds!

fun facts on kl bird park :

• open in 1991
  
• it’s adjacent to lake gardens
  
• there are over 3000 birds from 200 species!
  
• 90% local birds, and the rest imported

one of the best features of kuala lumpur bird park – some birds walk freely among the visitors. pecking away in bushes. sitting on a branch, just within reach or simply taking a stroll right beside us!

the boys were super excited to see so many types of colorful birds!

here’s a picture of us with some of the most beautiful birds I’ve ever seen up close. and to have a few of them perching on my arm and shoulder was just so exciting! this was at the photo section where you pay to get a picture taken with these fabulous feather friends. I was more amazed at how the boys were able to sit still when the staff put a parrot on their head!

khaleef and the lovebirds. he said that the blue macaw were ‘blue’ and ‘jewel’ from the animation ‘rio’!

* * *

here’s another fun section – you pay to get cups of milk and some sunflower seeds, and you get to feed the friendly parrots around this section. the parrots were super friendly and tame, and didn’t mind perching all over you as they helped themselves to those yummy milk and seeds that you’re holding!

khaleef got ecstatic as one of the parrots started getting cozy on his wrist. he said the claw on his arm actually hurt a little, but he didn’t mind it. they were too cute!

kahfi loved this one so much! he didn’t budge from this one here.

* * *

one of the noisiest cages in the kuala lumpur bird park. they were literally communicating with the boys. using different languages, of course. but really, memang berbalas-balas bunyi. the birds would chirp something really loud, and kahfi would go like, “what? what is it?” and then the birds replied. and kahfi continued the conversation. super cute.

khaleef said this reminded him of ‘jurassic park’ – where the entrance to the pterodactyl’s cage is similar to this one.

a large pond and waterfall, making the birds feel at home; in their natural habitat.

* * *

the bird show was very entertaining. it was done entirely in english for the benefit of the international tourists. so happy to see the middle east tourists and omputeh laughing, enjoying the jokes and funny antics of the birds. our kuala lumpur bird park was alright!

there was also a section where we can learn how different bird eggs grow and hatched; as well as their different habitat. there was this cage with the most adorable chicks. ya Allah comel sangat! this is one of those indoor places in the bird park, so it’s air-conditioned. masuk-masuk je wow – legaaaa! sejuk!

for rm25 I think it’s worth it – walking into another world filled with greeneries and serenity, accompanied with chirps and hoots of wild birds, leaving the hectic metropolitan and traffic jam of KL behind…

try bird park today. world’s biggest aviary, yo! malaysia boleh!

My First Desert Safari after 5 Years in Dubai!

I’ve been to the desert many times – for bbq, for picnic, just for photography, and camping too; but this was my first time ever on a desert safari trip after living in dubai for almost 5 years. if you’re visiting dubai, this activity should be top in your list of must-do! dune bashing, henna-painting, camel-riding, belly-dancing & bbq-eatin – all in one place. desert safari yo!

if you’re wondering, actually it IS already summer in dubai – scorching HOT and sticky! haha. but I went for this desert safari around february, when it was still nice and cool. the weather was fantastic for a night out in the desert.

another great thing about my first trip to the desert safari was that I went with my bff – no screaming kids, no husband – just me and my gal pal put. girls day out. it was a blast.

(two of my best friends from school are currently in london doing phd, and last feb, one of them came to dubai en route malaysia-london. hi putri aka put!)

here’s our adventure at the desert safari – just two girls out in the WILD! haha.

 

me & put on a desert safari!

 

now that’s the view of the entire area of our desert safari : quad biking at the far back, camel-riding on the right and the square area (that looks like a refugee camp according to my eldest sis) is for the main event – makan-makan and of course the entertainment.

the place is awesome. many fun activities to do including shisha, henna-painting, dressing up like the arabs and souvenir shops. there’s even a playground made of wood!

also, most importantly, very clean toilet. I was thoroughly impressed, and entertained!

 

here’s put in the 4x4 that took us to the desert safari area

 

DUNE BASHING

ok mr. khairul hooked us up with this fantastic deal, and you can do the same with so many desert-safari operators in dubai or abu dhabi thru the magic of google.

1. first, we waited at spinneys near burjuman for pick-up at 3.30pm to board a mini-bus
2. we checked our names, and went off for a 1-hour bus ride to a desert spot – the ride was comfy and smooth-sailing
3. arrive by the side of the road along the desert, all passengers got off and onto a four wheel drive
4. in the four wheel drive for the thrilling dune-bashing! we enjoyed it so much! we sat at the back so it was more bumpy! most suspenseful part was when the four wheel drive went so fast down a steep sand dune that we thought we gonna go turtle! it was like a rollercoaster ride in a well-padded four wheel drive across the desert landscape! oh, did I mention we were shouting like mad? it was fun over-reacting aloud to every bump and sharp cornering!
5. after a 30-minute ride, we arrived at the place where all the desert safari activity will take place – free activities from then onwards!
6. the driver reminded us to assemble at this same four wheel drive at 7.30pm to take us back to the mini bus

love it love it love it! and this is just the beginning!

 

with the photogenic camel

 

MY FIRST CAMEL RIDE

as soon as we arrived the first thing we spot were the camels.

once there we immediately stayed close to the area, and get ready to hop on any available camel. there were 3 camels held together by a single rope operated by this pak arab. 3 people ride at one go, and the pak arab would lead the camels to walk slowly in a circle, about 2-3 minutes. no extra charges, so you can ride as many times as you want.

however, there was no apparent queue for the camel ride, so people sort off just waited haphazardly around the place where the camel stops; hoping to be the first one on the camels once they come back to the starting point. luckily most people went straight to the quad-biking or climbing the sand dunes so we didn’t need to shove and push to ride camels haha.

 

on my first camel ride – weeeee!

 

first putri went on the camel, I took pictures; and then we switched.

it was my first ever camel ride – and it’s funny to think that even my khaleef has been on a camel at dubai bastakiya in 2010, when he was just 5 years old! it was exciting, but I was feeling really nervous as well! hey, the camel is huge!

I was on the camel at the front. I like him. he went down and up gracefully, while the other camels went down with a jerk and thud. gile scary! because as the camel bowed down to sit, the angle is pretty steep and we could fall down if its movement is too jerky and we didn’t hold tight. so be safe, people!

the camel ride? amazing. slow. and gayat! just a short ride in circle, but it was enough to take me back hundreds of years where arab beduoin use camels as transportation across the vast desert. I would definitely do it again!

 

DESERT HANG-OUT

this is the spot next to the desert safari area for people to golek-golek, take pictures, and sand-boarding too (I would imagine sand boarding is like tobogganing, but on sand!). sadly, what made it NOT authentic were the benches on top. hello? whose bright idea was it to put benches on top of the sand dune? cammon man. duduk je la atas pasir tu! nak duk atas bench pegi la taman bunga!

 

QUAD BIKING

thinking of quad-biking? RM100 for 20 minutes here, and you can ride it within a compound, or take it round and round the sand dune. man, I’d do it for at least half that price! ok thanks, but no thanks la sheikh, I think I’ll just take a picture sitting on the quad bike if you don’t mind?

 

FALCON ON MY ARM!

me with mr bad-ass falcon, the national bird of UAE, a symbol of fierce and courage! sampai tersenget-senget tudung pegang falcon on my shoulder! nervous, ok! one scratch of its wolverine-claws, abis la!

 

ok. this is actually a scam disguised as a tourist attraction. I called it a scam because this dude was standing at the entrance with the bird. since most of the activities here are already paid for under our ticket, I assumed this includes taking picture with the falcon – just like riding the camel.

however, when I showed the slightest interest on the bird, the sheikh immediately placed the blind-folded falcon on my arm – and THEN only announced that it would cost me aed10 for pictures. ooookaaaay.

takpe lah. aku niat nak sedekah je lah.

the bird was adorable – blind-folded of course to tame it – and I can see clearly its sharp claws while it perched on my cautious arms. ah, the falcon. symbol of fierce and courage of the arab world!

 

shisha place. pretty, but me no likey. aku memang tak teringin lansung nak try shisha ni.

 

THE STAGE IS SET!

this is the center – where the makan-makan takes place, and the entertainment happening in the middle. we came on a weekday, so it was hardly crowded – very relaxed and calming. the seating area is carpeted, with thick cushions – very comfy and welcoming.

 

anywhere you sit gives you a great view of the performance as the seating area surrounds the stage. we just picked a nice spot and enjoyed our ‘appetizers’. before buffet table was open, we got a plate of snacks - crispy fried potatoes and something like vadai. sedap makan panas-panas in the cold!

 

we checked out the buffet prep area. the smell of chicken and meat grilling over charcoal were tantalizing! we asked, and the crew said “7.30pm buffet open, maam!” alrite then!

 

WANT VIP TREATMENT?

the VIP majlees

 

the entertainment hasn’t started, food was not ready yet, so we walked around. by this time the weather was already getting COLD!

these huts in the picture above are the ‘VIP majlis’ – which I don’t really get – why do they wanna sit so far from the entertainment? hmm. I think we ‘commoners’ got the better seats! haha.

anyways, we were approached by a staff member, who said we could still get a ‘VIP service’ even if we’re sitting at the normal seating areas. how much? for aed50 per person, a server will bring our food to the table, anything we need, no lining up. hmm, we’ll pass. sanggup lagi beratur daripada bayar extra aed100 for both of us!

 

ok this, I didn’t know – you can even opt to stay overnight at one of the few ‘deluxe rooms’! wooo~ if I wanna sleep in the desert, I prefer hardcore camping style!

 

PRETTY HENNA PAINTING

 

I kinda love henna painting if it’s not too overdone. just on one small spot, or one small trail – simplicity is pretty! even for my wedding, the henna on my hands were really minimal, yet classy!

here at the desert safari, henna painting is free for a small one, and 10aed for a longer one that trails up your arm. haha you know me so well, of course la amik yg free one haha. the lady who drew the henna pattern said she really went into this whole henna business because she’s genuinely interested in drawing, and always want to try new patterns.

when we went home on dubai metro, we took another photo of the completed henna. so pretty. yes, we left the desert safari adventure with fond memories, and these henna paintings!

 

ENTERTAINMENT : SUFI DANCE, BELLY DANCE & HORSE DANCE

 

when the first show started, we haven’t taken our food yet – the buffet table was still close.

first up was the ‘sufi dance’ or ‘tanura dance’ from turkey. tak paham aku dance ni. spin spin spin. twirl twirl twirl. syok la tu kot. the only thing I applauded him was being able to not throw up or collapse after all that spinning and extreme twirling!

in fact, whenever he stopped to invite someone from the crowd to join him, he appeared to walk straight, without the slightest indication of being disoriented. memang pro!

well we enjoyed the loud arabic music and twirly dance. especially when the lights suddenly went out – his skirt actually lights up, while still spinning! and it looked like UFO! ...and he even lifted his ‘skirt’ up his head, and yes - still spinning. lagi la mcm UFO!

 

next – most-awaited by both male n female – the seductive belly-dancing! I cannot imagine how this ultra sensual dance could ever originate from a conservative middle eastern world. it’s as sexy as the tango. or salsa. aku pun terbeliak-beliak tengok, inikan pulak mamat-mamat dalam crowd ni kan. sure menyesal bawak bini huhu.

 

BUFFET TABLE OPEN – MAKAN TIME!

the buffet area, set in a tent

 

after the belly dancing, there was an announcement that the buffet table is open.

we were the first in line! haha, typical malaysian! haha. tak malaysian la kalau lambat beratur nak amik makanan buffet kan kan kan. everything was so delicious, nicely presented and freshly prepared.

sadly can’t take any pictures because we were the first in line – mengamuk org belakang kang kalo stop-stop amik gamba!

 

the food was nicely displayed; hot and fresh. fried rice, steamed rice. roti arab, fresh crispy veggies and humus. delicious bbq chicken and tender meat on skewers. mee goreng pun ade. simple dishes but most importantly tasty and HOT!

 

  the meat on skewers were delicious, mostly because they were so tender, well-marinated, and HOT! so nice to be enjoyed during this COLD weather! fresh fruits are also available, as well as my favorite bread pudding. simple, yet satisfying!

 

 

while we eat, the entertainment continued. we're then entertained by this interestingly creepy 'horse dance'. it’s called ‘horse dance’ but it’s not like our beautifully crafty kuda kepang dance. it’s more to chinese lion dance – but with horses. and even so, chinese lion dance is vibrant and fast-paced, but this horse dance is basically men dressed in horse costume, wobbling on the stage with the beat.

the 'horse' mostly just walked around slowly, while stopping next to the crowd every now and then, and sit down like a horse.

 

our empty long table. right after the horse dance, it's time to leave – 8pm. our driver actually looked for us, recognized us by face and reminded us to look for him outside. sgt efisyen!

well, goodbye desert safari! it’s been a blast!

 

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the 1-hour drive back to dubai town felt short. it was already dark. putri was nodding off beside me. the bright lights of the city reminded me that I’m back to civilization after that wonderful time in the desert with a good friend. no kids to shout after. no husband to remind me that I’m over 30 and 8 years married.

desert safari with put is one of the best getaways a mother can have, especially a stay-at-home mom like me. mr. khairul takes me to the best makan places to help me unwind –and I appreciate that so much because he knows what I like – but a night out with a gal pal – now that’s something else.

we were giggling schoolgirls gossiping. we were ladies without a care in the world. doctorate thesis and sink full of dirty dishes were far from our minds.

just us, in the moment. good friends enjoying great times.