Taken on 26 February 2010 at The Waterfalls, Dubai Mall

The waterfalls traverse the entire height of the mall, which is four levels. It is coupled by art sculpture of human divers which are made of fiberglass. I think that the presence of the divers made a big difference. It visually enhanced the rhythmic flow of water.

And did you just notice that the divers are all naked (with the right amount of abs there!)? And we thought that UAE is sort of strict in this aspect.  ;)

What not to miss while attending an annual conference in Dusit Thani Hotel?

To take photos of Burj Khalifa. From the hotel, it has a nice view of the tallest tower.

I was planning to visit the observation deck (124th of the at least 160 floors) after its inauguration in January of this year. But as I was trying to shoo my fear of heights, as it was an exciting but a little chickening experience for me when I visited the Macau Tower observation deck (on the 58th floor), not too long, it was temporarily closed for maintenance and upgrade. Sigh. Next time, I will not pay much attention to my phobia anymore. It’s just that we sometimes tend to take for granted those spots that are very accessible to us. While most of the tourists actually flew miles away for these.

Did you know that the architecture of this over 800 meters tower (base of three legs) was in a way inspired by the regional desert flower, Hymenocallis?

Since the observation deck is still closed, we would probably pay a visit to the lower levels. The (57) elevators as reported can travel at 10 meters per second. We will see if that’s true.

(Photo source). I’ve watched Alice in Wonderland in 3D, not expecting much about the film even if it’s directed by Tim Burton.

Johnny Depp as Mad Hatter, Mia Wisakowska (she looks much like Gwyneth Partlow) as Alice, Anne Hathaway as the White Queen, and Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen were all effective in their roles. Although the film is visually stunning, I just felt that it lacked the right amount of thrill. It came to a point that whenever the scenes were slowing down, I kept reminding myself to just be entertained by the visuals, fancy dresses and make-ups, and few entertaining scenes (my most fave was when the very tiny Alice was put inside the tea pot). Personally, I think that the appearance of the Red Queen made the scenes came into life. Maybe it’s because of her bulky head and the humour she graced whenever she spoke.

When I went out of the cinema, I never had an aftershock or hang over of the film. I wonder what happened to the magical fantasy touch that it’s supposed to give to the audience.

I think this camel stuffed toy is absolutely unique. Not your typical bear around the corner. I took photos before sending this to a blogger pal as a housewarming/birthday present, together with another UAE memorabilia.

And yes, her name is Sandy (as in Sandy from the Land of Sun and Sands). I wonder what are the names of the real camels we met during the Desert Safari last year.

This is my entry for this week’s photo hunt (theme: foreign).

I am in UAE for quite a time now but it was only this year I checked the (Annual) Dubai Shopping Festival. With tired feet and hungry monster tummies, there was no better way to culminate last Friday night than visiting the Rainforest Cafe. We have passed by here when we checked the Dubai Aquarium last time but I never thought that this cafe offers more than the usual.

I think that this cafe is well-conceptualized in the sense that this is currently one of a kind in the UAE. For the naturally greenery scarce Gulf, an artificial rainforest environment will be appreciated by many. There is a reptile at the entrance, and as you take more steps to the dining hall, you will be greeted by a serpent. Then the rest of the tigers, gorillas and butterflies are strategically situated. Although these creatures are available in their artificial form, it is hugely entertaining because approximately at every 10 minutes , they would air some sounds of animals and synched with their movements. The banging of the thunderstorm signals that these creatures will become alive.

Looking at the ceiling is the most fascinating part for me. There’s this lighting effect that does not only make the stars twinkle, but like they also travel slowly from one portion to the other.

In that way, it was like dining under a star-starry night. Although the simulated rainforest feel is the highlight of the visit, the food is also good. We had grilled salmon, pesto and mixed seafood grill. The food’s name from menu is catchy like Rainforest Rascal with Safari Fries and Gorilla Grilled Cheese Delight.

Since the Rainforest Cafe is just behind the Dubai Aquarium (one of the biggest aquariums in the world), there’s one stretch of dining tables directly facing it. How refreshing is that.

There are stoned sculptures of ancient type and waterfalls that give an added feel of the jungle. The tables and chairs are made up of bamboo and the table (top) has drawings of fish and other animals.

I have not taken a photo of the path to the restroom, but the gender reference says like “Queen of the Jungle” and “King of the Jungle”. There’s also a souvenir shop which sells kooky forms of animals, shirts, mugs and other items. We would probably check and get one the next time. Yes, this cafe is worth visiting again.

See how the animals become “alive” in this video:

Rainforest Cafe is in Dubai Mall, near the Dubai Aquarium. Landline: +971 4 330 8515

Edit: Video uploaded on 7 March 2010.

This is one of the mosques that I see everyday. This accommodates one of the many male Muslims that regularly pray. Normally, the females pray in a private (prayer) room. Although there is plenty of mosques in the UAE, it is still not enough and/or not strategically located to accommodate the population. Hence, those praying near and by the beach is also a daily sight for non-Muslims like me.

The mosques may come in different colors and structure, but the crescent moon over there stays quite the same. And yes, today is the (Muslims’) Prophet Muhammad’s birthday.

This is my entry for this week’s photo hunt (theme: daily).

What are you giving up for Lent?

I don’t mean to sound preachy. I just thought of sharing the jist of the few articles about fasting that I read recently. After all, I’m one of those who are guilty of finding a perfect opportunity to trim weight during the Lent through fasting. Some of us give up meat, sweets, and other stuff that seem to be a hard habit to break, in order to fast.  But why do we really fast?

Fasting is about abstaining from food for spiritual reasons. A hunger strike done by some groups even for a good cause and diet programs are not a fast because they are for vanity and/or other reasons.  We should fast:

• So that our hearts will focus on God alone. In fasting, it is important to know why we are doing it. If there is no purpose, the practice is meaningless. As we fast, the motivation, sincerity and determination intensifies.
• So that what controls us is revealed to us. We discover that it is not food that sustains our lives;
• To uncover what is not essential to us. Our desires are often reckless, and they take over our lives. We crave for many things that we actually don’t need. By fasting, we feel the degree of control they have on us and we gain the opportunity to overcome them. The harder it is to fast, the stronger our desires grip us. But the more we fast, the faster we become free from them.

Isn’t it wonderful when we really know and appreciate why we’re doing something?

Related readings:

*Why we put ashes on our forehead

*Related points on fasting

I had a fresh from the fridge chocolate rice porridge (champorado) with milk in it and dried anchovies sent from home (dilis) for today’s dinner. I set the AC to the max, enough for me to chill. It’s best to eat this perfect sugary and salty combo when it’s cold/rainy. Yes, mind over matter. As they say, dilis is Pinoy’s french fries so you should eat it with a hand.

PS. Excuse the vase (a coconut milk bottle). I actually don’t have a decent vase because I don’t maintain fresh flowers on a regular basis. Those are Valentine’s left overs. It’s good that I realized to replace the vase before taking a photo, otherwise I’m at the risk of being found out that I made my previous company’s mug as temporary vase.

Have you tried the champorado and dilis combo? If not, you’re missing a lot.

My weekend was full packed. Half of it was mainly devoted to mentoring students. It’s satisfying when you are able to find a means to make a difficult and really intimidating subject appears sort of easy. I was happy to have seen those enlightened faces. Call it coincidence. But that day, my dose of GodWhispers read like this:

Dear Jo,

Do your due diligence. I have given you a brilliant mind. Use it. I have also given brilliant mind to others – so use their minds as well. Seek out mentors and teachers and wise guides in this journey. I have littered your world with many of them.

Your Light,
God

PS. Mentor others, too, Jo. I will send you students.

Coincidence, eh? God is always on time. And I was given a bonus. I got (another) care package from my family/relatives: Choc Nut, curly tops, flat tops, wiggle mallows, banana chips, anchovies, boy bawang, Cloud 9, and more (not in the photo). I felt I was energized 5 times! See, I’m easy to please. Just give me food. Hahaha. I mean, the right kind of edibles.

And it didn’t end there. It’s amazing how they could have read my mind. No one knew that I was planning to buy Twisted 8 and 1/2 this March and I got it as a gift, heehee. While going to Sagada is still impossible at this point, my closest cousin is passing over traces of it through this sling (and she gave me a traveling bag in 2008, with the same color/material, too). And the Flip Mino HD (it can videocord for continuous 60 minutes, oddly it’s not yet available in the UAE) contains a number of captured moments of them. As I watched, I was grinning and crying (because it made me miss them) at the same time.

That day was priceless.

The bride and the mother at the wedding reception.

Weekly photo hunt is hosted by tnchick. See more cuddly photos here.