Seen in Abu Dhabi: 15

Falcons wearing eye-covers (so that they will not attack, I assume.)

Seen in Abu Dhabi: 14

Strawberry tart dessert:

...at a nice restaurant that serves everything imaginable. Berries are one thing that are difficult to find (and expensive when found) in Abu Dhabi.

Blueberries were a big hit with Elias.

We had a great time with friends!

Abu Dhabi Emirates Palace; Outside

When you're touring the outside of a palace from a car because it's a good 110* F outside... you don't get very good pictures... just in case you didn't already know that.

There were buses behind us and swerving around us, but I tried anyways, because it's pretty impressive to see.

Just the fact that at that crazy temperature there was so much green foliage and flowers seemed to make a statement. I'd like to visit again in cooler weather and actually walk through some of the amazing park areas.

Arancini

YouTube is an introvert's multi-cultural training center... It's how I've learned to make things like from-scratch Mexican-style chicken tortilla soup, Italian pignolis, Indian samosas and a good fish curry while living within Abu Dhabi. One of our favorite new recipes is arancini, or, meat-and-vegetable-stuffed rice balls that are then battered and baked or fried. (I baked mine.) Laura Vitale's recipe here is my favorite so far.

Now, if I could just find someone local to teach me how to make camel-milk ice cream... or maybe not.

Do you have any favorite recipes you found online that were winners? I like to try new ones!

Moving from Abu Dhabi to Ruwais

Living in the bustling city of Abu Dhabi with around 200 nationalities surrounding us, the many different versions of English seem to be the default language. With less of an opportunity to learn Arabic and a thriving desire to do so, Ben looked around and spied a place away from the city... out in the western region... near camel farms and the desert version of country life, where most of the students and fellow teachers don't speak much English and found a place where he could probably learn Arabic with more immersion: Al Sila'a.

Nature colors Mix at the Port of Dalma Near Ruwais

We will be living about an hour from there in the community of Ruwais. (pronounced: "Roo-wayse") It is about two hours from Abu Dhabi. In the 1970-80's the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company built compounds in several areas with shopping areas, gyms, grocery stores, houses, parks, schools and hospitals within a 6km block. We are supposed to be placed in a villa inside one of these, which means all of the amenities like gym and beach passes, are free. Ruwais seems to have everything I liked about Abu Dhabi, and not the things I didn't, plus some extras like a free gym and more families with children. We will be able to visit Abu Dhabi once or twice a month, but, as with any move, I will still miss so many of our friends who live here.

Here are a few Facebook photo albums of Ruwais if you're interested in more pictures:
https://www.facebook.com/ruwais.pulse

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.583105298389709.1073741838.578389815527924&type=1

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.358156627611563.116106.358092837617942&type=1

http://ruwais.ae/

Ruwais Pulse 

I hope to learn about it first-hand soon and share my own pictures and experiences.

Kids Unscripted; Chapter 17

Talia: (playing with some stuffed animals and making them talk to each other)
Elephant to the Rabbit: "Are you sure there's not an alligator between your toes?"
Rabbit to the Elephant: "Noooo!"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Elias just took some cucumber and then he threw it back up! Um, by that I mean with his hands..."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "I don't eat like a 'muncheroo'!"
Me: "What's a 'muncheroo'?"
Talia: "A kangaroo that eats really fast!"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Is 'clothing' just clothes?"
Me: "Yes..."
Talia: "So if you have a bunch of towels is it called 'towelthing?'"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Me: "Elias, what's in your hand?"
Elias: *holds up a wipe* "poo-poo bye-bye?"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Me: "Goodnight, Talia."
Talia: "I need to give you lots of hugs and kisses so you don't run out of lovin' in the middle of the night."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "If everyone in the world had blueberries, they would probably be happier."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Why are they called 'chipmunks' when they eat nuts instead of chips? Shouldn't they be called 'nutmunks?'"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Talia: "When your tummy hurts, is it because there's a storm in your tummy?"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Mommy, I turn my brain on but it keeps flipping back off!"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: (In a story she was making with her stuffed animals) "They went right, then left, then the other right, then left... and then they were exhausted." 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "If I call Elias 'little E,' would I be 'medium T'?"

Seen in Abu Dhabi 13

The little green cucumber-like things on top are called "tindora" sometimes but lately I've seen "tindly" in the stores. Some English translations call them "ivy gourds." I found a recipe on YouTube (where they were called "Dhondakai" by the way...) that I think looks interesting enough to try. Who knows what name my family might come up with for them!

Seen in Abu Dhabi: 12

Green dates covered the ground around the date palms.

Seen in Abu Dhabi: 11

I have heard these called "custard apples" or "cherimoya" both. Do you know how to use these?

Kids Unscripted; Chapter 16

Talia: (about random, faint doodles all over her math work) "I had to erase all of that... it was just from my forgotness."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Mama, I'm going to play you a song on the piano called 'God Makes Little Girls in His Creation.'"
Me: "How long is it?"
Talia: "About 20 inches tall."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Me: "Talia, be patient, hold your horses!"
Talia: "I don't have any horses, so I'll hold my ducks!"
Me: "You don't have ducks either..."
Talia: "Yes I do! They're sleeping in my bed!" *fit of crazy giggles...*
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Me: "You can either read, or go to bed"
Talia: "I only have enough energy to play!"
Me: "Then you will have to go play like you're sleeping..."
Ben: "That is my favorite game to play!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Why are nuts that are shaped like a butterfly called 'walnuts' instead of 'butterfly-shaped nuts'?"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Mama, Elias and I are just sitting here being friends."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "I make art because I love people and it makes their eyes happy."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "It doesn't matter how pretty the pencil is if it doesn't write..."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Mommy, you can call me 'lovely girl Talia' if you want..."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Do people put sticks in a stick-grinder to make brown paint?"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Talia: "Some people make bird-chirpy sounds, but Elias BELLOWS!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Talia: "Mommy, why isn't 'Ponka-tonna-phillis' a name?"

Seen in Abu Dhabi: 10

 The sign said "academia," a Guatemala friend called them "nispero" and I'm still not really sure what these are...

Lighting at the Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi

There are many things to notice in the details of a palace, and I do not have the slightest clue about the basics of decorating or architecture. However, something that caught my eye the most at Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi were the light fixtures.

The ones in this passageway were some of the more simple.

Several forms of lamps in an almost feathery or palm frond pattern were scattered throughout the decor of the building:

Some had more intricate bases or metal work:

 

And the sometimes muted and sometimes highly polished gold in every area accented by cut glass or jewels also appeared in the light fixtures.

It was as if the gold picked up the light and reflected it back with a more subtle glow.

Seen in Abu Dhabi 9

Asafoetida... yes, I had to look it up. Perhaps some interesting things about this ground up perennial herb resin are that it has a nickname of "devil's dung" and supposedly "reduces the growth of indigenous microflora in the gut, reducing flatulence^."

Piroshki

Since almost every nationality in the world can be found in Abu Dhabi, I've learned just as much or more about other cultures as I have the Emirate one. Annnnd, since one of the best parts of any new culture is figuring out how they cook, I was very excited when my friend from Uzbekistan taught me how to make piroshki:

A simple mixture of either yogurt or cream with flour, is the base for the dough. Egg or baking powder can be used for leavening and a dash of salt for flavor... and that's it. Mix it until it isn't sticky, (we didn't even measure, just started with about two cups of yogurt and added flour until it was soft, but easy to handle without sticking to fingers.) If you'd like to see the recipe in Russian, check it out here... This is the one approved by my friend, anyhow. Some English ones in .pdf can be found here.

For the filling, anything can be used, but since meat can be very expensive, one traditional filling is pumpkin. We chopped onion very fine and cooked it in butter until transparent and then added grated pumpkin. To this mixture we added sugar to taste and let it cook down until very soft. Apple is another popular filling that I might have to try later. I had never tried savory onion and pumpkin also mixed with sugar, but it was a really nice flavor.

Stuffing the pumpkin inside of the circles of dough, pinching the seams closed and then frying them reminded me of making pupusas in Guatemala...

They were delicious!

Cloud Seeding: Scientific Rainmakers in the Desert

If you've never heard of cloud seeding, it's basically shooting frozen air or chemicals into the atmosphere to enhance the weather conditions, like rain. This is practiced in Abu Dhabi leading to about a week of rainy days. I'm not so sure of the long-term effects from something like this, but since I can't control that, we just enjoyed having the rain while it lasted!

Look, there's actually water on the side of the road! This picture taken entering Dubai with Ibn Battuta Mall visible in the background.

Visit to Ghayathi in the Western Region of Abu Dhabi

Ghayathi is about a 2.5 hour drive from Abu Dhabi, and further from the city in a more country, desert setting.

 We saw a tent outside of a big fancy home with a satellite on one side and water/sink hooked up on the other.

 Like all of Abu Dhabi, pictures of the leaders abound.

 There was quite a bit of structured green places in Ghayathi.

We've heard there are more camel and horse stables around here also... and Talia is really interested in finding those!

Seen In Abu Dhabi 8

A Bedouin tent outside of a big, fancy home in Ghayathi, Abu Dhabi's desert region. Going to the desert is a way to connect with nature over the weekend for many families in this region. It was interesting to see the satellite dish and sink hooked up outside of the tent, though.

Kids Unscripted; Chapter 15

Talia: "Purple and grape rhyme when you look at them, just not when you say them."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "My eyes are getting tired. They make me feel like there's a half-onion laying around somewhere."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "I want to be a thing-maker when I get big."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Elias, you're my favorite brother!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Is this vitamin good for if you accidentally eat a bug?"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Mommy, I don't think my brain is working right. I tried to turn on my dreams last night and they would baaarrrely work!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Me: "Talia, where is your plate?"
Talia: "Sitting patiently on the table waiting for something to fill it up!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Talia: "Mama, you're my favorite thing to play with."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Me: "Talia, what do you think we should make for breakfast?"
Talia: "Scrambled egg and peanut butter sandwiches!"
Me: "All together? Ewwwwww!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "What if you had a voice like a tum-nimmy song?"
Me: "What is a 'tum-nimmy'?"
Talia: "It's a special kind of mouse song."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elias: "Waaaaaah"
Ben: "Why's Elias crying?"
Talia: "I put his shoes on his hands..."
Elias: "WAAAAAAHHH"
Ben: "Now why is he crying?"
Talia: "Because I took the shoes OFF of his hands... and that just doesn't make sense!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 {Note: Angry Bird stuffed animals are a big thing in the U.A.E. So I told Talia what they were and she said:}
Talia: "I want the play the 'birdy get out of the rubberband' game!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talia: "Sometimes 'helpers' make things even harder, don't they?"
Me: "Haha, how did you figure that out!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Elias' 16-month-old guide to understanding his talk:

"Balala" = "Banana"
"booboo" = "I have a dirty diaper..."
"Biaper" = "diaper"
"BITE" = "I think I'm going to die if I don't get food in my mouth right NOW!"
"tay-too" = "thank you"
"boom" = "broom"
"tee-koh" = "tickle"
"dedos" = Spanish for "fingers" or "toes"
"ish" = "shoes"
"down!" = this can mean "up" or "down" depending on where he is at the moment.
"uh!" = "up"
 "Dada" = "Papi" (and we've never called him anything else, so I'm not sure why he's saying 'Dada...')
"dis" = "this"
"Pahpah" = "Pawpaw"
"ow-sigh" = "outside"
"beh" = "bear"
"nai-nai" = "night-night"

Then there are words like: "bye bye, Mama, wow and Talia" that don't need any translation.
He understands exponentially more than he says at this point in time. I have a feeling it won't be long before he is talking my ears off just as much as his older sister.

Sandstorms, Lightning Shows and Earthquakes

This week has held quite a bit of crazy climate.

What started as a breeze, turned into a strong wind which then became a full-blown sandstorm.

The wind then blew in some rain apparently and a friend of ours caught this photo of an excellent lightning show:

Then, an earthquake in Iran caused many of the really tall buildings (65 stories etc.) get evacuated temporarily. Emirates247.com reported:

The UAE’s National Center Of Meteorology and Seismology (NCMS) spoke to Emirates 24|7 confirming the same, saying: “An earthquake has struck South of Iran measuring 6.2. The tremors were felt in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah because of its epicentre.”

Iran had several casualties from the earthquake.

Thankfully, no tsunami on the gulf is expected as a result.

Desert Taxi