Out and About in Dubai

 

A non-food related TT this week!

9 months after quitting my job in New York, getting married to the BF of 5 years, relocating to Dubai, and taking the time to explore a new country, I am just about to say goodbye to the life of leisure and embark on a new job, new career, and a whole new set of experiences.

Only 3 more days of leisure left!

13 Things I’ll Miss When Starting the New Job

 

13. Marathon sessions of Heroes, 24, Lost, etc.

12. Wearing pajamas all day and not even bothering to brush my teeth (at least until the hubby gets home).

11. Meeting up with other non-working friends for coffee, lunch, tanning, or mahjong.

10. Impromptu trips like the Seychelles.

9. Spending all morning at the gym - run 6 miles, yoga class, sit in sauna, then enjoy a leisurely beach-side lunch.

8. Prepping and cooking time-consuming recipes likes roasts or stews all day long.

7. Being able to jump in a car at anytime and explore Dubai on a whim.

6. Drinking until all hours of the morning on Sundays (due to hashing).

5. Shopping at the malls when it’s quiet b/c majority of the population is at work.

4. Rock climbing at Wafi on Sunday and Wednesday mornings when the rock wall is open to non-members and practically empty (evenings are packed and hectic).

3. Free time to work on my online blog and photo projects.

2. Sleeping in if I so choose to (although try as I might, I’m usually awake at 5:30am and out of bed by 7am).

1. And the #1 thing I’ll miss the most - Reading all my blogs!!!

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Only 4 days of unemployment left!

I decided to reward myself with a fancy dinner at Al Muntaha in the Burj in honor of having finally landed a job. DB and I went last night and this time we did indeed valet the car to avoid the horror of the last self-park episode.

Although we almost went into the parking garage again as DB did not want to pull up in our little Yaris hatchback that not only hadn’t been washed in over a week (so it is dusty and grimy as hell due to the sandy conditions here) but also emits a very high-pitched squeak from the engine. Boys and their complexes with cars - I just don’t get it.

So we valeted and made our way up to whatever floor the restaurant is at. It is a shame that there is not much of a view up there - we were seated by the window and I could barely even make out the lights from the Palm.

Unfortunately, I was able to make out the blinking LED wall lights and the psychedelic colors that is the interior of the restaurant. All that seemed to be missing was a few oversized disco balls:

The photo above is from the Burj website. Eschewing the usual protests and exasperating looks from DB, I did manage this time to take my own photos of our meal!

Our waiter started us off with an amuse bouche of lobster consommé (with lobster meat) for DB and a sweetcorn velouté with crab meat for me. Both were very very yummy. Note my sophisticated usage of food descriptors here - don’t you all wish you could come up with “very very yummy”? I’ll be the greatest food writer yet!

DB’s appetizer was an Oxtail salad with um…hm…I can’t remember but there was frisee, truffles and a quail egg. It was also very good!

My appetizer was a Ravioli of Canadian Lobster (in its own foam):

Looks like a big yellow foamy mushroom, huh? And here’s what it looked like when cut up:

DB chose the special of the night: Sirloin of Wagyu beef (medium rare). The 2 round patties on top are flavored butters but it didn’t need it. The Wagyu by itself was so freaking good I thought I was going to pass out:

I ordered the New Zealand Venison (medium rare) in Beet Jus. A bit skeptical at first of the beet sauce but I am a huge beet fan so I thought I’d give it a shot. It was absolutely divine. The venison was so tender and juicy and the sweetness of the beet sauce complimented the meat perfectly. The red clump on top is fried beet I think.

My dish also came with a side of Colcannon which I have had once before and hated it but this time around I loved it! The mashed potatoes were perfectly buttered, and I love veggies, so loved the cabbage which gave it a nice sweet crunch. Don’t think it needed the extra slab of meat that was on top but otherwise a perfect side dish to go with the venison:

The service was very friendly and attentive yet non-obtrusive. DB and I skipped dessert as we were both stuffed like happy pigs in a blanket!

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Just a quick post to say that this past Wednesday (1.5 weeks after I received my offer letter) I received my employment contract and am now due to start work on Monday, June 15th - WOOHOO!!!

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On the way to work in the mornings, DB likes to listen to Dubai Eye FM 103.8 (therefore subjecting me to listen to it as well). From 6 to 9am, they have a segment called “Business Breakfast” where the hosts Brandy Scott and Malcolm Taylor interview different guests on business and financial topics like oil prices, inflation, the USD-Dirham peg, etc.

Yesterday morning, Robert Norton, CEO of Dubai-based Zabeel Properties, was interviewed from Las Vegas about Brad Pitt’s involvement with one of their luxury and economically-friendly 5-star properties (location in Dubai is top secret but DB knows and won’t/can’t tell me!).

Anyway, you can read some of the details here.

At the end of the interview, Mr. Norton was asked why Zabeel Properties chose to suddenly make public the Brad Pitt association even though they had been in collaboration for a year now. Norton responded that there was so much publicity on this recently that they decided to go public with the news. Something about paparazzi and taking the pressure off Brad.

Norton was also asked if Brad Pitt would get a free condo/unit in the new property since the consulting work that Brad is doing is all pro bono. Well, the answer is no, Brad will not be rewarded with a free unit. (Not that he needs one, he’s already bought a private island in The World.)

The final question that was asked of Norton was if they will use Brad Pitt’s name as a marketing ploy? Again the answer was no. (WHAAAT?! Not use a celebrity figure as marketing? Ha! That would be a first for Dubai.)

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A weird thing happened to me at lunch today. I got into my car, turned on the radio, and expected the usual Jay-Z, Maroon 5, or Rhiannon to be blasting through the speakers. Instead, all I heard was classical music. I tried another preset - more classical. In fact, ALL my presets were either classical (or worse: elevator) music.

I thought that someone had broken into my car to play a practical joke on me. Then I pinched myself to see if I was awake or in some alternate universe where hip-hop and rock music were banned. Eventually, a veejay came on the air to relay the news that one of the Sheikhs had died. Sheikh Nasser, the brother to the President of the UAE (that would be Sheikh Khalifa of Abu Dhabi) had died in a helicopter accident last night. So I guess the nation is in a state of mourning and rock music is not allowed?
 

From Business 24-7:

The Ministry of Presidential Affairs on Tuesday announced the death of Sheikh Nasser Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the brother of The President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler of Abu Dhabi.

Sheikh Nasser died on Monday night when the helicopter carrying him and his colleagues crashed over Gulf waters.

In a statement, the Ministry of Presidential Affairs announced a three-day mourning period starting on Tuesday, during which ministries and government departments will remain closed.

Funeral prayers for Sheikh Nasser and his colleagues will be performed at the Sheikh Sultan Bin Zayed Mosque in Al Bateen.

Sheikh Khalifa will receive condolences on Tuesday at Al Mushrif Palace after the funeral service.

The Court of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai mourns the death of Sheikh Nasser bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The Court announces three days of mourning in Dubai.

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13 of My Favorite Foods that Keep Me at The Gym

 

I have been delinquent the last few weeks as I couldn’t think of any inspiring themes. Then I thought, why not just write about the one thing that’s on my mind 24/7….Food!
 

So this week, here are 13 of my favorite foods that keep me on the treadmill for 12-15 miles each week to keep those calories off!
 

1. Rib-eye steaks. This is my favorite cut because it’s nice and fatty. And nothing beats Kobe beef. It’s so smooth, velvety, and tender it just melts in your mouth - like budda! - and worth every penny (or fil). The first time I had it was about 2 years ago in New York and now I’m hooked!
 

2. Kentucky Fried Chicken. Well, any fried chicken really. I’m not picky as long as the skin is nice and crispy and the meat is tender and juicy. Better if it comes with mashed potatoes and meat gravy. But you can’t go wrong with the Colonel.
 

3. Foie gras. Not the pate or terrine kind or the stuff that comes in a jar but the controversial and really high caloric duck/goose liver pan-fried in nothing but salt and butter…oooh…heaven.
 

4. Pizza. I prefer to buy by the pie because getting a slice is just too much of a tease. Favorite toppings: sausage, pepperoni, parma ham, prosciutto, arugula, fresh mushroom (no canned cr*p please), wild mushrooms, basil, red peppers, extra cheese, anchovies. No Way Jose: olives, pineapple.
 

I love pizza so much, I once gathered up a troop of friends to visit 6 pizzerias in one day!
 

5. Bacon. It’s great by itself. Even better when wrapped around scallops, shrimp, dates, steak, chicken…it’s just great.
 

 

6. Sausage. Not the beef or chicken kind, but real pork sausages: whether plain, Cumberland, Lincolnshire, bratwurst, weisswurst, Jimmy Dean, Hillshire, Jones, English, Italian, Spanish, Polish, German, Chinese - it’s all good!
 

7. Whoppers. Yes, from Burger King. Besides KFC, it is the only other fast-food that I like. I love the sesame-seed bun, the flame-broiled meat, the “special sauce” (which we all know is just mayo and ketchup), the meager lettuce, and even the government-grade cheese. Nothing like comfort food from your childhood and American commercialism to bring it to me wherever I am in the world.
 

8. Chicken Wings. I could eat these as a full meal. I like them bbq-ed, buffalo-ed, medium, Frank’s hot, Lebanese lime and garlic, Chinese sticky, teriyaki-ed, honey-ed, sesamed, you name it!
 

9. Shawarmas. So cheap and you can get these everywhere in Dubai. Even Ikea for the bargain price 90 cents! But the street ones taste much better. Best to order 2 or 3 at a time as they are rather small.
 

 

10. Peking Duck. Ah, there is nothing better than duck fat as mentioned in #3. So along those lines, peking duck is soooo scrumptious with its succulent meat and crispy crispy - mmm so crispy skin and that nice layer of fat in between. Man, I think I’m going to have to go to Noodle House for a quick fix of this.
 

11. Quiche Lorraine. Do real men eat quiche? I certainly think so. Quiche Lorraine contains #5 so it ranks up higher than regular quiche. I like to make mine with Gruyere cheese to make it a little richer and nuttier than just Swiss cheese. Throw in some caramelized sliced onions, bake until golden and it’s mm-mm-good.
 

12. Bone Marrow. There was a restaurant that my husband and I used to frequent in NYC called Cafe d’Alsace and they had a lovely Bone Marrow (la moelle) appetizer on their menu. It was served still in its bones with simple sea salt and grilled toast. I miss those days. It looks something like this:
 

 

13. Alcohol. What? You don’t consider 3 Guinness and 1 Oatmeal Stout a meal? I do
 

As you can see, I’m a huge carnivore. Good thing I don’t like sweets or desserts - Whew!

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I got my offer letter yesterday from the company I had interviewed with - yay!!  After my last interview, they said the offer letter would be forthcoming in a day or two but that was 2.5 weeks ago. Things are definitely slow here.  My husband waited over a month before his offer letter and contract came through. And I’ve been told that’s pretty good for Dubai standards.

However, knowledge of the fact that things are slower here doesn’t make the wait (nor the job hunt) any easier. I still worried that the company was going to take back their offer and decide not to hire me after all.  I’m glad that wasn’t the case.

So now I’ve filled out and returned some paperwork.  I think the next steps are reference checking, medical testing, and labor card applying. I wonder if I need to have my college degree attested?

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