How to Judge a Camel Beauty Contest

Note to readers: This is the final blog of a three part series about our adventure to the Al Dhafra Camel Festival. Top 10 Tips for Enjoying the Al Dhafra Camel Festival, Camel Bling-Bling and How to Judge a Camel Beauty Contest

An Arabian Asayles Beauty Queen.

The first time I heard about a Camel Beauty Contest I laughed. I had no idea these goofy-looking beasts with the big hump had a lot in common with very valuable majestic thoroughbred horses. I learned at the camel festival that a camel’s value, performance and beauty, just like a thoroughbred’s, are determined by their skeletal structure, the sleekness of their coat and the all-important pedigree. Both can cost an absolute fortune.

There is a disparaging saying, “A camel is a horse designed by a committee” because its parts don’t go together. But, I tell you that after our forays into camel festival beauty contests, I believe that a camel is far more complex and has a beauty all-to-its own that can rival a thoroughbred any day. 

Now that Roger and I are semi-pros on the camel festival circuit, I think it is time to impart what we’ve learned about judging a camel’s beauty. I am certain that newly un-employed American Idol judge Simon Cowell is rolling his eyes and touting that little “I can’t believe I am hearing this” smirk. But just eat your heart out Simon, this is way out of your judging league. 

A TUFF Adventure in the UAE with 900 teenagers

The cavernous hall is set to accommodate 900. The band puts finishing touches on a few songs.  Volunteers struggle to hang banners on the stage. A group of helpers hustle to fill 900 “goody” bags. Performers focus inwardly, preparing for the show.

Outside, buses continuously arrive disgorging their boisterous teenage passengers into the courtyard. This mass of adolescent humanity steal clandestine measures of each other as they move into the hall and jockey for front row seats. The noise level is close to ear-splitting.  Roger and I sit in the audience stunned by the scene unfolding around us.

NET Team Band members (l. to r.) Emily, Laura, Becca and Mario

are cheered on by Mickenzie.

A music concert about to begin you may think?  

“We are chaperoning this group for the weekend?” Roger asks incredulously. All I can muster is a catatonic nod. 

Top 10 Tips for Enjoying the Al Dhafra Camel Festival, Abu Dhabi, UAE

Note to readers: This is part one of a three part series about our adventure to the Al Dhafra Camel Festival. Coming soon are Camel Bling-Bling and How to Judge a Camel Beauty Contest. 

Stay tuned.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Al Dhafra Camel festival Million Street parade. See Tip#10

There is an art to enjoying a camel festival . . .

If you are looking for an authentic Arab experience, the Dahfra Camel Festival is a must see.

This celebrated festival occurs the last two weeks of December in a desert camp city that sprouts up just outside of Madinat Zayed about a 2 hour ride into the desert from Abu Dhabi. This is a serious festival. At the 2013 Festival, the winners of the various festival competitions took home 50 million dirhams ($13,623,978+) in prize money including 198 top-of-the-line SUVs.    

In 2012, Roger and I ranked this camel festival #2 in our 2012 Top Adventures In and Around Dubai; for 2013 it will retain its #2 slot. We just love getting down with the natives!

So here are my Top 10 Tips for enjoying the one-and-only Dhafra Camel Festival:

UAE National Day Celebration

Countries around the world relish celebrating their founding days and in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) they take their National Day seriously. 

His Highness Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Nayhan

Celebrated on December 2, National Day commemorates the day in 1971 that His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan banded together the seven emirates of the Trucial States to form a new country - United Arab Emirates. National Day is an exuberant celebration of the greatness of this young country’s heritage.

One thing Emiratis love is their cars. Just stand on any street corner and watch the show. Glitzy, glamorous, bejeweled and audacious are words that describe the cars you can see. For National Day, all restraints are unleashed in the fervorous activity to decorate one’s car for the big celebration and show one’s love for their country . . . and proudly parading them all over town.  

My First Omani Wedding . . . A Distinctive Arab Experience

The Bride’s Love Seat

The female security guard discretely slips me through a side door and gestures for me to sit at the table in the corner. The Arabic music is pulsating and the room is reverberating with the nervous energy of 400 women. Suddenly, the lights dim and everyone turns to watch. A bride, dressed in a Western-style long white wedding gown with matching trailing veil has a death grip on her bouquet of roses as she takes very slow measured steps down the center aisle towards the “Bride’s Love Seat.” Her unsmiling face is devoid of emotion.

Following the bride are several bejeweled “bridesmaids” moving en mass like a swarm of bees following their queen. Rising above the pounding music, warbling female tongues emit the zaghareet, the high-pitched ululation made by Arab women to congratulate the bride. The level of noise is deafening but I am not going to miss a moment of this.

Ramadan Iftar Dinner . . . A generous gesture of mutual respect

The Camp

The stark compound is bathed in the fading sunlight.  The cream colored containers blend with the sand into a monochromatic landscape. It is very still on the island with only the movement a mild gulf breeze breaking the searing heat of the day.  

I see a few men dressed in shalwar kameezs (baggie trousers and long tunics) and lungis (sarong like skirts) waiting around the gate entrance with wary anticipation as we position our cars full of food and gifts just up the hill from the camp. My welcoming wave receives no like response.  I admit that this makes me apprehensive. What if we don’t have enough for everyone? What if we've brought the wrong food?  What if they don’t come for our gifts?

Volunteer Farooque Rao assists the men to
 line up to receive their Iftar dinner and gifts. 

It is the last Friday of Ramadan and the Al Reem Ramadan Charity Project is delivering its first Iftar dinner and gift package to the 250 men living in a labor camp on Al Reem Island in Abu Dhabi, UAE.  Just three short weeks before, through emails and flyers, I began gathering generous souls to help. My goal was to fund one Iftar dinner (the celebratory evening meal during Ramadan) and give the men a gift bag of 5-6 essential personal items and food. (The team so over achieved this goal!)

How does a non-Muslim living in a Muslim country survive and thrive during Ramadan? . . . Thoughts from Abu Dhabi.

The Holy Month of Ramadan is upon us. For a non-Muslim living in a Muslim country like the United Arab Emirates, this means making some lifestyle adjustments.  To make this easier, the first thing a non-Muslim must do is understand the practices and rituals of Ramadan. The second thing is to find a way to thrive during Ramadan.

On the Streets of Abu Dhabi . . . . Comfort Food

A twirling action catches my eye as I round the corner. Across the street a man sits in the window of a tiny store. The store sign says Ariyana Bakery but why is the man sitting in the store window? 

I am on a stroll though one of the many “squares” created by the grid system of Abu Dhabi’s streets.

Surviving Our Move from Dubai to Abu Dhabi . . . First Impressions

Abu Dhabi Corniche skyline
photo courtesy of www.panoramio.com 

When Roger and I announce our intention to move from Dubai to Abu Dhabi many of our friends expressed grave concerns.

“It’s so much slower than Dubai.”

“Do they have any really good restaurants?”

“It is much more traditional than Dubai, it may be hard to make friends.”

“Oh, so sorry to hear you have to move there. Everyone says it isn't as much fun as Dubai.”

Oh dear  . . . . listen up my Dubai friends, this joint is jumping – literally!

What is one of the great losses of expat living in Dubai? American Football!

First touchdown of the inaugural Desert Bowl Game

is scored by the Abu Dhabi Wildcats.

“Who let the dogs out!” Or, should that be camels?

Guess what my lovely husband Roger finds in Dubai? American football! What a great surprise for poor football-starved Roger.

One of the great losses of expat life in Dubai is watching a good American football game. 

Grocery Shopping in Dubai . . . A Never-ending Scavenger Hunt

Oh Dubai! How I love the adventure of living with you! 

The thrill of navigating your roads, the adrenalin-pumping gauntlet of your bureaucratic mazes, the tongue-twisting test of translating your many English dialects  . . . and the adventure of foraging for groceries! 

Life is a never-ending adventure here!

When one relocates to a new locale, it doesn't have to be as exotic as Dubai just any ordinary city will do, it is always a challenge to locate the right outlets to purchase the food stuffs with which you love to cook. In my case, we are talking American food products.

Be you a lowly beginner, a seasoned chef or an intrepid food explorer we all face the same dilemma. Where do you find the ingredients for that most perfect dish that makes your family sing your praises?

Read on, you will be very surprised to learn what is the hardest product to find in Dubai!

The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque - One of the most talked about attractions in the world!

Official image of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

It seems quite a lot of people agree with me that the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi is one of the most wonderful places on this earth!

Just this week the UAE newspapers reported that users of TripAdvisor ranked it as number 16 on the list of the top most talked about attractions in the world. It joins the ranks of such iconic global sites as Sydney Harbor, the Coliseum in Rome, the Eiffel Tower in Paris and Central Park in New York City. 

What makes it so special?

Battle of the Chefs - Who is Dubai's Top Chef?

"Battle of the Chefs"
Nineteen at The Address Montgomerie

Ok. So I admit it! I am a rabid foodie – a person having an overly zealous interest in food.

I love Food! I love to read about it, I love to shop for it, I love to experiment with it, I love to cook it and I really love to eat it!

I love nothing better than to slosh around my kitchen trying out new dishes, new techniques and/or new ingredients. And God bless Roger for willingly eating the good, the bad and the ugly.

So when my friend Theresa Dommett invites us to Dubai’s “Battle of the Chefs.” faster than Emerile Lagasse can say “BAM, I accept!”  

“Roger, we have another adventure!” I proudly announce. “We are going to watch the top chefs in Dubai battle it out in the kitchen and then we get to taste and judge their unique creations just like the Iron Chef on TV.”  Words cannot express his delight!

2012 Best Restaurant Experiences In and Around Dubai

One of life's great pleasures is a perfectly prepared meal enjoyed at a nice restaurant. It doesn't matter how fancy or how expensive the restaurant is but it is the ambiance of the setting, the care taken with the foods and flavors plus the graciousness of the staff that makes it memorable.

As we approach the new year, Roger and I reflected on the past year’s dining adventures. For those of you who live in Dubai, or will be visiting, we hope that our list helps you to pare down the overwhelming dining choices in Dubai. It is not an all inclusive list for we know there are many more excellent restaurants in Dubai that we haven’t yet discovered, but here are our favorite dinners from 2012. You may want to try them in 2013.

Where is the most unique shopping scene in Dubai?

Dubai, like everything else here, takes shopping to the ultimate!

This amazing city is infamous for the extravagance of its shopping experiences. You can gorge yourself at the mega malls, one has more than 1200 stores, packed with every ultra-expensive designer and luxury brand known to woman. You can click right through ever expanding online shopping sites, save at multiple Duty Free Stores at the airport or scrounge for bargains at an outlet mall located in the desert. Shop around the world at Global Village or wander narrow passageways scavenging the traditional souqs for spices, textiles and heaven knows what else.

To tempt shoppers even more, Dubai offers two city wide shopping festivals a year where more than 6,000 stores offer heavy discounts. In fact, retail accounts for around 30 percent of the gross domestic product in Emirate of Dubai.

This is all well and good but maybe you are looking for something more? . . . something priceless?

Where is the most unique shopping experience in Dubai?

Bollywood Dinner Theatre … Only in Dubai!

The lights go down.

Center stage a beautiful Indian woman exquisitely dressed in a seductive sparkling ghagra (skirt) and choli (top) strikes a melodramatic pose.

The heavy bass beat of loud rhythmic music pounds out of the speakers just above our heads.

In the background a gushing waterfall with two suspended TV screens shows flashy dance scenes from Bollywood movies that the on stage performers pantomime.

The exotic dancer gyrates to the rhythm and lip syncs the song. The show is ON!

This is The Moghul Room – The Bollywood Dinner Theatre in Dubai!

TripAdvisor EveryTrail Walking Tour . . . Dubai’s Art Galleries and Architecture

Sheikh Zayed Road
photo courtesy of flashydubai.com 

My assignment from TripAdvisor to develop five walking tours of Dubai is complete. Here are the final two tours.

Enjoy a special collection of Dubai finest art galleries in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC)  - DIFC Gate Village Art Galleries, an exciting mix of fine art, photography, masters and emerging artists.

Too hot to walk about? Try this fun Dubai Metro tour that follows the infamous Sheikh Zayed Road and shows off Dubai's iconic buildings - Skyscraper City - New Dubai.  

The Amazing Race in Dubai

The Amazing Race in Dubai has aired!

In November of 2011, Roger and I joined our American Women’s Association friends for a day of horse racing at the Meydan Racecourse in Dubai. To our surprise and delight we caught the filming of a segment of The Amazing Race. I hope you read my blog - "Never A Dull Moment in Dubai . . . The Amazing Race at the Meydan Race Track". 

Well, the series has aired and I thought you might be interested in seeing the finished product. If you want to bypass the beginning, go to 7:18 on the timer where the contestants are trying to board a flight from Delhi to Dubai.

Readers who have experienced driving in Dubai will truly appreciate the anguish and tearful frustrations of the contestants as they try to navigate the roads of Dubai. Then add to this surviving dune bashing, camel bashing, Wild Wadi and the dilemma of picking a winner at the horse races and you have one hilarious episode. 

Roger and I laughed through the whole show.  Enjoy!

TripAdvisor EveryTrail Walking Tour . . . The Ultimate - Downtown Dubai

My assignment from TripAdvisor to create five walking tours of Dubai has been great fun to develop. Doing the research for the tours has led me to find such interesting facts about my adopted city.

Burj Khalifa - the tallest
building in the world.

Do you know how many “Ultimates” – the superlatives - there are in the Downtown Dubai area? 

It is amazing . . . but then again in Dubai being the first, the biggest, the best is a much sought after quest!

The Ultimate . ..Downtown Dubai Walking Tour

TripAdvisor EveryTrail Walking Guides . . .Dubai Souqs & Bastakiya

I recently picked up a small assignment from TripAdvisor that has been so much fun - create 5 walking tours of Dubai. 

It was easy to come up with the first four – 1) my favorite place in all of Dubai – The Souqs; 2) a very close second - the historic Bastakiya area in Burj Dubai; 3) DIFC Art Galleries – something that has been on my bucket list for some time and so glad I finally went; and 4) The Ultimate Dubai – I was amazed to find so many world records all in one place – Downtown Dubai.  

But, number 5 has been a bit more difficult to identify.