Madinat Jumeirah

Just like in any other metro, weekends in Dubai is hot and happening, but that again accompanies the problem of parking with it... My parents were in Dubai for a weeks visit and my husband had to cover most of the places in that short period.. Due to hot weather, our daily schedule used to be, we used to start at 4 in the evening and back home by 9.. Even a days skip would end up in missing any of the places... As per schedule our visit to Madinat Jumeirah was on a weekend.. Just believe we ended up roaming for almost an hour searching for the parking and were back without a visit....

Madinat Jumeirah, the Arabian Resort - Dubai, is a luxurious 5 star resort in Dubai and is also the largest resort in the emirates, spreading across over 40 hectares of landscapes and gardens. It is designed to resemble a traditional Arabian town. The resort comprises of two boutique hotels(Al Qasr and Mina A'Salam) and courtyard of 29 summer houses called Dar Al Masyaf. The resort has 40 restaurants and bars. It is surrounded by landscaped gardens, with some located on the beachfront. 

5.4km of waterways link the different areas of the resort, and water taxis allow guests to travel along them to all parts of the resort. The waterway is in constant flow with sea water being pumped in at one end of the resort and flowing back out to sea at the other end. The waterways are also home to a turtle sanctuary that aims to rehabilitate injured turtles.

In the Souk(market) area are the shops selling jewellery, antiques, art, oils and spices, and a series of  restaurants and bars.  

Linked to Our World Tuesday, Tuesday Around the World, first photo is linked to Tones On Tuesday, Weekend Reflection

Skywatch Friday

I was trying to create backup of all my old photo CDs and found one of them was damaged.... I was able to retrieve only few albums and few pics. Can anybody help me in retrieving other pics??

These pics of vessels at Umm Al Quwain, UAE port were clicked from Flemingo beach resort, though i lost most of the pics from this album... 

Linked to Skywatch Friday, ABC Wednesday V as in Vehicle/Vessel..

PS: Other pics have been retrieved, thanks magiceye for your suggestion.. 

Wednesday Bazaar - 2 - Hookah Shop

For this weeks Wednesday Bazaar is a shop selling Lamps and Hookahs at Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai.  Hookah or Sheesha pipes are one of the few souvenirs you can pick up from Dubai.

Wednesday Bazaar is a series where I post pictures of Bazaar or markets from around the world.. Check more Bazaars here.

Linked to Tones On Tuesday

50th Post - Happy Mahavira Jayanthi

This is my 50th post and am happy to post this on the auspicious occasion of Mahavir Jayanthi. 
Mahavira Jayanti, also known as Mahavira Janma Kalyanak, celebrates the birth of Mahavira, the last Thirthankara in Jainism. He was born on the thirteenth day of the rising moon of Chaitra maasa(first month of Hindu Calender). Born a prince in 599 BC, Mahavira renounced worldly life at the age of 30 and undertook austere penance until he achieved realization.

Birth:

Mahavira, also known as Vardhamana was born into royalty as the son of King Siddhartha(king of Kaundinyapura on the outskirts of Vaishali near Patna in Bihar) and Queen Trishala. During pregnancy, Trishala was believed to had a number of auspicious dreams, all signifying the coming of a great leader. 

An Image depicting the auspicious dreams

The astrologers interpreted these dreams claimed that the child would become either an emperor or a Thirthankar. It is said that when Trishala finally gave birth to Mahavira, the god-king Indra bathed the newborn himself with celestial milk, a ritual essentially marking him as a Thirthankar. 

Mahavira renounced worldly life at the age of 30 and undertook austere penance until he achieved realisation.  Even as a boy, Mahavira came to be associated with many episodes of absolute fearlessness which earned him the name `Mahavira'. He grew up as a prince, excelling in physical prowess and intellectual acumen. He renounced the pleasures and luxuries of the place, as also the power and prestige of kingship and undertook a life of intense penance for more than twelve years. He calmly bore not only the rigors of nature but the torments from the ignorant and mischievous among his own countrymen also. He finally became self-illumined. But not content with his own personal salvation, he chose to become a great human redeemer.

Celebration:

Local statues of Mahavira are given a ceremonial bath called the Abhisheka. 

Idols of lord Mahavir

Abhisheka with Sandal 

During the day, many Jains engage in some sort of charitable act in the name of Mahavira while others travel to temples to meditate and offer prayers. Lectures are typically held in temples to preach the path of virtue as defined by Jain doctrine. Donations are collected in order to promote charitable missions like saving cows from slaughter or helping to feed poor people. Ancient Jain temples across India typically see an extremely high volume of practitioners come to pay their respects and join in the celebrations.

A procession of a decorated chariot with Lord Mahavira

Linked to Tuesday Around the World

Al Ain Zoo

This post on Al-Ain Zoo is part of Weekend getaway to Al-Ain.

Founded in 1968 by the late Sheikh Zayed, Al Ain Zoo is a true family destination, providing entertainment and learning experiences in a natural outdoor environment. You can discover the zoo's wildlife and enjoy a great day out packed with fun and adventure, and explore large animal collection of over 4,000 animals. 

It has been a center for endangered species conservation, most notably the successful breeding of desert antelopes and gazelles, such as the endangered Arabian oryx.

The first guest you encounter are Flamingos. 

Shuttle takes you from the main gate to various stop-off points, providing a comfortable and fast way to get around the zoo. 

Zoo Shuttle 

Ostrich 

Antelope   

In bird house are  

(Updated: must be Pheasant, not sure though)

 

Penguin

Souvenir Shop(this picture is downloaded from Zoo website)

This Zoo is a member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquaria (WAZA), and has set up a number of strategic partnerships with leading zoos, conservation agencies and associations from across the world, including the World Conservation Union and Species Survival Commission, Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi, San Diego Zoo, Edinburgh Zoo, the Northern Rangelands Trust of Kenya and the Sahara Conservation Fund.
Linked to Camera Critters, The Bird D'Pot, ABC Wednesday

Al Ain

Al Ain is a lush green oasis city located approximately 160km east of the capital of the United Arabic Emirates, Abu Dhabi, and 140km South of Dubai. Sitting at the foot of the Hajar mountain range, Al Ain's reputation as the 'Garden City' is due to the 10,000 hectares of green land that comprise its parks and gardens. Translated to mean 'The Spring', Al Ain is the second largest city in the emirate of Abu Dhabi.

After a perfect munch to break the fast at Vasantham, our vehicle picked us from the Kamath corner. As our whole gang had joined this trip we needed a 15 seater Hiace to comfortable accommodate all of us. We started at 9:30 in the morning(from Dubai), with the perfect UAE roads we reached our first destination Hili Fun City by 11. 

Hili City is a Theme Park, you can enjoy unlimited access to 31 attractions, ranging from gentle rides for the little ones, to fun family roller-coasters, thrilling rides and an amphitheatre for live shows. Beautifully landscaped and shaded gardens. As it was a day's trip we couldn't spend much time here, had a boat ride and walked through the Horror House.

Next was to Sameer's friend's place, who stayed in a villa(an independent/individual house) which for we from Dubai was indeed a dream... Had dinner and headed to Al-Ain Zoo... Separate post on Al-Ain Zoo... 

Driving through Al-Ain Roads

A round about in Al-Ain

From Zoo was the most awaited Jebel Hafeet Mountain. On the way was a water fountain, unfortunately i don't remember the name... 

Jebel Hafeet is a mountain on the outskirts of Al Ain. The mountain actually straddles part of the border with Oman. The mountain rises 1249 meters and offers an impressive view over the city. The Jebel Hafeet Mountain Road extends for 11.7 km up the mountain. With 21 corners and three lanes (two climbing and one descending). The road scales the mountain and ends at a parking lot with only a hotel and a palace belonging to the country's rulers. It seems part of the climax of the Bollywood movie Race was shot on this mountain.

This day view pic i downloaded from Wikipedia

Night view of Al- Ain city from the mountain peak.

We were back in Dubai at 11 in the night after a day well spent...

Linked to Tuesday Around the World, Our World Tuesday

Wednesday Bazaar - 1 - Vegetable stall

Bazaar in Hindi(Official Indian language) means, a market consisting of a street lined with shops and stalls. This is a new series on my blog on the Bazaars i have been clicking of... 

An added adjective of Wednesday to this series has my own personal reason... Thats we have vegetable and fruit market every Wednesday in my society.... A vegetable vendor displays his stalls with the demand of the women folk and society permission. It starts at around 3 in the afternoon, in mins you will find the stuffs getting empty... Its view from my balcony is wow... So am starting this series with the pics of Bazaar in my building...

Evening Desert Safari in Dubai

Desert Safari is a must for everyone who visit UAE. A memory to share with your family and friends back home.  We had booked an Evening Desert Safari.

This tour departed in the afternoon across the desert of Dubai with several photo-stops during an exciting dune drive to the first destination a camel farm. The drive continued across the desert. We stopped to watch the beautiful sunset before reaching our campsite where was camel ride, sand boarding and henna design. After working up an appetite, enjoyed a delicious barbeque dinner and shisha (the famous Arabic water pipe). Before returning watched out belly dancer performing her show around the campfire by starlight. 

Entering the desert... 

First stop, Sun set Photography

We reach the Campsite...

My hubby in traditional Arabic dress Kandoora... 

Me getting done Henna.

Bar Be Que Dinner getting ready

Belly Dancing Show 

Linked to Skywatch Friday, Thursday Challenge.