Category: Entertainment – Art, Culture, theatre, film

Food, Music Art….its all at Bo House Cafe

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Fijianchick’s favourite Cafe 🙂


Last week I spent an evening after work at my favourite snack place, Bo House Café, the home of modern bohemians with Houri, Fadi and a couple of awesome young artists. The weather is perfect to hang out at JBR Walk anyway but what was awesome that evening was the BOZART Exhibition at Bo House in celebration of Dubai based artists. lt showcases the talented and creative work of Dubai‘s aspiring artists, Lisa Fabian, Sarah Khalil and Ishtar Al Shaybani. I had a lovely chat with Sarah and Ishtar who are as delightful as their art pieces.

I loved the art, the food and of course it was awesome to catch up with friends like Lisa and gorgeous Fadi who I normally would not see for months. It’s great to see Bo House giving local talents an opportunity to showcase their artwork on a creative and free artistic platform and its a perfect opportunity for art lovers to enjoy the café’s new menu with hearty home cooking, some made entirely from vegan friendly products.

Also the renowned Chef Giovannino Fittipaldi, conitues to create his award winning gelato, which should not be missed. I had a shot that night of a virgin cocktail that had goji berries which I got introduced to in Bahrain before as a super food …it was lush!

Bo House Cafe has been designed especially for the young, educated, and art savvy crowd who seek a haven from the bustle of daily life to a place where they can get together for fun, for love, for a scoop of award-winning Gelato, for no reason, for endless simple facts and emotions. The organically shaped rounded tables create a catalyst for creative minds to feed off each other’s talents and ideas. Its inspiring views of the coast, with waves that rhythmically lap against the shore, Bo House Café always keeps the vibe fresh and chilled.

It is naturally a concept by my favourite Pragma Group –  an organisation that balances the art and science of business and the management are just awesome fun people who are also behind the concept of the Cavalli Club, which is possibly the only night venue I love being in for snacks and chill out time with Pragma friends. Bo house Café is one place I would happily endorse as a quality venue in Dubai for chilling out with artistic and intellectual friends.

BAHRAINI PUPILS PREPARE TO SET A WORLD RECORD

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Ali Al-Hawadi, one of the Facilitators in the Bahrain Science Centre, using the ‘Memory Test’ display in the ‘Test your Talents’ gallery

World’s largest memory game to be held at the Bahrain Science Centre during Biology Week

The Bahrain Science Centre in collaboration with The Society of Biology will be part of a record attempt for the world’s largest memory game to celebrate Biology Week in October. The record attempt will take place in the Bahrain Science Centre at 4.30pm on Friday 19th October and is suitable for adults and children of all ages.

Anyone keen to put their short-term memory to the test can take part in the record attempt and learn about the fascinating world of neuroscience. The games will be simple and require no resources or preparation and will last 10 minutes. By sitting a ten-minute memory test, which has been prepared by renowned experimental psychologist Professor Bruce Hood, the pupils will be contributing to a nationwide scientific study.

Dr Mark Downs, Chief Executive of the Society of Biology, says: “This will be the climax of Biology Week, with schools, universities, and learned societies testing their memories simultaneously. We’ve been thrilled with the number of people who are keen to take part and we have high hopes for setting an impressive world record.”

According to Khalid Eshaq Alkoheji, Undersecretary for Community Development in the Ministry, the event is one of many planned at the Bahrain Science Centre to inspire and educate visitors about the life sciences.

“The involvement of the Bahrain Science Centre in the ‘Memory Test’ competition is the first of many international events in which the Science Centre will participate”, said Professor Mike Bruton, MTE Studios Director for the Science Centre, “The Science Centre is part of the international science education community and we are keen to strengthen our global network.”

Participants will sit a ten-minute memory test, prepared by renowned experimental psychologist, Professor Bruce Hood. The data from people of different ages will contribute to a scientific study.

Alongside the attempt school pupils will learn about how our brains store memories (or at least convince us we have made accurate memories!). Anyone who is interested in how the brain works, from remembering how to make a cup of tea to falling in love can watch the Society of Biology Brain Explorers video series.

Dr Downs says: “We hope the record attempt will highlight the importance of neuroscience research, especially into diseases like Alzheimer’s. The memory game is part of a series of events being held to mark Biology Week which runs from 13th-19th October and aims to inspire students about the life sciences.

The Bahrain Science Centre, located in Building 334, Road 109, Block 801, Riyadh Avenue, Isa Town in the Kingdom of Bahrain has several permanent interactive displays that test and develop the memory of visitors.

-ENDS-

Press release issued on behalf Bahrain Science Centre. For further information, please contact Shereen Shabnam on +971 507690087/ 504828177/ shereen@mtestudios.com.

Notes for editors:

The Society of Biology (www.societyofbiology.org) is a professional body for bioscientists – providing a single unified voice for biology: advising Government and influencing policy; advancing education and professional development; supporting their members, and engaging and encouraging public interest in the life sciences.

About Biology Week

The first ever Biology Week will take place on 13th-19th October, organised by the Society of Biology. Events around the country will give everyone the chance to learn about biology, the science of the 21st Century. www.societyofbiology.org/biologyweek

About Bahrain Science Centre (BSC):

The Bahrain Science Centre (BSC) is an interactive educational facility that targets children, youth and families of Bahrain. It is located in building 334, Road 109, Block 801, Riyadh Avenue, Isa Town, Kingdom of Bahrain. The science centre has six interactive exhibition galleries, an auditorium, four laboratories and a café/shop.

The role of the BSC is to promote awareness of the importance of science and technology, complement the school curriculum, stimulate curiosity and innovation, and create a forum for public debate on science and technology issues. The topics covered by current exhibitions include junior engineering, human health, the five senses, earth sciences and biodiversity.

Focusing on hands-on learning using interactive displays and people-centred programmes, such as science shows, Bahrain Science Centre also strongly promotes creativity and innovation as well as cross-generational learning. The science centre will also endeavour to promote an awareness of Bahrain’s contributions to science and technology and a strong Bahraini identity. It is an ideal family edutainment destination.

Stressing about Moon Cakes

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I just received my Mandarin lessons for this week which I do every night before I sleep – that is if I am a good girl. Most nights I just keel over and the end of the week I struggle to learn all my 6 words of the week with correct pronunciation. It may sound easy to learn 6 words a week but trust me, in Mandarin, it’s a Herculean task.

Moon cake月饼(yuè bing) is a Chinese baked food product…..they look very nice too.

In Malaysia and Singapore, my nine years there had many of my friends trying to get me eat them but I more often than not didn’t take to it. But they are very tempting with some amazing presentations during the Mid Autumn Festival or the Zhongqiu Festival.

Typical moon cakes are round or rectangular pastries that measure about 10 cm in diameter and are 4–5 cm thick. The rich, thick filling is usually made from red bean or lotus seed paste and sometimes contain yolks from salted duck eggs, surrounded by a thin (2–3 mm) crust and it was those ones I avoided.

During my visit to Hong Kong and then later to Macau and more recently to Korea, I tried moon cakes again which were slightly different to the ones I ate in Malaysia and Singapore but I still prefer the traditional cakes a lot more. Most people eat moon cakes in small wedges accompanied by Chinese tea which makes it a really nice , traditional experience, especially when it’s with good friends.

Now although I may know a bit about moon cakes, I am still struggling with my pronunciations in this lesson today – wish I had more Chinese and Asian friends in Dubai who could help me with this so my last-minute rush to complete lessons becomes a less traumatic experience.

The Journey of a Drop

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©SusanSmart – It certainly looks like a dramatic fall

If you have been following the London Design Festival 2012, by now you must have heard about the installation by Rolf Sachs at the V&A.

I read with interest how conceptual designer Rolf Sachs presentes a site-specific installation for the V&A’s rarely seen before Henry Cole Staircase. Playfully responding to the museum’s architecture, Sachs creates a visually arresting and emotionally engaging spectacle with the focus on the dramatic drop….from the images, it looks pretty dramatic.

So….emerging from his inherent curiosity and experimental personality, Rolf Sachs invites the observer on a sensory journey. Apparently spectators are drawn into the mysterious performance and a voyage of discovery that beckons the eye upward. From the soaring heights of the atrium, three lab- like instruments individually drop primary coloured ink in measured intervals.

Starting slowly, with scientific precision, each measured drop quickly gains pace. As the speed gathers momentum, the drop becomes more spontaneous in its nature, before falling into the depths and landing into a vast tank of illuminated liquid with unexpected results.

On impact the individual drops explode into the liquid creating organic transient clouds of ever changing shapes and colour. Yet once more taken by surprise, the observer sees these clouds mingle and merge until inexplicably disappearing… until the next show.

Understated at first glance, the seemingly simple notion of a drop falling has been masterfully designed using finely-tuned machinery and specially developed liquids and pigments.

Intended to touch all the senses, the apparent silent sounds of the drops hitting the water is captured by an underwater microphone and amplified like an echo throughout the space.

Encouraging further interaction, binoculars are at hand opposite the tank, to witness the complete journey of the drops from a variety of perspectives, intensifying the connection between the art and the observer. I better not tell NJD as she is dying to use her funky Nikon binoculars for weeks now and this would be such a perfect place to use it.

We know that Rolf Sachs’ work takes inspiration from everyday objects he believes to have soul and character but this is the first time I read carefully about his work.

Perhaps because he moves across art and design, objects, spaces and visual medium, all of which are approached with his playful sense of humour. Or maybe I got drawn because the essence of his work encourages human interaction, and emotional and sensory reactions.

Whatever it is, I love the fact that his ideas, prototypes and creations showcase how he fuses design with the arts.

A taste of Fiji Islands comes to UAE

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Cocktail evening at Intercontinental Hotel DFC- Little diva @NJD2000 with Fiji Prime Minister

 

Fijian smiles are the best 🙂 – UAE based Fijians welcomed the FIJI PM

Today is an awesome day for Fijians living in the UAE – we finally have an Embassy in Abu Dhabi. After nearly 12 years in UAE and explaining to everyone we meet where Fiji is, what the country is all about etc, we can now have access to resources at the Embassy to give out to people who want to know more about our beautiful paradise. 

I am particularly overjoyed that my ex-colleague from Fiji High Commission Kuala Lumpur, Emosi is part of the team in Abu Dhabi and I know from past experience he will make big things happen for Fiji in the region.

I remember a couple of years ago when the Prime Minister visited us in Dubai and the look on people’s face when he met them as they found him to be the most humble and friendliest of people ever. I recall us going shopping in DFC when the airline lost the PM’s luggage and the sales people were so overjoyed at being able to serve him. In fact, that is a trade mark of the Fijians. The warmth radiates from our soul and people pick that up so easily.

We had organised a wonderful function for him and his delegation at the Intercontinental Hotel in DFC where City 7 did an awesome programme on Fiji which was aired in UAE for the first time. I had a call from Ron who was the head of the TV station last night who was delighted to hear that PM was in UAE again and he reiterated that our PM was one of the most wonderful people he met after featuring hundreds of VIPs on his channels. Thanks to Regina, another superb islander, we had some wonderful times talking about how great it would be to have a bigger presence for Fiji in the UAE….now its come to reality.

The best thing about our PM is that he is a doer. After promising an Emirati friend who is married to a Fijian that he will make sure Emirati’s will not need a visa when they go to Fiji from then on, he kept his promise and today the Galadari family is one of the biggest advocates of Fiji Islands in the UAE and have returned to Fiji with other Emirati families in tow who continually talk about how incredibly beautiful our country is.

We may be a small nation but we certainly think big…we are proud of legends like Waisale Serevi in rugby 7s, Vijay Singh for golf and of course my friends at NTDE will tell you the many benefits of drinking FIJI water and how delighted they are to have supporting research for a product they market to show it really is the fountain of youth in its purest form.

As islanders, every Fijian is an advocate of our nation no matter which part of the world they go to…when people ask me why I don’t take a British passport after being married to one for 15 years, I don’t flinch a minute and say how proud I am to be a Fijian and how exotic and beautiful our country is that I never saw a need to.

It certainly is a celebratory time for Fijians the next few days and we welcome everyone in the UAE to get a taste of paradise when they are next thinking of taking a holiday. It will be totally worth it. 🙂

With my favourite Fijians 🙂

Fijians in UAE at Dubai Rugby 7s – bringing Fijians together

Natasha NJD2000 loves the rugby 7’s Fiji team

 

Another AMARI to try out

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Inside Amari Hua Hin

The last time I stayed in an Amari Hotel was during a 5 day stop in Bangkok on a fairly complicated journey back to Fiji Islands. With NJD and her penchant for being curious, we thought it would make sense to stop in Bangkok and Adelaide Australia so she could have a break, meet her  godmother and we could have peace of mind on shorter flight times in between. The Amari we stayed in was right in Bangkok and it was an amazing experience – now they have a new hotel Amari Hua Hin, which is the latest addition to Amari’s portfolio of properties in Thailand.

Ideally located just two and a half hours from Bangkok and next to Khao Takiab, a popular stretch of beach, the resort offers easy access to the city’s shopping and entertainment venues. The 223-room Amari Hua Hin offers refined comfort and elegant resort style accommodation combined with exclusive services and facilities including new signature initiatives that involve bringing people together, whether a group of friends, colleagues or a family.

The food outlets at Amari Hua Hin offer a selection of popular and healthy choices from family-sized sharing baguettes at Reef Deli, a modern twist on Thai street food and international favourites at Aqua Pool Bar,  signature XL cocktails or a personal BBQ grill station at Shoreline Beach Club.

In addition to the extensive dining options, the resort also boasts; conference facilities, ballroom, fitness centre, kids club and kids pool, outdoor pool surrounded by landscaped tropical gardens, a vast sundeck, and a Breeze Spa and Salon. Through an “Amari Host”, based on property and a specially designed destination web portal, “Destination Amari”, guests will be encouraged to experience local culture, whether it is through visiting nearby attractions or by attending a festival or trying a local delicacy.

One thing is for sure, in Thailand there is always something exciting happening in every street corner you turn to 🙂

The breadfruits and the jackfruits of Fiji

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A zoomed view of the greenery from the balcony of my current home in Fiji. Our tropical weather allows us to have the best of the best organic fruits and vegetables

This week I broke my fast at a Fijian friend’s house – she is married to an Emirati so the Iftar fare was a mixture of Arabic and Fijian cuisine. The reason I was there was because Rajah (my friend) had brought some breadfruit and cooked it in Fijian style with Roti and wanted me to go down memory lane as we enjoyed our iftar experience.

Fijian cuisine is unique and often one can’t recreate the taste elsewhere although in some cases one can come close. I have been battling to make soft round roti’s and curries abroad for years but because its hard to get fresh organic ingredients easily in other countries, the taste is never the same.

Occasionally we get overjoyed when we see a rare vegetable that we associate to our extensive Fijian produce and are able to cook it Fijian style as we have all the vegetables the rest of the world has but more….where else can you get a vegetable as tasty as daruka. (this is not going to be another whitebait style story, I swear. In my defence, there is no fish in the world that is as delicious as whitebait so I had to gloat about the fact that we get it in Fiji and my family always keeps this rare treat for me when it is in season)

In Fiji, we love our root crops – so instead of eating bread and rice all the time, we get our carbs through tapioca, yam (dalo), taro, breadfruits, sweet potatoes etc. We are also super lucky that our cuisine is influenced by old-world civilizations mainly Polynesian/Melanesians, Indians and Chinese with a dose of influence from our Kiwi and Aussie neighbours.

Our styles of cooking happen to be an interesting experience as well. As Polynesians, we love cooking lovo (food marinated and cooked underground on hot stones) often accompanied with root crops. We also enjoy spicy Indian cuisine and Chinese delicacies  (our chop suey, chow mien and stir fries are out of this world).

Our cooks, family members and young chefs are spoilt for choice when it comes to the variety of fresh food so they use their imaginations to experiment and come up with amazing food that Fijians abroad and visitors of Fiji keep coming back for. We come from a world where we can cook fresh white fish entirely in lemon juice, wash it and make a mean salad (kokonda) that our visitors talk about for days.

I also remember the times in Dubai both me and Rajah go scouring for jackfruit in Karama when we craved Fijian food – being a snobbish marama, I normally would not venture to Karama for love or for money but for jackfruit, or any Fijian delicacy, I am willing to put up with anything. Eaten ripe, jackfruits are the most sweetest and succulents of desserts (very popular in Asia) but I prefer the young ones cut in small pieces and fried with garlic, onion, chillies and tumeric with Fijian style roti.

I still go to Lulu Supermarket to get the ripe ones from Malaysia for my better half and the raw ones for me to cook with. In Thailand, the ripe ones are cut in small pieces and served in sweet coconut milk as desserts….lush! What is great also is that the green jackfruit is full of vitamins that helps to prevent many sicknesses like fighting cancer and lowering blood pressure.

Its going to be Eid next week and I certainly will miss my usual delicacies like fried jackfruit and going to the amazing markets in Fiji full of organic food fresh from the farms every morning. I’m glad though that NJD is coming back to Dubai post Eid and is bring me back some of the Eid goodies like barfi, coconut candy and a few other decadent and sinful things that I so enjoy!

In the meantime, I want to get my retirement sorted in Fiji – with the world in chaos, it’s about time I earned in Fiji dollars and enjoyed life under a coconut palm complete with a drink that has a multi-coloured umbrella in it. (I can see my stalker and the green-eyed monsters hoping a coconut would fall on my head and put a stop to this drivel). Oh well! – a girl can dream!

A tribute to Adi Litia Samanunu Cakobau-Talakuli – Our sweet Princess

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My family and friends who knew my connection with an amazing woman who I was privileged to have as my boss in KL have been calling to offer condolences as she sadly passed away last week. It was naturally a shock to hear the news as I always felt she was always going to be around and I will see her again during my trips to Fiji.

Like my gorgeous friend Bernadette, also a parliamentarian, I loved the positive energy of Adi who was an amazing leader for all of us working at the Fiji High Commission in Kuala Lumpur.

Adi was a highly respected Fijian chief, politician, and diplomat. She was the eldest child of Ratu Sir George Cakobau, the late Vunivalu of Bau and Governor General of Fiji. She was Minister for Fijian Affairs and was considered as a candidate for the Vice-Presidency in 1997 but she became Fiji’s High Commissioner to Malaysia where I was one of her staff and Ambassador to Thailand and the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific thereafter.

Adi was appointed to the Fijian Senate as one of nine nominees of the Fijian government and to the Cabinet as a Minister without portfolio. As the eldest child of the last Vunivalu of Bau, she was considered the senior-most chief of the Kubuna Confederacy.

Despite her Chiefly position, Adi was a kind, caring, gentle down to earth Princess who acted as a guide to young Fijians like us. She was an understanding boss and encouraged me to focus on my Masters Thesis after work every day without fail as we left the office.

As a young student in Kuala Lumpur, Adi was like a mother to me and to 3 other Fijian students in Kuala Lumpur. I enjoyed spending time with her both at the office and in the evenings when we had social engagements for the High Commission.

We never felt homesick as she, like all the other Fijian Ambassadors and High Commissioners before, made sure we always had a room in her house to stay over when we had official functions and personally cooked meals for me if I ever dropped in to visit her. She loved singing with us when the rugby players came to KL for the Cobra 7s, when we celebrated Fiji Day and generally anytime we had guests from Fiji.

Adi was a beautiful Princess, in her looks and in her heart. Most people who met her always mentioned to me afterwards how wonderful and regal she was without knowing that she was indeed a royalty in Fiji.

She was my first role model and if I am calm and collected today during the most difficult situations, it is because she taught me to be a lady. She brought people together and I remember how supportive she was when I was coming to Dubai and had to leave my siblings in KL to complete their degrees. She was my pillar of strength as I felt there was someone my siblings could turn to in my absence.

I wish I was in Fiji the last few days to pay my last respects to a woman who was my first female boss, my guardian during my student days, my role model and a caring mother figure when I needed to speak to someone during my time in Kuala Lumpur. We will forever remember Adi’s kindness and her guidance to all of us.

May her beautiful soul rest in peace.

Senses and Sensibilities

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Hend Al Falafly’s pencil and acrylic on canvas

Last week I found my yoga, zumba & Muay Thai classes missing on schedule an entire evening – not wanting to do anything in the gym that was not musically oriented, I set out art gallery hopping so my creative side gets a dose of eye candy (not male related for once).

The most delightful exhibition, being a super sensuous chick that I am was Hend El Falafly’s exhibition at Art Sawa. Hend, an Egyptian who lives and works in Cairo was sweetness and light personified and it was my luck that she was at the gallery at the time of my visit.

Over some nuts and dried apricots with fruit cocktails, we got chatting and it was interesting to marry her persona to the paintings I was so overwhelmed by on the walls.

Hend explains that realism at times worries her and she wants to express that through her work. Being inquisitive, I dig deeper and it is clear that her work has a symbolic and very expressive meaning behind it. Being a woman and despite my tomboy tendencies, I was moved by each of her sexily sensuous pieces.

Hend explores through her intimate works in ”Senses and Sensibilities” the different emotions expressed by women, usually which are part of her everyday life. She uses body language to understand the meaningful silence carried over by their experiences and stories. These are reflected in all its semantic in the facial expressions and movements of the hands, the feet, the look ,the clothes and emotions repressed.

And with the silence of the lips, it is usually the eyes which transcends all the languages and spoken in a glance, an unspeakable tongue that denies lies and hypocrisies. I agree with this fully as I’m always told that no matter what I am thinking or feeling, my eyes always betray what I really feel and are the windows to my soul….its not always a good thing but over the years I’ve learnt that my eyes betray me and if it reflects sadness at any time, I end up crying because I know the person across me knows I’m hurting….its not nice for the other person but hey….I’m a woman and I can do what I feel like.

Hend tells me that an array of different areas of reality inspires her and have great impact on her works, which is revealed through incredible movement and light. No secret can be kept hidden……if you want to see her amazing work for yourself, its at DIFC Art Sawa until 19th June. Enjoy!

With artist Hend El Falafly

Patron of the Arts

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Performers at a recent exhibition from Uzbekistan supported by Dubai Culture - I loved it

Thanks to Yasser & his team, my daughter loved the performance by a Chechen Dance troupe recently organised by Dubai Culture

The last few weeks has been awesome for Dubai Culture – I’ve always known the team there to be super dynamic (I seriously want to know where people like Yasser and Bilal get their energy) but I reckon recently they have surpassed themselves after hosting one amazing cultural performance/exhibition/celebration after another.

So when the equally amazing team of Asda who know I lap up anything that’s remotely associated with Art & Culture and would support the boys there anytime contacted me about the The Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Patrons of the Arts Awards,I jumped up and headed towards Jumeirah Zabeel – its not just the superb hammam there that pulls me towards this amazing hotel.

This key initiative was announced by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President & Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai and honoured 47 organisations and individuals for their contributions towards the city’s cultural scene …which I may add grows twofold every time I get my fabulous self to set some time aside after work to check my social calendar.

Organised by the Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), the Emirate’s dedicated Authority for culture, arts, and heritage, the awards were aimed at encouraging patrons of the arts to further strengthen the evolution of the city’s cultural landscape through patronage.

Saeed Al Nabouda, Acting Director General, Dubai Culture & Arts Authority was there and he looked so different than when I first worked with him during DSF 2000 – he has managed to get increased support from Government departments and organisations, in addition to a vast pool of new patrons for culture and the arts.

It was awesome to see some of my favourite organisations and the representatives from Emirates Airlines, Jumeirah Group, Dubai Duty Free and AGMC – BMW being honoured – these guys do great stuff for art & culture and the people behind these brands are the nicest you will find in Dubai.

I’m hoping more things like Art Week, Art Dubai, Design Days, Dubai International Film Festival, Gulf Film Festival, Emirates Airline Festival of Literature and Dubai Festival for Youth Theatre add to the culture and arts scene of the city….we definitely need to give more recognition as well to the performing arts which has struggled heaps over the last 10 years. The tides are changing thanks to the amazing work of Dubai Culture and this diva is pleased to be in a city that brings so much of the worlds static and performing arts to us on a silver platter. Smiling heaps!