Audiotonic

So excited...

la flaca se casa

I forgot to mention that as of April 16th I would be in America! I'm stuck in London-Gatwick at the moment with brightly glazed-over eyes and a bad case of the yawns. My flight getting in was delayed from NYC due to some dreary, damp and chilly weather last night, so my plans of arriving to Dubai were pushed back a few hours. Regardless, I loved my time at home and really enjoyed catching up with friends and family. In the end though, I was looking forward to returning to Dubai and getting back into a routine. Zero 7 is playing this Friday at 360, which is one of the most exciting things that's popped up on my calendar since I moved there. I am really looking forward to the show. I've got a couple friends from Pittsford planning a stop through as well this coming weekend, so I'll need to sleep off any jet lag for their arrival. I took my fair share of pictures during my time at home but only had a chance to post some shots from the wedding, which you can check out by clicking on the album below.

la flaca se casa

world's biggest (fill in blank)

Dubai never ceases to amaze me. We've got it all, from the world's tallest tower to the world's largest hotel, the world's largest arch bridge, the world's largest mall, the world's largest water reservoir, the world's (soon to be) largest airport, the world's largest indoor ski park, the world's largest amusement park, and now ... the world's largest chop sticks. You think they would have tried a stab at cooking up the world's largest pita before pulling off something like this.

Although we've put size to shame in just about every corner of the world, Saudi Prince Al-Walid Bin Talal is going to have the last laugh with his newly announced mile high tower. I'd be laughing too if I created a building large enough to make people sick to their stomachs:

"The building will be fitted with a giant computer-operated damper stretching down several floors - to counter the nausea-inducing sway caused by the wind."

Read the full story here.

Chamba

I don't know how people ever got along without Facebook. I went back to see if I could trace when I joined and I think it was somewhere around January 2007. Since then, I have reconnected with 480+ people and counting! It's really made the world feel like a much smaller place, especially being all the way over here. I wouldn't be surprised if Facebook ends up in Merriam-Webster as a noun and a verb with the way people abuse it these days.

Case and point - 2 weeks ago I "facebooked" a handful of friends I knew in Guatemala. It had been about 13 years since we last saw one another, making the reconnection process a lot of fun. I was not sure who I'd find, but I think I got lucky with about 7 successful friend requests. Since then we've been going back and forth, sharing pictures, comparing passport stamps, and reliving the sweaty-palmed, jean jacket, snap-at-the-crotch leotard, middle school dance parties via youtube and the help of this top hits list from 1993. really brings you back...

Everyone turned out to be pretty awesome, spending their years after Colegio Maya everywhere from the Philippines to Hungary, Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia, Holland, and Costa Rica. The list goes on... One of my friends ended up playing professional soccer in Monaco, eventually starting his own sports apparel company based in Orlando, called Chamba. During his time in Costa Rica, Jason was part of a movement called freestyle soccer, which he continues to play and promote today through the Chamba culture. Below is just an example of what freestyle looks like, as demonstrated by Jason Utley Madrigal himself. The Chamba web site has some other fun multimedia links on it. Check 'em out here (cool, cooler, coolest).

Masha'allah

The direct translation for this in English is: "God has willed it".

We often use this phrase here to express admiration and sincere awe in someone or something. In Arabic, it's commonly heard when people compliment one another or appreciate something beautiful like the beach, the sunset, or even the music video below.

An interesting piece of trivia- Ahmed Bukhatir is the owner and CEO of the company I work for. Much to my chagrin, he is also one of the UAE's most loved and famed singers. His songs are very faith-based, delivering messages true to Islam. His voice is gorgeous, generally adhering to the more traditional nasheed style of accapella with some basic percussion to preserve the purity and simplicity of music. I included the lyrics to the song below. Masha'allah.


Today, upon a bus,
I saw a girl with golden hair.
And wished I was as fair.
When suddenly she rose to leave,
I saw her hobble down the aisle.
She had one leg and wore a crutch.
But as she passed, she smiled.

Oh God, forgive me when I whine.
I have two legs the world is mine.

I stopped to buy some candy.
The lad who sold it had such charm.
I talked with him, he seemed so glad.
If I were late, it `d do no harm.
And as I left, he said to me,
"I thank you, you've been so kind.
You see," he said, "I `m blind"

Oh God, forgive me when I whine.
I have two eyes the world is mine.

I saw a child with eyes of blue.
He stood and watched the others play.
He did not know what to do.
I stopped a moment and then I said,
"Why don't you join the others, dear?"
He looked ahead without a word.
And then I knew. He couldn't hear.

Oh God, forgive me when I whine.
I have two ears the world is mine.

With feet to take me where I `d go.
With eyes to see the sunset's glow.
With ears to hear what I'd know.
Oh God, forgive me when I whine.
I have blessed indeed, the world is mine

Dubai Summer Games 2012

Surprised? I was just imagining this hitting headlines sooner or later and here it is. Dubai will surely take a stab at the Summer Olympics. I didn't realize it would happen so soon. It just doesn't make sense though with temperatures hitting 120+ degrees during the summer time with 100% humidity. I'd like to see them get past environmentalists with proposals for air conditioned 65,000 seat stadiums. Although, human rights activists didn't seem to sway Beijing much in their fight for Darfur. If anything, Dubai would make a better contender for the Winter games with their upcoming indoor snow dome and that giant indoor ski slope near the beach...

it's the most wonderful time of the year!

That's right. it' s baseball season. the emails have already started flowing in from friends back home relaying tales of home openers, extra innings, beer-dampened cement stairs, and that warm, burnt pork smell. Ironically, my date with Bob Sheppard will have to be put on hold since my Yankees will be in Cleveland (of all places!!) the weekend I'm in NYC. So sad since this is their last year in "the cathedral". I'll have to catch a (gasp) Met's game, but would prefer to attend a ball game with my dad. Frontier Field in Rochester is a great spot since they host the Rochester Red Wings, a triple-A farm team for the Twins. Dad and I have had some good moments on that field, so I'm hoping for clear skies, a frothy draft, and a good, soft pretzel to keep the upstate new york chill at bay.

I'll leave you with an excerpt from an email I received recently. it might as well have been sent by a Sox fan (boo hiss). it did, however, bring a smile to my face:

"How was the Dubai World Cup? That must have been
the most over the top, expensive-to-put-on, decadent sports event
you've ever been to...oh wait, Yankees fan. I'd bet those horses
don't get groomed nearly as often as the mane on Johnny Damon."