My Bday Surprise

So this is the wonderful surprise I came home to on my birthday in the new pad. Andre had lit tea lights along the lounge to my bedroom which had been completed that day. When I walked in I saw the bed covered in ballons and a wonderful bday cake lit up saying "Happy Bday Emma Baby" - I almost died of shock that he had managed to do all of this - let's just say when I told all my English colleagues they all looked rather sheepish and could only muster the words "Don't ever tell my girlfriend about this!"

Needless to say it was the best bday surprise ever, oh but it did not end there, next was a trip to Marina Mall for what I was convinced was to be a dinner in the revolving restaurant. Oh but I was so far off as we pulled up to the marina and climbed aboard the Shuja Yacht - owned by Le Royal Meridien it is a dining cruise taking you along the Corniche in a serene manner whilst enjoying a lovely buffet washed down with champers!! Basically he is a superstar.

Showing Off the new pad

So after an exhauting few weeks the new place is ready to showcase, albeit I still need a few finishing touches including a bar area and more artwork etc so there will be more updates to follow.

However, I am really pleased with how it has turned out and was so pleased with everyone's reactions when I hosted a house warming! Complete shock that it was fully furnished was most people's reactions and they all seemed to love it so I was beaming inside. So enough of my endless twittering and time for some photos.

My lovely lounge/dinning area primarily neutrals with an accent of deep red to bring out some colour.

So I found this place thanks to Andre, he has been really wonderful helping to get it furnished and finished. He even found me an excellent cleaner because unfortunately I have become a spoilt princess living in the shangri la for almost a year and have forgotten how hard it it to do all the cleaning and have a job!

The move to Abu Dhabi

Ok so I have been quiet this month as most of the time has been spent on preparing for the new place. I finally found the most wonderful apartment with the help of Andre which is located in Al Mushrif about 10 mins from the city centre. It has a huge living/dining room as you enter, a fairly compact kitchen and a huge bedroom - oh and the bathroom has a jacuzzi bath tub - ooh la la!

I will not post any photos yet because I want to get everything finished and then post the final shots. The first set of furniture is being delivered later from my new favourite UAE furniture shop The One - what an amazing store, set up by an ex Ikea employee and its so much more fabulous and chic. I have furnished most of apartment from IKEA who also have an excellent range and pieced it all together with some extra pieces from The One, Marina and Carrefour for my white goods and a 42 inch TV - I can see some serious party nights taking place there!!! For one there is an arch shaped area as you come in which is screaming out "Create a bar area here" . That will be the next little project once moved in and settled and bank balance has recovered from the first month of expenses.

I should be able to move in next Tue evening as that is when the bed will arrive and I have my lovely Dorma bedding to jump onto. My birthday is next Weds and so I will be hosting my house warming/bday drinks next Thurs evening with a group of friends coming over for fun fun fun before heading to the infamous Etoiles a luxe club in Emirates Palave which I have been trying to get to for weeks now.

Anyway, updates will follow shortly.

Ramadan in Abu Dhabi

So I thought after the 1st week of Ramadan it would be a good time for an update on the latest developments out in the UAE. Firstly, I will be transferring out here from Sept 1st so I am currently looking for an apartment to rent in Abu Dhabi - total nightmare it is so expensive for just a shoe box - think at least £20, 000 a year in rent for a small one bedroom apartment!! I will provide updates on my plight as I think it could take some time, I am also struggling to accept my Shangri La Princess life is coming to an end and I will no longer be enjoying 5 star living :(

This weekend we have been entertaining in the apartment and enjoying some lovely food, namely Lebanese cuisine, perpared by Lebanese, using organic Lebanese produce shipped directly to our fridge via Andre's suitcase! Andre is my Lebanese boyfriend who is a master of Tabouleh and gave us our first lesson in how to prepare this dish on Fri - please see photographic evidence of our lovely parsley bouquets.

Camping in Oman

We just got back from a mini adventure in Oman which involved camping, mountains, bbq, sightseeing and lovely Omani locals. This is the second time I have visited Oman and it was equally enchanting as Muscat, we camped up in the mountains next to Nizwa at around 2000m. The views were incredible and the hillside is dotted with traditional villages which look like they belong in the Bible. We visited one local village and were invited in to drink coffee and eat dates the with the locals - so friendly and they weren't even trying to sell anything!

The scenery was stunning and it was so much cooler up in the mountains, we camped on top of a plateau overlooking the valley, at night the stars were shining brightly and we had the campsite all to ourselves which was great when we had our music blaring, drinking alcohol and showing our legs in shorts - the latter two are banned!

Abu Dhabi Life

Every day I feel like Abu Dhabi is becoming more like home - I never thought I would say that! I suppose I'm really enjoying being in one place with more of a routine but I also have the freedom to travel somewhere new at least once a month and most importantly special people to share these experiences.

I have realised that by de cluttering and simplifying my life I am so much happier nowadays, I don't have much stuff out here with me and I don't actually miss any of it. Less is more is so true, de-cluttered living space = de-cluttered mind. I sleep well now, I don't feel stressed anymore and life has become much calmer. Basically I am not missing the Rat Race of London at all. Viva la vida tranquila :)

Stockholm - 1st time in Scandinavia

Just returned from another mini break, this time to Stockholm - you can never travel enough in my eyes! It was truly fabulous, the sun bathed us in rays all weekend and the sky was so blue against the archipelagos. The city is located on the water so it seems everyone has their own little boat to hop around the islands, the first day we arrived a Swedish guy came right up to the jetty in his speedboat and picked up a gorgeous blonde who hopped on in a killer heels - so smooth, as all the other girls looked on with envy.

Dave and I did our best to fit in but they are such a cool and hip nation, all blonde, tanned and beautiful - let's just say that the English missed out on some gorgeous genes somewhere in history - why didn't more Vikings invade us! We did find a lovely island called Djurgarden which was a little green island scattered with the odd amazing villa, museums, rose gardens, restaurants bike trails and all this only a few mins walk from the city centre.

My attempt at looking like I belonged with the beautiful people...

In terms of design, every second store seemed to be a home store - you could decorate your pad so beautifully, lots of nautical themes going on and each store was so well laid out, I could have spent hours in them but little bro had other plans so I will have to go back once again.

I even found my own boat....

So I recommend Stockholm as a romantic break, it has history, culture and oozes with style, stay in Ostermalm, which is the nicest part of town and great for getting around the other islands.

Istanbul Girls weekend

I have to say that Istanbul completely blew me away, it was so much more than I was expecting. Located around the Bosphorus river with some of the most spectaluar 360 panoramic views of a city full of culture and history was a photographer's dream - well if I was really photographer I can imagine it would be!

The people are so friendly, Anna and I have not had that much attention in a few months and it was so easy to strike up conversations with people, we didn't care that most of the time they were after our money because all hassle was harmless and fun. Our day out in the famous Grand Bazaar was relaxing and enjoyable as we sipped our apple tea and enjoyed the bartering. We both bought some lovely ceramic tiles and bowls from the store picture below - an explosion of colour and a real feast for the eyes.

We found some great rooftop restaurants, my favourite was 360 which as the name suggests had an excellent panoramic view of the city, I fell in love with the city that very night. We also managed to meet a group of Dutch foodies on a manic 24 trip involving food, wine and having a good time, Anna was in heaven with her penchant for the Dutchies and needless to say I finally saw what she was talking about as we ended up dancing the night away with them in Club Angelique until the wee hrs.

Ladies painting the town red.....

Finally we touch a river cruise along the Bosphorus and the houses are just out of this world, I found plenty of dream homes but I really loved this one....

Beirut Rocks!!

I just got back from a weekend of fun and frolics in Beirut - never thought you would hear that I suppose? Yes Beirut really is a great place, I now understand why the Lebanese are so furiously patriotic and will now be able to engage in conversations with my Lebanese hairdresser about life in Lebanon. The nightlife was so great, I have been yearning for a good night out and Beirut certainly delivers, cool little bars, great clubs, excellent DJs and a beautiful crowd to admire. On the last night we ended up in a basement club which was created when a missle hit during the war, it is now a place of fun fun fun and the roof opens up to reveal the night sky, particulary amazing as the sun started to come up! Yes I stayed out in 6am, I'm not past it yet, although I'm still recovering from 2 big nights out in a row :)


The setting is perfect against the mountain back drop, there are hardly any tourists, lovely food and some historical and natural gems like Jaita grotto and Byblos. Anyway in a one word "Go" it will not disappoint, I'm glad I can tell all the sceptical people who warned me about getting bombed that they missed out.

I also finally went to a mosque in a very fetching black abaya! No photographic evidence but I don't think all black is my colour.

Easter in South Africa

South Africa has to be one of the most beautiful countries in the world, as we were driving through the Klein Karoo on the way to the Garden route I could picture dinosaurs roaming around - sounds bizarre but it really does feel like a place where life began!

It was a perfect way to spend Easter, we drove 2300km in 4 days which was pretty crazy but I got to see so many of the sights, being in the open space and surrounded by greenery and wildlife was very cleansing and a welcome change from the desert.

One day I will buy a beach house in Knysna - its on this blog so I can hold myself to this and it The Secret makes any sense then it will come true ;0

I have fallen in love with ostriches, they are so cute we learnt all about them at the ostrich farm, stood on their eggs, watched people ride them and learnt how they feed then tucked into an amazing ostrich steak - I did feel guilty but it was lush.

Knysna

Another lovely camel moment

Our colleague is currently working in the Western Region of Abu Dhabi and sent us through this classic photo titled "A daily sight in the Western Region... brilliant!!!

Fujairah

We just came back from a mini road trip across the UAE to another of the 7 Emirates - Fujairah. We were unlucky with the weather over the weekend - cloud, rain and then perfect sunshine as we got in the car to come home!! Anna and Dan managed to fit in some diving, although it was a shallow dive and they didn't see any Nemos but Anna did see a turtle which is pretty cool.

Fujairah the town is a fairly small beach resort with a strip of the usual 5 star suspects, we had a lovely meal in Le Meridien last night which was the nicest hotel there any much nicer than the 1970's Sandy Beach hotel which we opted for - I admit I am becoming a Jumeriah Jane and was so happy to see the lovely Shangri La when we got back tonight!!

On the way home we stopped off in a random town called Dhaid for an Indian, we were the only ones in there not eating with our hands and were being stared at with fascination by all the customers - but really great food for a place totally off the tourist track.

We also stopped on the motorway to take a shot of the camel crossing sign - how great is that?

Concerts at The Emirates Palace

This weekend I went to watch Andre Bocelli and Coldplay. Complete oppostites but both so amazing in their own way, the setting is out of this world - well for an English chick anyway. Picture this - a palace, palm trees, the sea, an international crowd, great company and amazing music - perfect!!!!
I am also planning some trips to Muscat and Beirut for our team, we need to explore the region more and once it starts getting hot is will be nice to escape. I also spent time this weekend looking at furniture for our project villa - I can't believe I get to do this for work, I am off to an Interior exhibition tonight to try and find some more sources and learn about Interior UAE stylie.

More news to follow on this tomorrow.....

Abu Dhabi is starting to feel more like home

So in the past couple of weeks I have been to Vail, which was absolutely fantastic and probably the best resor I have ever been to, I must also say that the Americans were lovely and made the whole experience a dream. I am now back in Abu Dhabi and this week for the forst I really feel like this is home for me now, we have been looking at villas as we need to move out of the Shangri La but have found some very close. My task for the weekend is to go and check out the prices for furninshing 2 villas - perfect job, I am so excited I actually get to put my interior design skills into action!!!!

I will leave you with a photo of the Rocky mountains, brilliant blue skies contrasted with bright white snow lines and gorgeous evergreens - bliss.................

Lovely food and fabulous surroundings

Well Anna and I are finally having to move out of the lovely Shangri La apartments - we are both totally gutted, last week we went for our last meal together at the Pearls and Caviar restaurant, beautiful food, great company and fabulous settings - we both agreed we make great dates!!!

The toilets had the most amazing mural of a lady and I just think this photo is so beautiful.

Bark Bowls

How lovely are these bark bowls, they come in a range of colours and are really orginal. They are sold at Mint: https://www.mintshop.co.uk/

Interesting few days

I was thinking last night about how colourful and different my life is living in the UAE, I seem to be experiencing something new every day.

So over the past fews days I have experienced the following in the evenings:

Sun - watched Slumdog Millionaire, what a film, it truly deserved the numerous accolades and showering of Oscars, its a very moving story which reminded me of the rich tapestry of India's makeup.


Mon - we went to meet one of my housemate's Emirati friends in a really amazing furniture store, I had to take a couple of snaps as it was so beautiful. Aparantly itwas set up by someone who used to work for IKEA but its so much nicer, the cafe won "Best Cafe of the Year" and serves the nicest smoothies I've ever had. The Emirati is on the case to find us Emirati boyfriends - now that would be a good story, I'm determined to infiltrate the Secret World of Emiratis.....

Really great store website:

http://www.theoneplanet.com/







Tues - went to visit a villa as we need to move out of our lovely Shangri La apartments, totally gutted as we have become quite accustomed to the life of a princess. Apt was nice but very far out, not close to ameneties and still seems like a ghost town due to constuction all around the complex. We then played tennis at a gold course made out of sand, very cool in that they have "browns" instead of greens! The tennis courts are pretty good although I had to borrow a 1980's style racquet which weighed a ton and has given me blisters but it was great to exercise outdoors again.

Weds - We went to an art gallery opening - all very lovely except most pieces seemed to cost aroun £20, 000, we felt slightly under dressed and are definetly not part of the art set in Abu Dhabi yet, although we did see a sheik looking important and schmoozing around with the gallery owner, we managed to get snapped by the photographer a couple of times so might end up in a local mag yet....

Favourite artist: http://www.carmenpombo.es/eng/index.html

Gallery: http://acentogallery.com/

Tonight - we are off to a house party in Dubai - no doubt there will be some more random stories to follow.....

Fine Art Photographs

This morning I was inspired to by a fine art photograph with an Arabic theme for our apt, I really love the use of colour and the faint outline of camels, which I have grown find of whilst being here and had an encounter with a cute one in the desert when she wanted to chill on my arm for a while....

So going back to the art I just bought the artist is called Gregg Sedgwick, he is a London and Dubai based designer. "His brand Gallery One has gained rapid recognition for its representation of both regional and international image makers. "

If you want to see his work its available to buy from his website: http://www.g-1.com/

The picture box I bought:

Life in Abu Dhabi

Well I have been completely lame with my blog recently and its time to make more of an effort documenting my movements and crazy life out here in Abu Dhabi. I feel like I am finally finding my feet here after 3 months, I am enjoying my work, we live in a beautiful apartment which is part of the Shangri La hotel and are enjoying a great quality of life - oh and the sun shines on my face daily!! My housemate Anna and I are both single and still searching for some people our own age to hang out with but Dubai has more life and so we escape down there when we can. I have fallen in love with Barasti, a great beach bar full of expats which plays cheesy music and then dance music into the wee hrs with Atlantis twinkling in the background on the Palm Jumeriah.

Check out our apt......