Be good, Gypsy Dog!

Here are some of the first shots taken with our new Canon 350D.



Awwww... we're gonna miss this little boy. With a face like this, who wouldn't??

3 more sleeps...

...to London!

Wolf on the loose

You read it right, there is an Arabian wolf on the loose in a very residential area of Dubai at the moment! Apparently there haven't been sightings of this extremely rare animal in the UAE for the last 25 years, but at the moment it's hanging out in the streets of a neighbourhood just a few kilometres away from where we live.


Those who have seen the wolf have said that it seems domesticated which means it's very likely been kept as an 'exotic pet'.

Speaking of exotic pets. Today, Gypsy Boy and I saw a real live cheetah cub face to face. It was one of the most unexpected and fascinating encounters we've had. There were no barriers between us, and it was not caged, we simply stood 2 metres away from the domesticated cub that lay down watching us. What a fascinating, yet bizzare and controversial experience.

Snap!

After weeks of looking for the best deal and tossing up between Olympus and Canon, we bought the Canon 350D last night.


There are some pretty good summer sales on now, so it was perfect timing as we were looking to get an SLR camera to take on our Europe trip. We will still be taking our trusty, old point and shoot Canon ixus400, but this will be particularly good for those night shots and wide angles that the ixus can't handle.

Jumeira Mosque

Back in May, when MIL (i.e. Gypsy Boy's Mum) was in town, we visited the beautiful Jumeira Mosque - one of the most beautiful and hence, most photographed mosques in Dubai. It also opens its doors and runs tours twice a week to foster cultural exchange and understanding.

As a sign of respect, legs and shoulders should be covered and for women, a head scarf or shawl should also be worn. Our tour guides demonstrated and explained the ritual of washing ones feet, legs, hands, arms, face, ears and mouth before entering the mosque.



Once inside, we were free to take photos of the beautiful architecture while the guides spoke about the 5 pillars of Islam, and also demonstrated how a Muslim would pray. It was a fantastic opportunity that was interesting and insightful.

Nice Jazz Fest!

I've just found out that during our overnight stay in the Cote d'Azur, the Nice Jazz Festival will be on! I didn't think too much of this at first, but checked out the programme and was blown away by the line up. It just so happens that Kanye West and Neneh Cherry amongst others will be performing.


I now wish we had a little more time in this beautiful area of the South of France. Perched on the edge of the Riviera, this area seems to have so much on offer. We have a busy day planned - a visit to the Matisse Museum, a short train ride through the city to the top for amazing views of the Riviera, time exploring Nice's Old Town before heading to Monte Carlo for a couple of hours capped off with a night at the Jazz Festival! Phew! That's the plan, anyway. I'll let you know how it goes...

You know it's really hot when...

1. You meet Malaysians that have just arrived and they are complaining about the heat
2. Your sunnies/glasses fog up everytime you step outside
3. You see cars with curtains hanging on the inside?!?

Dubai Summer Surprises

The famous DSS, similar to the Dubai Shopping Festival, is an annual event where shops, shopping malls and the like get together and put on Dubai-wide co-ordinated promotions and sales. Every week there is a planned themed surprise, starting with an 'Ice theme'.

- Modhesh, the Dubai Summer Surprises mascot -

The opening ceremony - yes, there was one! - was held at the Mall of the Emirates yesterday. We did not go as Gypsy Boy was busy working and I was busy hunting down a hotel in Budapest. We will however be going today to have a nosy as there will be performances and no doubt, some good bargains too.

Obuda, Buda, Pest here we come!

A few days ago, we decided to change our trip itinerary a little. We're now going to visit Budapest instead of Vienna on the recommendation of a friend who has lived and studied there. After some research and discussion, the character, history and sheer beauty of the city won us over.

-The Chain Bridge, connecting Buda to Pest over the Danube River-

I was excited to find a great little online airfare from Venice to Budapest on Sky Europe - a central European value airline I'd never ever heard of. Nevertheless, a fantastic fare of 45 Euros per person!

What I didn't expect was having the Formula One Grand Prix in town the same weekend we'll be there. As a result, it has taken me 3 days to find a suitable hotel with vacancies! Most of the popular hotels are already fully booked and if they aren't, require a minimum 3 or even 4 night stay at a premium. Fortunately, I've managed to find a basic hotel in a fantastic location for our 2 night stay albeit paying 30Euro more per night than if we were staying any other time of the year. I guess you just can't win 'em all.

Me: 1, Travel Agent: Nil

A couple of weekends ago, Gypsy boy decided we should take the rough itinerary I'd planned for our pending trip to Europe, to a travel agent. This was to see if they could make recommendations, book hotels and travel between cities with their travel agent contacts, experience with the region and expertise.

We were so impressed with our travel agent's professionalism and obvious first hand knowledge of travel within Europe. We walked away wondering why we hadn't visited sooner! Due to the large and meaty itinerary we gave her to work with, she promised to get back to us within 3-4 days and we were more than happy with the timeframe.

At the same time, I have continued to work with researching the attractions of each city, rail networks, hotel rates and locations, plus ways to get between cities. My contact with hotels that I'd shortlisted showed that many were starting to book out, so when we hadn't heard back from our travel agent I followed up with emails and phone messages but to no avail.

8 days after our visit, we received the quotation from the travel agent with an airfare, recommended hotels and their rates, plus a quote for a rail pass. Firstly, the airfares were 1000dhs more expensive to the online fare we have found. Secondly, and most to my horror, upon researching the hotels she'd recommended I found they had some of the worst traveller reviews I'd ever come across and they were more expensive than the ones I had on my list! Thirdly, I'd managed to find some cheap airfares between our longest journeys within Europe so buying individual train tickets for the shorter journeys will cost us 546Euros less!

Enough ranting for now, I have more bookings to make!