November in the Gulf

Hi Bloggers,
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November really is the most fantastic month imaginable here in the Gulf region. Temperatures have dropped to a comfortable mid 20's Celsius. Sunny days with cloudless skies and that terrible humidity now replaced by a lovely fresh breeze. You couldn't think up better weather even if you tried. It's in strong contrast to the crushing heat of the summer. I arrived here in April and haven't really known anything else but 40+ day-time temperatures. Let's hope this continues through the "winter"!

I've taken a few shots of Manama from Muharraq (above). I've tried to get the traditional fishing boats into the same picture as the skyscrapers and, of course, the bridge itself. Funnily enough, I always think the Financial Harbour Towers (middle right) look like a giant V-sign on the skyline. But that probably says more about me than actual reality! Interestingly, there are all these old fishing boats or dows, as they're called, dotted in stategic places around the sea front parts of Manama. At first, I thought they'd got stranded, but it is in fact a genuine and successful effort to be artistic.
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Meanwhile, busy planning my trip to Africa at Christmas!

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Cheers,

Rob

Bahrain Marathon Relay

Hi Bloggers,
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Just ran in the Relay Marathon for the British Council team. We came placed a wretched 150 out of 157 teams, but it was great fun, nevertheless. Surprisingly, it took place from 10.00 am to 3.00 pm, which meant that a lot of us were running in the midday heat, which is still quite strong at this time of the year. Luckily, though, it had cooled down considerably from the really hot summer months, when temperatures reach as high as 45 C. I think people would have collapsed if they'd tried it then!

Anyway, I was quite pleased with my own times, 17.34 for an uphill 3.3 km stretch and then 15.34 for the home straight of exactly 3 km. Yes, I felt honoured to be selected for that role! Mind you, I was the only person in the team to run two stretches, so maybe I earned that privilege. Anyway, enjoy looking at the video (below) and pics. Hope it inspires you to take up running!

Cheers,

Robert

Tree of Life

Hi Bloggers,

Following our tour of the souks and a fantastic lunch at a local Thai restaurant, we proceeded to the highlight of the day - the Tree of Life. Basically, it's a solitary tree in the middle of the desert. No-one's fully sure where it gets its water from, but presumeably there's an underground table or resevoir there. Anyway, this tree is reputed to be hundreds of years old. To be quite honest, I was expecting to be disappointed, but actually was pleasantly surprised, as, in fact, the place is quite atmospheric and there's a great view around.

The biggest problem was actually finding the place! You would have thought the authorities would have gone to the trouble of making sure there were decent signposts for what is, after all, one of the country's main attractions. Anyway, after several circular detours and requests for directions, we did finally get there - just before sunset. As it turned out, that was probably the best time as the setting sun gives the place a distinctly reddish hue.

A lot of the tree had graffitti on it, which some people say spoils it. But actually I thought it rather enhanced the experience, giving it an extra historical dimension. Many of the signatures have even changed shape over time and are now really an integral part of the tree.

I'll let you judge for yourselves from the pictures.

Cheers,
Robert

Manama Souks

Hi Bloggers,

People tend to think of the Gulf region as being one purely of oil-rich affluence. But actually there is quite a significant amount of poverty, and not just amongst the immigrant workers, but also the indigenous Bahrainis. One of the nicer reflections of this, however, is the general central Manama area and its sizeable souk area. This part of town is simply teeming with life and character with lots of winding alley ways and rows of traditional houses, etc.
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So, me and my friend Dave, a fellow BC teacher, took a stroll around and decided to get a few pics earlier in the month, as he was just about to depart back to the cooler climes of the UK. And make no mistake about it, the midday temperatures here really are something else. 40C plus, and high humidity. You only need to walk for about five minutes and you're dripping! We're both keen joggers, but in the end had to abandon any projects to keep fit that way! Even at night it's still 35C.

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The part I liked the most was the tree covered square, where people just seem to sit and hang out for long periods of time. There aren't many green shady places in Bahrain, but this is certainly one! There are also a couple of open-air cafes where locals don't seem to do anything special other than just chill and drink their tea or coffee. Tea seems to be more popular, actually. It's a pity, though, you can't have a nice cool beer in a public place! OK, I'll let the pics do the talking from here.

After this we went out to the Tree of Life, which despite my initial misgivings turned out to be well worth the effort (see next blog).
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Cheers,

Robert

Abu Dhabi

Hi Bloggers,

Lovey dovey in Abu Dhabi? Well, not quite, but anyway just had a great couple of days there. It's interesting to compare it to Dubai, its illustrous neighbour. Abu Dhabi is much more like a normal town than Dubai. For example, it actually has high streets with shops, and lots of them, whole blocks in fact. That's not to say that Abu Dhabi hasn't been hit by shopping mall mania too, but it's much less at the forefront. Interestingly, I also stumbled across some quite slummy areas, where a lot of the immigrant population live. Most seem to be Filipinos. In fact, almost every shop assistant or cashier seems to be Filipina.

From a touristic point of view, the real highlight was the fabulous Sheik Zayed mosque, which is almost on a par with the Taj Mahal (see pic). There's also a park all along the "beach" front, which is great for jogging and cycling. The beach is mostly corniche, though, i.e. reclaimed land. And, unfortunately almost everywhere in the Gulf, there's a distinct lack of surf, probably because the water here is so shallow.

I was also surprised to find that the Emirates is actually cheaper than Bahrain. I did an experimental shopping run and it came out cheaper than the equivalent in Manama. The Emirates General Store is the place! Abu Dhabi would definitely be a nice place to live. Just a pity about the heat and absence of rain in this region!

Cheers,
Rob

City Centre

Wotsup Bloggers?

I've been here now just over a month, so I'm beginning to get a good idea what makes Manama tick. I've also got my cargo arriving next week, which includes my mountain bike and guitars. The bike'll make me much more mobile and enable me to explore deeper into the island. Some people say I'll be crazy to ride a bike in the summer heat, but I've always been a keen cyclist, so I'm confident I can handle it, provided I have the appropriate headware!

Anyway, for this blog I've decided to focus on the main shopping mall in Manama. It's called City Centre. In fact, it's sister to the one in Dubai, probably bigger too. The reason it's important is because this is the place most people seem to end up on their days off. It represents shopping in the Gulf at its most state of the art, particularly if you're a Westerner. And apart from anything, it's a great place to be just to cool off during the summer heat!

Practically every shop you could imagine is here, not disimilar in scale to the impressive Central World in Bangkok, where I've just come from (what a tragedy Central World got burned down during the recent turmoil in Bangkok). It's set slightly outside the main drag in a land reclamation area. In fact, coming from a distance it looks almost like it's in the middle of the desert, surrounded by nothing but sand. Land reclamation's a big thing here, and is one of the reasons there are no decent beaches to speak of, just these strips they call corniches.

As usual, I'll let the pics do the talking. hopefully in my next blog I'll cover something more cultural.

Cheers,
Robb

Manama

Hi Bloggers,

I've been in Manama (that's the capital of Bahrain, if you didn't know!) for nearly a month now and am getting quite settled in. It's much more sedate than I expected, but that's quite nice actually. It's a bit like a watered down Dubai, much smaller and less stressful, but basically the same kind of things going on.

I was out taking some pics yesterday, but it was a bit hazy for some reason. Surprising, 'cos actually the humidity here is pretty low. It's starting to get pretty hot now. A lot, of course, depends on where you put the thermometer, but I've had one reading of 43 C up to now. Anyway, for this blog I'm just focussing on skyline pics. I'll get better ones up in due course.

One doesn't have that much contact with Arabs on the whole, or if one does it's probably a taxi driver. I must say, they've all been pretty affable so far. However, most workers here seem to be from Kerala, India. Clearly there's some ancient trading connection between the two regions, which still continues through to today. Most waitresses and shop assistants seem to be Filipinas.

The picture on the right is the spectacular Financial Harbour Towers. What I like about them is the way their juxtaposition changes depending on what part of town you're looking from!

Will say more in my forthcoming blogs.

Cheers,
Rob

London and Bahrain

Hi Bloggers,

Well, I've finally arrived in Bahrain after a long delay in London due to the volcanic ash. And what a palava that was (no pun intended)! Surely it was obvious that by the time the ash was over the UK and Europe it would have dispersed enough to have little effect on plane engines. But I suppose they were correct to err on the side of caution.

Anyway, I had a few extra days in London. The BC put me in the Strand Palace Hotel, which quite frankly was rather disappointing. I've had better facilities and services in Thailand. But at least it had a decent view. See pic above.

My first impressions of Bahrain are pretty positive. Apart from the financial area, it's relatively low rise and everything is in shades of beige or sand colour, making things look like they have come out of the ground itself. So far it seems pretty unstressful and laid back. It's very different from Thailand in that not much happens outside on the street. It's all behind closed doors. In fact, there's an element of that glassed off feel like in Dubai. Apparently 49% of the population here are foreigners, cf Dubai, where it's a whopping 80%. Anyway, now I'm focussed primarily on looking for a flat before starting work on Tuesday.

Will update as soon as I've got more to say.

Cheers,
Robert

Chiang Rai and the Golden Triangle

Hi Bloggers,

Yes, I've been inactive rather a while, mostly due to being bogged down with logistical things related to my upcoming move to Bahrain next month. Another reason is that I haven't really been anywhere of special note recently. Of course, there have been more red shirt demonstrations here in Bangkok just this week, but frankly I've lost interest in Thai politics of late. And I don't honestly see any real change occuring here. In my opinion, Taksin's main legacy will ultimately be that he has made the masses aware of their political power.

More interesting was my return to Chiang Rai and the Golden Triangle earlier this week. Unfortunately the weather was a bit hazy, slightly dampening the normally stupendous views. Nevertheless, it was stil a great experience. I went with my Thai girlfriend, Ooy, who lives in Chiang Mai. We rented a motorbike and rode around using Chiang Rai as our base. I'll let the pictures do the talking for themselves.

For me one of the highlights was Wat Chedi Luang in Chiang Saen. It's one of the oldest in the area, dating back several hundred years. A lot of it is in ruins. Nevertheless, it still functions as a living temple. I dutifully did a few rounds of the stupa, reciting my favourite mantra.














The white temple, Wat Rong Khun, just outside Chiang Rai was also pretty spectacular.













My next blog will probably be from Bahrain. I'm going to be sad to leave SE Asia, but being in a gulf state should be a genuinely interesting experience.

Talk again soon.

Cheers,
Robert

Dubai Sandstorm

Hi Bloggers,

Just been back to the UK to do the practical part of my Trinity Diploma. I must say, it was generally a pretty good experience. All the tutors were really supportive with lots of ideas and focused advice. Certainly better support than I got on the DELTA. Anyway, I reckon I did OK, though, of course I still have to wait for the results.

On the way back, I did a stop over in Dubai. It's never been high on my travel list, but I thought I'd take a look anyway. Just spent one day there. It's completely state of the art, which is maybe no surprise considering that it only took off twenty years ago. So it's also incredibly visual with some really knock-out skyscrapers. There's one where each floor rotates independently of the others!

But for all its spectacularness, it's a city without a soul. I've never been in a city where I felt so glassed off. In fact, only 20% of the population are indigenous. The rest are foreign workers, ranging from Europeans, Americans,and Japanese in top positions to Filipinas, Chinese, Lebanese, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Indians in lower paid menial jobs.

And the heat! I thought Bangkok was pretty hot, but this was something else. It was about 40C while I was there. I don't think I've ever experienced heat like it. You had to keep diving inside into the air-conditioning just to cool off for a bit. There was also a sand storm at the time, which is why all my pictures look so hazy.

The only interesting place was the old quarter and its old windy soukhs. Unfortunately, it was Sunday, so any activity was a minimum. The creek, just nearby, was also very pleasant, reminiscent of what Dubai might have been like before the construction boom.

Anyway, it's one more country on my list. I think I'm up to about 43 now.

Cheers,
Robert

Soi Dogs

Hi Bloggers,

Following on from my last blog, where I mentioned that there was a family of dogs living in the derelict area in Soi 6, I thought I'd just put up a few pics of them.



Lovely animals they are. Dogs are definitely capable of feeling and showing love. I've grown quite attached to this pack since I've lived here and often go and feed them. There are five altogether in the family, but one has been ousted. Bernie (that's his name) was formerly top dog, but has now been banished to the sidelines. Siri, the white one, now rules the roost, to mix metaphors. Somchai, Greg and Kathy are the others.

Talk again soon,
Rob

BNE

Hi Everyone,

Has anyone noticed all the BNE graffiti that's begun to hit the city. There's some of it right near where I live, in Sukhumwit Soi 6 (see pic). No-one really knows who's doing it or what the letters stand for. Is it political, environmental, artistic or just plain egotistical? No-one knows. Apparently it began in San Francisco and is now in places as far afield as London and Tokyo too.

What do you think it stands for? Any ideas? Is it the artist's initials? Could it be a slogan, like Ban Nuclear Energy or a name like Brian Nigel Evans or a philosophical statement like Be Nowhere Else. There's often a crown above the letters too.

Anyway, yesterday CNN were down there asking people to say what they think it stands for. I'm proud to say I was interviewed by Dan Rivers himself. Mind you, I was caught cold and couldn't think of any sensible combination. I came up with some rubbish like British New Europeanism! which clearly isn't the solution!

Soi 6 is, of course, a lane of derelict buildings and wasteland. You can see it from the Nana skytrain. It's been like that since the financial crisis of 1997. There's a family of dogs in there that I often feed. I'll show them on my next blog.

Cheers,

Robert

Sri Lanka - Tamil Tigers

Hi Bloggers,

I felt I just needed to make a comment about the defeat of the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka.
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I lived and worked in Sri Lanka for a year from April 2005 to April 2006 and was able to observe the working of things at close quarters. It's a wonderful island with stunning natural beauty and delightful, friendly, open people. However, it's also a divided society, with the impoverished Tamils living primarily in the north-east of the island. Actually they are descendants of the Tamils in south-east India, a similarly lovely people.

The point is that the Tamils basically have second class status within the island, all the top positions in the government and Civil Service being dominated by the majority Sinhalese. In fact, this policy is reinforced by linguistic discrimination, in that a high level of proficiency in Sinhalese is required. The same applies to higher education. Also, through having inferior educational opportunities, Tamils are also missing out on developing English language skills, which could be a possible avenue of progress for them.

So, although I don't approve of violence and terrorism, I couldn't help feeling sorry at the demise of the Tigers, as basically I was sympathetic to their cause of an independent state. Actually, I was in Sri Lanka when Mahindra, a committed hardliner, was elected and almost all the "thinking" people in Colombo thought it was the wrong choice.
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It'll be interesting to see what happens now. Let's hope the next Sinhalese leader will be enlightened enough to try to create a society genuinely based on the principles of fairness and equal opportunities.

I've attached a few pictures just to show you what a beautiful place it is. On my trip I even went right up to Trinco in the north east, a Tamil area. It was shortly after the tsunami actually, and you could still see all the devastation along the beach. Many areas were just simply abandoned.

Anyway, that's all for now. Look forward to some comments.

Cheers,

Robert
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Come on, you reds !! - Red Shirts part 2

Hi Bloggers,

Well, things have certainly escalated, which is hardly surprising. Anyway, as soon as I heard this morning that there had been clashes between the army and protesters, I got straight out to places where I thought the action would be. Unfortunately, I missed the main place, the Din Daeng intersection, near Victory Monument. Still, I got some quite interesting shots.

I went out there on my bike, which was a shrewd move as it enabled me to slip through barricades, etc. It seems a lot of main roads have been blocked with buses commandeered by the protesters. One of my favourites too - the 511. Best bus in Bangkok!! It'll take you all the way from Pinklao over the river, right down to Siam and all the way along Sukhumwit. Beat that!

Probably the most interesting event I saw was when a whole group of police walked out from the parliament area showing solidarity with the red shirts (see video). I saw no actual violence, though I've heard that some shots have been fired in the Din Daeng face off.

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Interestly, the Songkran water throwing festival is going on at the same time. The political events certainly don't seem to have dampened the Thais' enthusiasm for a party!

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Will update as soon as I can.

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Cheers,

Robert

Red Army - red shirts

Welcome back, bloggers!

Am I talking about the Russian army, Liverpool supporters before tonight's game against Chelsea, or Thai political protesters? Well, of course, the third option is the correct choice. Yes, it's back to politics here in Thailand!

Basically, the red shirts are supporters of Taksin, the former prime minister of Thailand who was deposed by a military coup in 2006. They've certainly got plenty to grieve about, as democracy has really been ridden roughshod over during the last couple of years. And, if you remember, the yellow shirts set the precedent of going to the streets to effect political changes last year when they took over Bangkok's airport.

Although, I don't fully agree with this approach in itself, I think, in the context, the UDD (that's their official name) have little choice. I must admit I hope they succeed, as frankly I find Abhisit, the current PM, pretty slippery and unforthright. What's more, he has no real mandate from the people to govern. He's the product of parliamentary political wheeling and dealing.



Anyway, today was supposed to the Red Shirts' big day. They were hoping to get 300,000 people, but unfortunately only mustered about a tenth of that number. I'm pleased to say I got out to Government House to join them, though. They were incredibly friendly and I was really impressed by their cameraderie. I got plenty of pics and a video too (see above). Frankly, though, I think they're doomed to failure, as if they started to have a real effect, the army would undoubtedly move in.

There really should be fresh elections! Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Cheers,
Rob

Koh Samui

Hi Bloggers,

Just got back from four great days on Koh Samui. It's changed hugely from when I first went there in 1998, but it's still a paradise, particularly if you avoid the high season and get away from Chaweng, the main beach. Although Chaweng's beach is genuinely fantastic, with its fine grain white sand, etc, the town has gone much the same way as all the other main resorts in Thailand, such as Phuket and Pattaya, i.e. completely overbuilt and with lots of raucous, noisy tourists everywhere. How different from a decade or so ago, when I remember the place was half empty and the town wasn't even fully tarmacked!




Anyway, I stayed on Lamai beach, just down the road. It's slightly smaller, but just as beautiful, and much less crowded (see video). I also rented a motorbike. The automatic ones seem to be the craze now, and I must admit they are easy to ride. In fact, they seem to have some built in function that stops you gathering momentum as you go downhill, which can't be a bad thing! If you take either the south or west routes, you can get right away from it all, particularly if you're willing to venture off down the side roads, where you can still experience the idyllic rural life of old.

I stayed in a bungalow with no hot water, air-con or TV. Can't say I really missed any of them very much. In fact, it was good to get out of that habit of switching on your TV as soon as you get up in the morning! And even though temperatures went up to 35 C in the day, it was surprisingly cool at night, about 26 C. So just a fan was enough.

Anyway, back in Bangkok now to continue working on my diploma. It sure did me a world of good getting away for a bit, though.

Cheers,
Robert

Hot Season Flora - part two

Hi Bloggers,

It's around now, i.e. March and April, that all the trees flower too, making for quite a visual display. One of my favourites is the Golden Rain tree, which looks like it's literally dripping with gold (see pic). There is simply so much diversity in the tropics, and this is one of the things that makes it such a wonderful place to live in.










Anyway, I'm pleased to say I've managed to get five days holiday for myself, and I'm off down to Ko Samui, my favourite Thai island. It's become increasingly touristified over the years, but has still managed to retain a lot of its orinigal charm and beauty, in strong contrast to a place like Phuket, which is now so overcrowded and built up that you hardly feel you're on a tropical island at all. Will blog from there.

Cheers,
Robert

Hot Season Flora - part one

Hi Bloggers,

I've always taken a keen interest in tropical flora. In fact, it's one of the things I like about living in a country like Thailand. There are three main seasons here - hot, cool and rainy. We're currently moving into the hot phase, when the heat and humidity slowly build up to culminate in the rainy or monsoon season.

Interestingly, it's around now that most flora reproduce. It makes for quite a visual display, as not only are there all the seed formations, but also the magnificent and abundant plethora of tropical flowers. For part one, I'm just showing the seeds. Many trees have both male and female seeds, e.g. the palm tree. On my next blog, I'll show some of the flowers.

Hope you're enjoying the weather wherever you are!

Cheers,
Rob