HAPPY NEW YEAR - WELCOME 2014!

A BEAUTIFUL NEW YEAR PRAYER

I came across a beautiful New Year prayer by Helen Steiner Rice

MY PHOTO FOR THE DAY - WHITE BABY CAMEL

As we drove from Kabd after the camel race, we were surprised by this herd of white camels grazing close to the highway. My husband slowed down the car so I could take some photos. My husband went, 'did you see the baby camel?'. I took out my camera and just couldn't stop clicking. The baby camel was so pretty.

CAMEL RACE

Last Saturday we headed to the Camel Racing Club in Kabd. The race started at 2.3Opm. Racing camels are smaller in built and definitely lighter in weight compared to the camels you generally see grazing  in Kabd or Mutla. The racing camels have robot jockeys fastened on top. The robot contains two transmitters. The camel owners in their vehicle drive on the parallel side of the race track along with the racing camels and give vocal encouragement to their camel through their walky-talky transmitter. The other transmitter activates the robot's swirling arm, tapping the back side of the camel to motivate it to run. As they gallop, they have thick white foam that come out of their mouth. 

There is a nice viewing building with seating if you want to view the race in total comfort from a height. Or else you can go near the race track and watch the camel race in close quarters, which we did. Now these two places to view the race is near the finish line. So actually what you get to see is the ending of the race. You can see them galloping from a distance and head towards the finish line where you stand. It's a beautiful visual experience. After the race, we went into the tent next to the viewing building, where the owner of the winning camel was being photographed along with VIPs. We were served fresh butter from goat milk, dates and yoghurt drink, 'laban'. Incense was lit on table and the lovely fragrance spread through the light smoke. 

Camels races are held every Saturday at 2.3Opm and it's something anyone would enjoy including children, if you want to do something different from visiting the malls. The races should get over by 3.3Opm. Near the race grounds, there are camels you can climb on and the camel would go a few steps, and you get to experience a mini camel ride and take lots of photos. There are restrooms in the viewing building. Water, tea and arabic coffee is available near the kitchen that faces the race track. So if you want to carry some snack or food, you could do that as there are no restaurants or food available in the premises.There is no entry free or any charge to watch the race.

I couldn't find a proper map to share here. So I'll try to explain the directions.  Take the 6th ring road to Jahra, watch for exit 604 to your left to Kabd, take that exit which is a  left under the bridge to road 604. Keep going straight. Go past the 2 traffic circles, when you reach 3rd traffic circle, make a left turn and keep going straight. At the end of this road, is a T junction. There is road going to the right. Take that road to your right and keep going and you will see the Kuwait Camel Race Club building to your left, car parking and flags. The important thing is you should not miss the exit to road 604 and you should keep an eye for all the 3 traffic circles. 

FLAMINGOS ARE BACK

Flamingos are back at the Shuwaikh Bay, in hundreds. It's nice to see them in natural surroundings than in captivity. The weather is beautiful. If you like birds, spend time by the sea and enjoy nature, this is the best time to visit the flamingos. There are so many other birds too. This photo was captured by my husband last Friday afternoon.

SING IN THE RAIN AT 360 MALL - PHOTOS

The 'Sing in the Rain' musical and dance show at 360 Mall was quite artistically and beautifully choreographed and performed by young talents of LOYAC. The performance was based on the song from the classic movie 'Singing in the Rain' starring Gene Kelly. The shows was held on 18, 19 and 20 December at 7pm,  8pm and then at 9pm. 

We saw the show last Thursday. The musical clip 'Singin' in the Rain' song from the movie was first played. The show began with sounds of thunder and rain followed by LOYAC performers coming down the wide stairs to the floor set for the performance and danced to the music with umbrellas. I liked the 7pm show so much, that after going around in the mall for an hour, we returned to watch the last show at 9pm. This also gave me a chance to enjoy the show properly by keeping my camera away. The grand finale was even more beautiful. It was a delightful musical and visual treat. It must have been a real pleasant surprise for the all mall visitors who didn't know about this show and happened to be there at that time. The show was quite a crowd puller. 

Hope we get to see more of such lovely events. Here are some photos I took. Most photos are bit blurry due to constant movement during the performance. 

BEING KIND EVEN WHEN YOU DISAGREE

MY PHOTO FOR THE DAY - BEAUTIFUL SUNSET

Beautiful sunset behind Movenpick, Shuwaikh. Taken on Saturday 14 December 2O13

CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTING EVENT AT MOVENPICK HOTEL

It was fun at the annual Christmas Tree Lighting event at Movenpick on Saturday 14 December 2O13. We reached there around 4.45pm. There were lot of families with children. Cartoon characters Mickey Mouse, Barney and Dora posed with children in front of the tall 14 m tall beautifully decorated Christmas tree. Food stalls sold tea, coffee, shawarmas, fish and chips, hot dog, burgers and fries. They had delectable cookies. The face painting stall had a big queue of little children who wanted their face painted. Lots of children were having fun at the bouncy castle, while next to it was a water pool  with two plastic inflatable bubbles in which kids climbed into and the bubbles floated about in the pool. There was an interesting exhibit of cars from the 7O's and 8O's. 

At 5.3Opm, Santa turned up on the roof waving at everyone. Then the lights came on the Christmas tree which looked quite magical at that moment. Santa came in a car fitted with balloons and with escorts that led him up the stairs to his seat. I noticed how excited children were, upon seeing Santa. The choir group sang beautiful songs that added to the festive occasion. Now as I write this post, I wish I would have stood in front of the choir for a longer time, and enjoyed the songs. They were just so lovely. My attention was so divided at everything that was happening around, and busy capturing all that on my camera. 

Children gathered near Santa for their photos to be taken. And that's not all, children got gifts too. Last year, we had missed the Christmas tree lighting event. We had spent a wonderful Christmas with our daughter in UK last year. Anyway, I felt quite happy to have been a part of this event this time. 

Thank you Movenpick for arranging this beautiful Christmas Tree Lighting event.