How to MANDI

Man. I am so in love.

Today has been one of those days when everything that could possibly go wrong has been going wrong. Car, work, family etc. but the light at the end of the tunnel, the silver lining, the rainbow of my day was seeing that guy come through.

Mandi is a very traditional style of eating where you basically go cray on a shared plate. Sound familiar? Usually happens with dessert. This is quite literally a quarter goat and half chicken for like 3 people. It's just. Ugh. Rice and meat. Just simple and good. I wanna learn how to make it.

Ps. This is SO not eating clean an healthy. But hey, it's Thursday

How to find community

There's literally a community for everything in Dubai. From Japanese anime culture to bridge clubs to surfers to alcoholics. And when it comes to religious communities; it's unbelievable that a Muslim nation can be this tolerable to diversity. I decided to check out the somewhat new Gurudwara in Jebel Ali since my friend had a business visit there last week and said the construction was beautiful. I've never been into one before and I know little to nothing about Sikh religion/culture, but what convinced me to check it out was the free food!

I walked in at around 1.30pm and got a FULL tour of the Gurudwara, the 411 on the principles of the Sikh religion, Gurus, religious texts/scriptures, and answered plenty of questions about myself along the way. It was interesting to see how dedicated people were to the religion and how rich the Sikh community in Dubai is, since it's completely run on donations. The place is HUGE with 3 floors and a fully staffed kitchen that runs almost 24/7. The food is free and they begin serving tea at 5.00 am after the first "keertan" and they continue with breakfast at 8, then tea, lunch, tea, and dinner.

After the tour, we got to sit down with one of the directors and have a nice Indian-style (on the floor) meal discussing religions and family and life. It was a nice break from the usual and a great meal with good people!

How to be vegetarian - Part 2

Omg - almost 2 weeks of no meat!! Not even seafood - and my favourite vegspiration bestie @leannemark just recently turned back to meat.

I think I need to give into some fish sooner or later. I've been finding myself consistently going cray on the carbs - NOT good. However, this Sunday afternoon vegetarian meal of mine just made my day brighter. #Rajdhani is an Indian restaurant in the slightly grimey-er side of town where the BEST food awaits. Seriously - if you haven't explored Bur Dubai, your losing at life. Read a review from @timeoutdubai here.

The best part was the HOT whole wheat roti with extra ghee and melting JAGGERY! - my favourite kind of sugar for my no-refined sugar lifestyle. It's to die for.

I know the pic makes no sense and does NOT look appetizing. But trust me - just trussssmeee.

xo

How to be vegetarian

OK - so, I might be using Lent to experiment with vegetarianism. Sue me.

It's been almost a week since I've eaten any kind of meat, including seafood and I really don't miss it (yet! I have 4 weeks to go). Albeit, I'm not a compulsive meatatarian - I enjoy the occasional steak and find nothing wrong with the taste of a juicy chicken. So what's with all the hype? And why are yoga practitioners and so many sexy celebrities almost always vegetarian??

I think it's a little crazy and unfair to be completely polarized on this topic. There are obvious benefits to eating more vegetables and easily absorbed plant based proteins. However, lean meats are not the devil; they are equally or more nutritious and protein-rich, but sometimes they are harder to digest. And most commonly meat doesn't come in a very "clean" form; so it's easy to eat crap when eating meat. That is all. In my opinion - regardless of what we eat, it just needs to be balanced.

That being said. I have been working out just as hard- if not more. My next race is coming up on March 16th for the Dubai Autodrome 10k and I'll be under a completely veggie diet - let's see how much of a difference it makes! I think cutting out the weekend shisha with friends is probably gonna be more beneficial.

How to road-trip!

The best part about road trips used to be the unlimited McDonalds and sleeping in the back seat of our sweet mini-van for way too many hours as my parents drove around the east coast of North America . I'm sure my brother @nmerwin, Marsha and Noah can vouch for that. So many memories!!

The best parts about road tripping in undeveloped areas around Dubai is that it is definitely less gluttinous and more adventurous. We get to stop at small little fruit and vegetable vendors for fresh coconut water and oranges #nom.

The worst part about road tripping in undeveloped areas around Dubai? Try crossing the Oman-UAE border. I will never complain about the niagara region border patrol ever again. These guys are a joke in comparison.
1) you dont even get to stay in ur car - u have to get out and LINE UP INDIVIDUALLY
2) nobody speaks english
3) the kid in front of you may throw up his breakfast.

gross.



The UAE-OMAN border, looks like a war zone and refugees right? .. well, it felt like it too.




Buying fruits and coconut to go from untrustworthy sources.



COCONUT LOVE xo

How to walk too fast.

I have a real problem with this. I walk wayy too fast about 99.9% of the time. In my room, out on the road, in a club, at the mall, everywhere. This has led to:
-several bruises on the shin
-skinned knees
-several falls
-washroom gender confusion
-nausea,etc.

you get the point.

This time at my stopover at Heathrow Airport (London, England). My speedy walking got me on a 10 minute bus-ride to the wrong terminal and a 12-minute bus-ride back to the right one. Where I came across this:

Love. Eat. Live.
Sounds cliche & over-said. But it really made me slow my roll and smile a little!

Def. ate the most delish breakfast here (Giraffe, Terminal 5, Heathrow Airport)

How to be frazzled.

Here are the things that are generating this feeling right now:

1) The fact that I have 2.5 weeks of studying left to do to pass an exam with like a 45% pass rate.. One of which I have already bombed.

2) I have to wait until OCTOBER to get my results. Has to be the worst part!

3) It is ramadan- do u know what it's like to live in a muslim country during ramadan? I don't either.. Finding out now.

4) Booked a family vacation to Turkey and then Ireland! (3 weeks to go!) But I can't even get excited until exams are done.

5) My brother is only gonna be with me for 4 more weeks :( .. But he's going to MAC! yayy!

6) It is bloody 50 degrees celsius outside. And not "feels like 50 but its 40"... ITS FIFTY DEGREES!  And somehow I'm still freezing in my room.

7) Just the fact that it's August. Almost a year since I got here..

8) I'm indulging in way too many dates. Not the kind with a boy- the fruit...I've always wanted to make that joke. haha.. It's date season!! And I know most Canadians don't like dates. But you haven't lived until you've tasted a fresh one.



The display in the grocery store for the season.



How to drink wheatgrass.

DISCLAIMER: If your gonna try this at home, be warned of all the "cleansing effects" it may bring about. Make sure you are within a 20second reach of a toilet bowl.

Hey, don't say I didnt warn ya!

NOW, FOLLOW STEP-BY-STEP.

First you grow the wheatgrass.

 Then, you harvest the wheatgrass.

Then, you apologize for breaking your mom's blender and drink the juice.

I've had a wheatgrass shot before, but this is the first time I tried growing it myself. Yea, okay, i'm bordering on hippy-freak right now. But listen to all the benefits!

• One ounce contains 103 vitamins, minerals and amino acids.
• One ounce of wheatgrass juice represents as much nutritional value as approximately 2.5 pounds of fresh green vegetables.
• Wheatgrass juice is high in chlorophyll.
• It is very high in vitamins A, B-Complex, C, E and K.
• Wheatgrass juice is a natural source of laetrile (B-17).
• It contains beta-carotene, which is found in red, green and yellow pigmented fruits and vegetables.  Beta-carotene acts as a scavenger against harmful molecules flowing naturally through the body or through toxins inhaled from cigarette smoke, air pollution and other damaging sources.
• Wheatgrass cleanses, purifies and feeds the body by activating the white blood cells, which boost the body's immune system.
• Wheatgrass juice is also beneficial for people who need to lose weight or cleanse their bodies.
  (Source: GreenHealthCanada.) 

YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
Enjoy!
xoxo

How to live on coffee and cigarettes.

If you don't live in New York City or Paris - living on coffee and cigarettes is kind of lame. Especially in Dubai, where desert-like conditions make drinking hot beverages and standing outside for over 2 minutes unbearable. So, why is it that Arab culture calls for this lifestyle?

It's all in the packaging! Atleast in Dubai - where your cigarettes come without the disgusting warning labels and sheesha/hookah is all over the marina or on gorgeous rooftops around the city. I don't smoke cigarettes and I don't smoke sheesha often, but I have to admit - they make it look GOOD!

However, I do give into caffeine more often than not. I usually have my regular cup of Americano everyday. But being a sucker for cute packaging, I just had to try this amazing/authentic turkish coffee! Tiniest serving size, but SO strong and SO yum!

Turkish coffee is coffee prepared by boiling finely powdered roast coffee beans in a pot (cezve), possibly with sugar, and serving it into a cup, where the dregs settle. The name describes the method of preparation, not the raw material; there is no special Turkish variety of the coffee bean. It is common throughout the Middle East, North Africa, Caucasus, and the Balkans, and in their expatriate communities and restaurants in the rest of the world.

How to know your roots.

With the amount of migrating my nomadic family has done over the years, it's really hard to know our true roots. The closest connection we have is through our food. The food our families make and the stuff that reminds us of "grandma's house" is what keeps us Indian, Chinese, Jamaican, Scottish, American, etc.... think about it!!

I'm not going to get into detail about my "roots", that stuff is worth an entire blog in itself... But you can educate yourself on wikipedia as always. (See: Madras, Nadar, Nazareth, South Indian, Jaggery, Toddy)

This post is completely inspired by the arrival of some sweet treats from India. My Dad brought back the coolest and rarest South Indian candy (which was actually brought to him by an uncle from the dirty dirty south). It's made with Jaggery & ginger and moulded into bite size weird-tasting things, it's really not something everyone enjoys. But i LOVE it.

The best part about it? The case that's woven with palm leaves!!

Two lessons from this:
1) packaging is everything
2) the best things in life come without nutritional information

 

How to Friday.

Ok step 1: Equate my Friday to your Saturday (if your not from the UAE)
Now imagine having to listen to an accounting lecture from 8.30am-6pm .. all I ever want to do is SLEEP.

But this Friday was awesome, we had a half day and it felt so amazing. My mom, bro and I went out to lunch at Nando's on the dubai marina and then dessert at haagen dazs after (SANS the father - because he's in India for the week).

I want to say "while the cat is away, the mice will play" ... but honestly, my dad's probably the one "playing" in India. So we took the opportunity to have a little fun ourselves. I love hanging out with these two. I'm gonna miss Nishanth when he goes away to University this fall  =( . But I'm SO happy he's going to McMaster!!

 

Our view of the marina from inside Nandos.




"family photo" aka. waiting for our bill. Bad customer service as usual.




Oh hey it's my favourite people! Waddup?!






 


BEFORE





Just like Vancouver! apparently.

Check out this cool twisty building they are building on the marina.
Apparently it rotates?? I'm nervous already.

How much green tea do I have to drink to wash away Nandos and Haagen Dazs hangover? Somebody help!

How to Lent.

I need a doctor, call me a doctor...

As you guys may or may not know, I gave up chocolate for Lent. That's 40 days of giving up something I love and over-indulge in. I was actually quite fine with controlling myself so far.. "out of sight, out of mind", but as the countdown to Easter shortens, its been getting progressively worse! and @leannemark has not been helping!! (see #frockyeah's "Emergency Chocolate" and Parisian Macarons!)

So, this is what I've been doing at work: Brainstorming how to break my choco-fast. These are some of my favourite ideas so far (taken from timeoutdubai.com). PLEASE help me decide!! and No, I cant do all.

Chocolate afternoon tea
Spend the afternoon deliberating life’s pleasures over a variety of chocolate cakes, brownies and scones with home-made chocolate spreads and jams, plus six different perfectly petite finger sandwiches. Wash down all that chocolate with a variety of soothing herbal teas – or, for die-hard chocolate fans, hot chocolate. The experience can be enhanced with a cocoa-inspired spa treatment, which includes a full-body massage, a chocolate body scrub and a chocolate lotion finish.
Afternoon tea Dhs85 per person; spa package and tea Dhs345. Axis, Hilton Dubai Jumeirah, The Walk at JBR (04 318 2530).
Chocoholic rating: 4/5

Chillled valrhona chocolate fondant
In a restaurant that spoils its diners with a menu overflowing with diverse, intricate and inventive dishes, it’s little surprise that the valrhona chocolate fondant brings the three-course set menu or six-course ‘Menu Prestige’ to a wonderful conclusion. The fondant is encased in an intricately wrought honeycomb shell; you’ll almost feel guilty cracking into it. But your remorse won’t last long – the rich, cool chocolate that oozes out from its centre is divine, and its taste is enhanced by the shards of sweet honeycomb that get caught up in the flood.
Verre menu Dhs395; Menu Prestige Dhs495. Verre by Gordon Ramsay, Hilton Dubai Creek, Deira (04 227 1111).
Chocoholic rating: 5/5

Spicy chocolate soup with white chocolate granite
If you’ve bored of your standard milk chocolate dessert and are after something spicier, here’s your fix. Although dressed as a soup, don’t expect a bowl of liquid chocolate. What you’ll find is a moist dark chocolate truffle-laden pudding capped with some intricate chocolate work, and a pouring of chocolate sauce bedded on a slab of refreshing raspberry sorbet. The hints of chilli and South American spice, and the mix of textures and temperatures, all work beautifully. It’s heavenly and devilish all at the same time.
Dhs60. Asado, The Palace Address, Downtown Burj Khalifa (04 428 7899).
Chocoholic rating: 4/5

Mississippi mud pie
Seafire’s recommended dessert (this and the key lime pie) is served with a river of near life-changing milk chocolate sauce. The heavy pie boasts the texture of a crumbly brownie and is packed with chocolate drops, topped with creamy white chocolate mousse atop a digestive biscuit-style base. Even the most experienced chocolate fans should expect to be electrified. We just don’t want to think about the calories.
Dhs45. Seafire, Atlantis, The Palm Jumeirah (04 426 2626).

Chocoholic rating: 5/5

T MINUS 4 DAYS B*TCHES!!!! 

How to cook!

My mom's gone away to india for a week... So its time to get the creative juices flowing in the kitchen!
Nishanth and I found an amazing blue cheese and chicken breast recipe.
2 chicken breasts
8 bacon strips crumbled
10oz of spinach
1 cup crumbled blue cheese
2 tbsp of flour
1/2 tsp of pepper and salt

Stuff the chicken breasts with the bacon/spinach/bluecheese mix, roll it around in flour and salt/pepper, brown it on a pan and then bake for 30 minutes. Done and done. Tastes SOOO good!!
Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone from du

How to SUSHI!

Today, I realized that I haven't gone out for sushi in over 4 months! Which is pretty much since I moved from Toronto. Where do you find good Japanese in town? Only my dubai-savvy brother would know. So, we went off in the wrong direction toward Jumeirah Beach Road to find SUMO Sushi.
Lesson: Nishanth gives the worst directions ever.

An hour and too much green tea ice-cream later, we couldn't resist a beach side drive. Even though we were so NOT in the mood for more food, I was on a mission to find a little seafood shack by the beach called "bu qtair". The renowned cafe is supposedly super hard to find - So I figured this is a good time to walk around and explore-burn off some cals. All of a sudden we see a ton of kites in the sky by the beach. KITESURFERS?!

We stuck around for a while and then continued our search for this "bu qtair" ... turns out we were nowhere near it. We finally stopped and asked people for directions after we hit a dead end twice. I had no intention of eating cause I was still so full, but since it was so hard to find and there was so much build up and hype around it - we figured it would be best to get some shrimp to take home. After many parking failures, wrong turns and sand, we found the place! Turns out it doesn't open until 6.30pm...
END SCENE.

I went home and slept for five hours. The sushi experience is just not complete without "itis" right after. Anyways, this is January in Dubai! I have to say that post-christmas people are much nicer. Malls are friendlier and people seem to be more relaxed on the roads. However, it's only two weeks into the new year. I'm sure the resolutions will soon wear off.

PS. I REALLY want to take up Kite Surfing. Look out for a "How to Kite Surf" post coming soon!

BU QTAIR!!!!



Love and Peace from the middle east. <3 .. i've been wanting to say that for a while now lol

Until next time. XOXO