Getting twithchy...

Out for a stroll enjoying the late afternoon sun, and was pleased to spot a number of interesting new visitors (or possibly residents) in my kneck of the woods.

We have a large and talkative population of mynahs, the usual mob of red-bum and yellow-bum bulbuls, gangs of marauding parrots and the occasional iridescent sunbird. On the pond are a couple of gangs of mallards, and the occasional heron. Hoopoes abound.

To this yesterday we can add some very welcome newcomers. First up (or down) is what I think is a 'little grebe', a very small duck-shaped bird that behaves like a northern cormorant, diving below the surface of the water for long periods of time, only to resurface a considerable distance away.

Then something new - a flash of bright turquoise, and there on the fence is what I assumed was a large kingfisher. Later searches suggested it might be a 'european roller', but I'll have to try and get a closer look.

Another exotic was a small sleek sportscar of a bird, obviously evolved for speed and maneuverablilty, which I think was a variety of bee-eater. Its colour was striking, merging from deep green around the edges of its dart-like plan, to a deep terracotta on its back.

More twitching tonight, with a camera to hand!

Ramadan Kareem

Though I seem to be in a constituency of one, I actually enjoy the holy month of Ramadan. True, the traffic is awful, decisions take longer and supermarkets are misery, but it is also the month which truly reminds me of where I am blessed to live.

Truly, the pace of life changes. There's a tangibly different feel to crowds, a real sense that this month of austerity, reflection and prayer actually means something. As a western expat, I am impressed by the depth and universality of faith evidenced by the crowded mosques and teeming Iftar tents. Simple things like water and dates dispensed at petrol stations, the sunset cannon, the muzzein's call to prayer, these are now as familiar and comforting to me as were church bells in the UK.

So to all my reader, colleagues and friends Muslim, agnostic, Arab and expat, may I wish a peaceful and profound Ramadan Kareem.

Summer's over. At last!

Dubai has three sorts of weather – when it’s hot, when it’s damn hot, and when it’s Scandinavian sauna champions’ extreme endurance training hot. That’s summer.

Ah, summer. That long, lazy hiatus where we retreat indoors and draw the blinds, moving from air-conditioned car to air-conditioned mall with all the speed you can muster when it’s 40C and 90% humidity outside. What we refer to as a 3, 4 or 5 t-shirt day.

In a previous life. May used to mark the beginning of the barbecue season and nights that we could fool ourselves into thinking it was fun to sit outside, here May marks the end, the last rite of passage where we stand around wilting and pretend we’re still enjoying the clammy heat. Finally, defeat, and the welcome chill of AC.

And yet, summer must end some time. This year it happened around 10.30pm on Friday night.

For days, the humidity had been rising, and though the temperature was only in the high 30s C, it felt much worse. Walking anywhere was a challenge, washing would hang limp on the drier, damp for days. Even the birds were panting.

Normally, the end of summer is marked by two big sandstorms, which fill the air with choking dust and build sand dunes over parked cars – we have been waiting patiently for weeks for the first to arrive. But arrive it did. On Friday night, around half past ten. And suddenly it is a pleasure to sit in the garden again, humidity gone, and the air perfumed with jasmine, frangipane, hibiscus. Like some trogdolyte emerging into the sun, we took our first hesitant steps out from the cool safety of our house, knocked the dust off a garden chair, and sat with a glass of wine in hand, soaking in the sounds of night without soaking in sweat.

On such a night, a garden in Dubai is one of the most idyllic places on earth.

Reflections of today

Came across this by chance, but think it needs a wider audience! Poetry for today, from The Overnight Editor (overnighteditor.typepad.com)


'Do not exceed the stated dose'

(a.k.a. sixty-two things inanimate objects told me to do this month)

Do not exceed the stated dose.
Do not wash with brightly-coloured clothes.
Do not dispose of in fire
Do not iron. For hire.
Always use
the correct-rated fuse.
Made in a factory where nuts are used.

Press tablets through from other side.
No user-serviceable parts inside.
No parking. Fragile.
Do not use door while
vehicle is in motion.
Always reject if seal is broken.

Shake before use. Contents may come loose
in transit.
Do not pierce or burn, even after use.
Exit.
Ensure battery is full. Pull.

Keep cool. Look right.
Horn is for use only at night.
After use store in an upright position.
No photography without permission.
Enjoy responsibly. Store horizontally.
Drink chilled. Serve with ice.
Never use a condom twice.

Do not discharge near face. Do not open case. Always store in a cool dry place.

Protect can from direct sunlight.
Keep out of the reach and sight
of children. Push. Keep left.
Mind that child he may be deaf.
If undelivered please return to the address printed overleaf.
For use only on teeth. Twist here to open cap.

Mind the gap.

For best before, see top.
Stop. No hat, no boots, no job.
Rights protected.
Use only as directed
by your
doctor.
Please mind
the closing doors.

Do not disassemble. Do not recharge.
Extra Large.
Freeze on day of purchase. Do not eat.
Please retain
this receipt
for your records. Warning: X-rays.

Once opened refrigerate and consume within 28 days.
Keep clear. Exit to rear. Do not insert forcibly into the ear.
If you can read this, you're too close.

Do not exceed the stated dose.