Sights and Sounds | Vietnam

Good Morning Vietnam - A photo capturing each morning of my Far Eastern honeymoon

Day 1 | Alcove Library Hotel | Ho Chi Minh City

Day 2 | Somewhere in the Old Quarter | Hanoi

Day 3 | French Quarter | Hanoi

Day 4 | Central Market | Hoi An

Day 5 | Organic Garden | Hoi An

Day 6 | Town Centre | Hoi An

Day 7 | Morning coffee on travel day | Hoi An

Day 8 | Ho Chi Minh Statue | Ho Chi Minh City

Day 9 | Somewhere in the suburbs of District 2 | Ho Chi Minh City

Day 10 | Exploring the Saigon River | Ho Chi Minh City

The Ramadan Garden

When I first arrived in Dubai I was told 'nothing happens during Ramadan, EVERYTHING is closed'. Five years on, this is only a little bit true. Each year, another of the city's funky little bistros, urban cafes or even food trucks open up a new concept, meaning whether you are observing the Holy Month or not there is a delicious and, in particular, accessible concept to break fast with friends and family.

Step up the Ramadan Garden, brought to you by food truck catering service Ghaf Kitchen and the lovely people at A4 space in Alserkal Avenue.

I love it when a concept is executed well. And this is one of those times. A4 space was transformed with garden furniture, terracotta pots and seasonal plants and flowers pretty much all over the show. Ghaf Kitchen have clearly thought this through which, in a place where 'bodge jobs' are not unusual, makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Despite popular belief, Iftar is about breaking the fast gently, which is why you are greeted with a lovely sharing Mezze. For those fasting, I'd imagine that it would warm up the belly nicely. There is then a selection of 3 mains, I chose what turned out to be succulent and tender lamb with green beans and roast potatoes (possibly my favourite thing in the world) and my husband chose the posh fish finger sandwich. We also treated ourselves to Eton Mess for dessert. There are also a wide range of coffees and fresh juices and mocktails on offer.

My only tiny criticism would be that the Eton Mess was a bit heavy on the whipped, and could have balanced out the ratio of this with the meringue and berries slightly more evenly.

I definitely recommend those still in Dubai during Ramadan to go whether you are fasting or not. It's a good idea to book ahead, as I've seen Ghaf Kitchen announce that they are fully booked a few times on Instagram. Email info@ghafkitchen.com

Starter and main - 95aed pp

Desserts - 25aed

Drinks and coffees - 24aed

Chia Pudding

OK, so before I start you're probably going to think I'm getting all 'nu-age-paleo-dieting-but-all-I-really-eat-is-dust-and-so-should-you' on you, but bear with me on this one.

I think clean eating is important (don't worry, I'm still not going to turn this into anything high and mighty!). It's important for us to be aware about the very basics about nutrition, we are what we eat and all that. When I say 'basics' I really mean it. Like don't pig out on Maccy D's, eat an orange and then wonder why you haven't shed 10kilos by the following week (I actually worked with a guy once who did that).

But recently I've been trying to be a bit kinder to my insides, actually take note about how I feel after eating certain meals.

So I started with breakfast. My favourite meal. Probably yours too. I have a weirdly fast metabolism where I wake up ravenous, so I make sure we always have the basics for breakfast stocked during the week (yoghurt, fruit, granola or muesli, eggs). But it can get boring.

So I tried chia. These are teensy weeny little seeds that expand when soaked in liquid, so you feel quite full after eating them. OK, they do look a bit like frogspawn but it's much better than OD'ing on white toast or sugary cereal or, even worse, nothing for brekkie.

I used the recipe found here. Was pretty chuffed with myself with the results, especially after I added a layer of homemade granola and fresh berries.

Yummo | Homemade Granola

500g rolled jumbo oats
4 tbsp sunflower oil
80g Agave syrup
1 tsp cinnamon
20g linseed or sesame seeds
50g pumpkin seeds
50g sunflower seeds
50g almonds
25g shaved coconut
50g dried apricots, chopped
50g dates, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 150'C
2. Cover a baking tray with baking paper and the oats. Add the oil and cinnamon and mix on the tray with a fork, try to get the oats covered. Pour the syrup over evenly.
3. Bake for 10 mins. Meanwhile, chop the dates and apricots.
4. Add all seeds and the coconut
5. Bake for 8-10 mins
6. Add the fruit
7. Allow to cool completely before storing in water tight container

TIP:  Play around with your favourite fruit, nuts and seeds. I don't really follow the measurements too much and use them mostly as guidelines.

Sights and Sounds | Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

Visiting the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Abu Dhabi

Visiting Hours:

Saturday - Thursday | 9am-10pm

Friday | 4.30pm - 10pm

Free entry

Check the website for daily walking tour times 

http://m.szgmc.ae/en/page/mosque-opening-hours

Tip: Ladies have to cover their full body and head, and men must fully cover their legs and shoulders. Abayas and kandouras will be provided FOC for anyone who doesn't have them, which is fun and part of the experience!

Sights and Sounds | Shopping Satwa

Fabric shopping in Satwa 

Opening hours | 9am-1pm then 4pm-10pm | Daily

Tip: take along your favourite dress, shirt or top, pick a fabric then pop along to one of Satwa's tailors to get a carbon copy in a fab new colour or print.

RSVP | Visionnaire Store Launch | 28th May 2015

One of the great things being a freelancer is that every event or project is different.

That's why I was thrilled when I was asked to manage the launch of Visionnaire furniture store, courtesy of Offbroadway Entertainment.

Visionnaire is a luxury Italian furniture brand known for super high-quality fabrics and lavish designs. Pretty ideal for Dubai then.

On the guest list were some of Dubai's most prolific interior designers and buyers, not to mention potential customers who have cash to flash as well as the brand's big cheeses all the way from Milan.

The event concept was to make the entertainment enhance the furniture. The 1920s/Gatsby theme seems to be bang on event-trend at the moment, so we dressed 7 models in the appropriate costumes and assigned one to each room to bring it to life. The gorgeous humans roamed each space as if they had stepped straight out of the formidable decade, flipping through catalogues, adjusting their make up in the endless mirrors and smoking on their cigarette holder.

Jazz and swing music (which just happens to be my favourite genre, I

love a trumpet!) was courtesy of the stunner that is DJ LouLou, as well as a pianist and violinist. There wasn't an area inside the three stores villa that didn't come to life. 

Being the picky person that I am, particularly when it comes to costumes, the only thing I felt we could have improved on was the costumes. However, once the models were positioned in the beautifully-lit rooms and in character, the overall look worked really well leaving us with an ecstatically happy client.

Wishing Visionnaire the best of luck!

Perfect audio provided by TH Sound.  

Afternoon Tea-light

My dear little Mum has arrived in town for a week, having decided to have an 'adventure' without the company of my Dad. Good on her!

She requested to do one of the Emirates' hotels' famous afternoon teas which I gladly obliged. Who doesn't love an excuse to spend the latter part of an afternoon grazing on delectable mini sarnies, scones and sweets?

It had been a while since I had indulged of the sort, so did some quick research courtesy of Time Out Dubai who featured reviews on the city's top ten afternoon teas and the new Waldorf Astoria hotel on Palm Jumeirah seemed top, both for quality and value. I loved the description: "if this afternoon tea were a film, it would be: My Fair Lady"...seemed ideal as it's one of my favourite films. 

I really love this hotel. It is crisp, clean and classic. A lot of Dubai's hotels go overboard when it comes to their interior, but the WA keeps things understated (by Dubai's standard's, anyhow!). Afternoon tea was served in Peacock Alley, a lovely sweeping lounge area that overlooks the hotel pool. We sat in lovely grey high-back armchairs which added a sense of privacy to our arvo-soiree.

There are two types of afternoon tea - the 'London' or the 'Parisian', the difference only being the savoury sandwiches. We both opted for the London - think roast beef, smoked salmon and cucumber and cream cheese and you're getting the gist. The Parisian features goat's cheese and foi gras amongst others.

The trays were beautifully presented - 3 tiers of savoury, scones and desserts. It was a accompanied by condiments of clotted cream, strawberry jam, creamy lemon curd and possibly the nicest non-bitter marmalade I have ever had. A small but perfectly formed tropical fruit salad was a lovely touch too, something to cleanse the palette. We also both chose a pot of loose-leafed tea (my mum had Jasmine tea which had real Jasmine flowers inside), which looked super authentic in delicate glass teapots. We could have accompanied with a glass of bubbles, but we opted for tea as it would have doubled the price per person. An added bonus was that they refilled your pot for free. This is a novelty here in Dubai as some hotels will charge you.

(Note to hotels: if you are thinking of charging me for hot water, just remember - I will judge you)

My favourites were the smoked salmon open sandwich and the strawberry and pistachio tart. However, best in show goes to THE SCONES. I was blown away by the scones! It's a rare thing to find a light, buttery scone which isn't dry and mealy. I would return for the scones alone.

Highly recommend if you are thinking of treating yourself to an afternoon tea. It is worth taking the drive all the way around the Palm.

London Afternoon Tea: 150 aed each
Parsian Afternoon Tea: 165 aed each
Glass of champagne: 150 aed each

Feeding the Soul and Belly

At least once a week I do power yoga.

I think the easiest way to describe Power Yoga is 'fitness yoga'. It's a faster paced, more rigourous version of Hatha (which I find so dull) so your heart rate gets going and you don't spend so long in each pose.

I have the most fabulous Brazilian Yoga teacher Adriana (yes, lads, she is a slim and bendy Brazilian, calm down) who I have been going to now for almost all of my five years in Dubai. She holds three classes a week at the Surf House near Dubai's Sunset Beach (right next to the iconic Burj al Arab) in Umm Sequim 1.

The Surf House is somewhat of an institution amongst Dubai's beach lovers. Opened by two of my husband's friends a few years ago, it is pretty much the only place where surfers can rent or buy top-quality surf and SUP boards and accessories, including my new favourite UV protection range, Sun Bum.

On Thursday I had the day off (such a treat to have a three day weekend!) and so was up and at 'em to make the Thursday morning class. Although my balance was way off, it was an amazing way to start the day.

As I hadn't yet had breakfast, I treated myself to something nutritious and delicious at the brand new Surf Cafe (Insta: @thesurfcafedubai) next door. The inside is funky, and isn't too heavy on the 'surf' theme and has a more industrial / arts-cafe style interior. Yoga had made me hungry - I wolfed down my soft poached eggs in avocado with toast soldiers and washed it down with a fresh OJ whilst enjoyed the view down the Jumeirah Beach Road stretch.

Definitely one to revisit, The Surf Cafe is open for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.