The desert, as the name would imply, is a pretty hot and dry place. Dubai in the summer months (like at the moment) is an oven. Highs some days over 50°C – often combined with 50 or 80% humidity – makes it a tough place for life. And it’s especially hard for stray animals, and gardens.
We had an Arabian cat move into our garage about 2 months ago. A lovely, friendly little guy with a massive purr, one of several displaced from the labour camp nearby when they tore it down and moved all the labourers away (his friends and carers). So he arrived with a humongous appetite. We fed him and took him to the vet to be sterilised, and he seemed quite happy. Every time we did our kettle-bell class in the garden he would follow us, meow a little and purr a lot, happy to have some company.
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Blog
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it’s a battle!
[Larry in our garage] -
roller gathers grass
How funny is this? A Rolls Royce covered in astro-turf. Haha, just had to share it.
Currently on show at Mirdif City Centre as part of the “collectors exhibition” for Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS).
[source: 7days Newspaper] -
“26,000 pages”
I love this.
[“26,000 Pages” by Hadieh Shafie is on the Jameel Prize 2011 short-list]
Made up of …26,000 strips of paper, each scroll is marked with printed and hand written Farsi (Persian) text then tightly rolled into concentric circles, concealing or revealing different elements of the text. The concentric forms of both text and material take their inspiration from the dance of the whirling dervish. Shafie’s paper scroll works demonstrate a constant element of her work which is the significance of process, repetition and time, all rooted in the influence of Islamic art and craft. Hadieh seeks to create work which is rich in layers of meaning and gives the viewer an opportunity for contemplation and reflection.
Hadieh Shafie was born in Iran and lives and works in the USA.
Details for all 10 finalists, and their work, available on the V&A website.
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fancy a date?
When you think of the desert you kinda imagine miles and miles of rolling sand dunes, and little else right? But the reality is a little different. Whilst it is dry and dusty there are still plants that manage to eke out an existence on what little moisture they catch from morning dew and days of high humidity. Of course in the oasises (oasi? what is the plural?) there is a lot more water, and thanks to a clever system of irrigation trenches, or falaj, more foliage is concentrated here. And most commonly of all you will find the date palm. In fact you will see these plants (trees?) all over the place here.
[at the Al Ain Oasis in 2008 (now a World Heritage Site)]
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glorious buildings
[Sacré-Cœur Basilica, Paris]
When you travel in Europe you have probably noticed that often the largest and most lavish buildings (historically) are the churches and cathedrals. In some cases you can even see where the style of the building has changed over its years of construction, sometimes a couple of hundred (like the Cathedral in Toledo Spain for instance). The inside of the building (originally) would have been decorated with the finest ornamentation and craftsmanship of the period, sadly in some cases this has not stood the test of time, or been impervious to vandals and invading forces. But nevertheless, the idea was to offer a glorious place of worship for the masses. Well that and probably to show off a little bit in some cases, but “if you got it flaunt it” right?
[Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris] 
[Cathedral of Toledo, Spain]