A Shot at Affiliation
February 5th, 2009Clicky (^0^)
Camel-Milk Chocolate, anyone?
December 28th, 2008Hmm, wonder how would this taste… Never tasted Camel-Milk before but I have been told it has a ‘unique’ taste that might not be pleasant to everyone.
I have yet to find a place selling the product. This could either mean that the product hasn’t been received well or it is being sold as a premium brand in specialized shops (or maybe I haven’t looked hard enough). I will have to check when I go to Dubai next February.
Dubai firm’s world first with camel-milk chocolate
By Andy Sambidge, 23 October 2008
A Dubai-based company has become the first in the world to produce camel milk chocolate for the mass market.
Al Nassma Chocolate has been working for the last two years with a team of international experts to bring the uniquely Arabian product to fruition.
Following sampling during the recent Eid celebrations, the product has now gone on sale to the general public.
The name of the chocolate - Al nassma - has its roots in the Arabic language and depicts a seasonal breeze which brings respite to the people of the desert.
Dr Ali Ridha, chairman of Al Nassma Chocolate, said: “This is a historic moment, we at Al Nassma are very proud to present the world’s first camel milk chocolate.”
Martin van Almsick, a chocolate aficionado and former manager of the famous Cologne chocolate museum, worked together with experts from Austria and Germany to create the camel-milk chocolate.
The general manager of Al Nassma added: “Our product development for this exclusive chocolate has been meticulous and we have chosen only the finest ingredients to make sure we develop a premium product.”
A recent study revealed that the chocolate market in the UAE is robust with 98 percent of respondents claiming to consume chocolate at least once a week.
Globally the chocolate industry is valued at more than $41.6 billion.
Al Nassma’s product line consists of five different flavoured 70 gramme bars.
On the back of the launch, the company plans to open a farm shop in Umm Nahad near the Camelicious camel farm from where the milk is supplied.
Manama: Sin City
December 25th, 2008Happy Holidays. Enjoy the festivities!
In any case, found this old article. It’s quite amusing:
Top 10 Sin Cities of the World
Here an excerpt:
“Number 8: Manama, Bahrain
Welcome to the party oasis of the Middle East. Connected by a causeway to nearby Saudi Arabia, Manama is a popular spot for Saudis to kick back from their country’s restrictive laws. Here they can get hammered, go clubbing, mingle with the opposite sex, and if they’re really daring, they can pick up prostitutes — a practice that’s illegal but widely available. While Manama is still largely a Muslim city, a third of its residents are foreigners, so it has led to a much more liberal culture that gave women the vote in 2001, and let them drive cars. For many Saudi males this proximity to an open culture is irresistible and many jam the causeway and fill flights to the city every weekend.
Do you want to see what happens when Saudis cut loose and leave the rules behind? You may need to get in line.”
Christmas-New Year is usually a busy time in Bahrain. The few days before Ramadan are also busy since liquor is prohibited in most places during the Muslim holy month.
Someone has also put a speech bubble on the Saudi-Bahrain causeway on Google Earth:
Saudi All-Girl Rock Band
November 30th, 2008I have listened to their ’single’ and the music is better than I have expected (albeit sounding a bit video game-ish. The lyrics, however, are nothing to write home about. It is not that they are the first rock band in the country, but being the first (known) all-girl band brought them into the spotlights.
Saudi girl band challenges the rules limiting women
A Saudi girl band is defying the strict Islamic regime’s taboos on female expression of emotion and identity.
he band, called the Accolade, has written an underground hit called Pinocchio, that has been downloaded from their MySpace page. While they cannot perform in public, the four students have been able to stage gigs in private compounds and make studio recordings of their material.
Saudi Arabia maintains a strict code of control over women, based on Islamic precepts. The rules prohibit women from appearing in public alone or without an enshrouding veil. Women officially cannot make independent travel, education or medical choices without permission from a senior male relative.
There is even an injunction against women drivers.
One of member of the band told the New York Times that its formation was a demonstration of generational change. “The upcoming generation is different from the one before,” said Dina, 21, a founder member and guitarist. “Everything is changing. Maybe in 10 years it’s going to be OK to have a band with live performances.”
But there are considerable risks in the limited exposure the women have sought.
Lamia, the lead singer who has piercings on her eyebrow and lip, said it had been difficult to come as far as they had. “In Saudi, yes, it’s a challenge,” she said. “Maybe we’re crazy. But we wanted to do something different.”
The women claim they will not challenge the conservative kingdom’s ban on female public performances - enforced by the stick-weilding officials of the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice - but hope to stage a concert in more liberal Dubai.
“It’s important for them to see what we’re capable of,” said Dina.
Pinnochio’s English-language lyrics include explicit references.
WTF, Srsly
October 8th, 2008I was just talking with a guy who wants to marry a European girl (living here). He said that the two of them have to visit the shrink at some hospital belonging to the governmental security body. This is so they can do a full psychiatric test in order determine if they are okay or if there is something wrong in their heads.
WTF. Seriously.
Prohibited Love
February 14th, 2008Why, it is valentine! The day of crimson red (except, that is, if you live in Riyadh)…
Red is Banned till Fri.
Monday, 11 February 2008
By Suzan Zawawi
RIYADH - Agents of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice visited flower and gift shops in the capital Saturday night to instruct them to remove all red items - from red roses and wrapping paper to boxes and teddy bears - from their shelves, shop workers said.
“They visited us last night,” said a couple of florists Sunday morning.
“They gave us warnings and this morning we packed up all the red itmes and displays.” The florists asked not to be identified.
Sunday was the last day people could buy red roses in Riyadh, until Valentine’s Day on Feb. 14 passes.
Every year, Commission agents visit flower shops a couple of days before Feb. 14 to issue warnings. On the eve of Valentine’s Day, they start their raids and confiscate any red items that are symbols of love, florists here said.
But as a result of the ban, there’s a black market in red roses.
“A single rose costs around SR5-7 but today the same rose costs SR10 a piece and the price will go up to SR20-30 on Valentine’s Day,” said a florist who caters to customers on Valentine’s Day from his apartment.
Loyal customers place orders with the florist days and sometimes weeks before Feb. 14. “Sometimes we deliver the bouquets in the middle of the night or early morning, to avoid suspicion,” said the florist.
The Biggest Car Chase… EVER!
January 27th, 2008Osaka PD puts all it has into a car chase. And we mean everything
Toward the end of The Professional, Detective Stansfield is about to go after hitman Leon, and Stansfield tells his second in command “Get me everyone.” When his second asks what he means, he screams “I… mean… EVERYONE.” Something like that must have happened in Osaka, Japan, when the police department got a bead on a man wanted for assaulting police officers.
Twenty-seven-year-old Hirofumi Fukuda, driving a white Lexus sedan, was approached by a patrol car for running red lights. When he saw the police, he did what any self-respecting lawbreaker would do: he took off. That’s the easy part. The double-take comes when it took 2,240 police officers, 460 police cars, and one helicopter two hours to catch the man. The city of Osaka is just 85.4 square miles — about the size of Baltimore. Which is a lot of police in a little space looking for one single guy. And in fact, they didn’t catch him: he crashed into a bridge support and sustained minor injuries. If he ever gets out of prison, he’ll be a great guy to play Grand Theft Auto IV with.
Saudi Arabia to lift ban on women drivers
January 23rd, 2008By Damien McElroy in Riyadh
Last Updated: 12:01am GMT 21/01/2008
Saudi Arabia is to lift its ban on women drivers in an attempt to stem a rising suffragette-style movement in the deeply conservative state.
Government officials have confirmed the landmark decision and plan to issue a decree by the end of the year.
The move is designed to forestall campaigns for greater freedom by women, which have recently included protesters driving cars through the Islamic state in defiance of a threat of detention and loss of livelihoods.
The royal family has previously balked at granting women driving permits, claiming the step did not have full public support. The driving ban dates back to the establishment of the state in 1932, although recently the government line has weakened.
“There has been a decision to move on this by the Royal Court because it is recognised that if girls have been in schools since the 1960s, they have a capability to function behind the wheel when they grow up,” a government official told The Daily Telegraph. “We will make an announcement soon.”
Abdulaziz bin Salamah, the deputy information minister, said the official reform programme had been dogged by debate over the issue.
“In terms of women driving, we don’t have it now because of the reticence of some segments of society,” he said. “For example, my mother wouldn’t want my sister to drive.
“It’s something she cannot grapple with. But there is change on the way. I think the fair view is that one can be against it but one does not have the right to prevent it.”
If the ban on women driving is lifted, it could be years before the full impact is seen. Practical hurdles stopping women obtaining licences and insurance must be overcome.
Mohammad al-Zulfa, a reformist member of the Saudi consultative Shura Council, which scrutinises official policies in the oil-rich state, said reversing the ban was part of King Abdullah’s “clever” strategy of incremental reform.
“When it was first raised, the extremists were really mad,” he said. “Now they just complain. It is diminishing into a form of consent.”
Saudi Arabia maintains a strict segregation of the sexes outside the family home.
An unaccompanied woman must shop behind curtains and cannot hail a taxi.
Critics believe allowing women to drive would be the first step towards a gradual erosion of the kingdom’s modesty laws. A woman would have to remove the traditional abaya robe to get a clear view behind the wheel.
“Allowing women to drive will only bring sin,” a letter to Al-Watan newspaper declared last year. “The evils it would bring - mixing between the genders, temptations, and tarnishing the reputation of devout Muslim women - outweigh the benefits.”
Saudi women have mounted growing protests. Fouzia al-Ayouni, the country’s most prominent women’s rights campaigner, has risked arrest by leading convoys of women drivers. “We have broken the barrier of fear,” she said. “We want the authorities to know that we’re here, that we want to drive, and that many people feel the way we do.”
Source: Telegraph
Image: Autoblog
