Sushi in Bahrain

...is f***ing expensive!!!!

Ok, apart from the fact that the Japanese restaurant we dined in was located in a four-star hotel, and the lush authentic Japanese setting and feel to the restaurant, and the kimono-ed waitresses, and the excellent serivce, and the amazing display of cullinary skills from the tepanyaki chef, and the fresh succulent raw fish-really, the restaurant was nothing special.

No seriously, when a pair of tiny cucumber rolls of sushi cost 1.8BD, approx SG$8, that's taking the piss. We had half a mind to walk out but at that moment, our cocktails (non-alcoholic because it's Ramadan) arrived.

Ahh, but Wednesday nights were Sushi Night, when all sushi goes for half price. Still, I begrudged paying $4 for some rice, nori and cucumbers, which I will only pick out because I don't eat greens.

We ended up getting a sushi set each, and I scoffed at the meagre amount of sushi on the plates when it arrived. I mean, we were the king and queen of sushi parties in Edinburgh. We threw countless sushi dinner parties for friends, and the amount we made was enough to feed an army. 10 measly pieces of sushi will only suffice for a starter surely, even if they are adorned with the most exotic looking pieces of raw fish?

By my 7th piece of sushi, I took my words back. I don't know if it was us eating slowly to savour the exhorbitantly expensive delicacies, but I was stuffed. I truly enjoyed the fine Japanese dining experience, and I decided no, we didn't need to get a briyani takeaway on the way home.

While the tepanyaki chef amazed us all with his ability to flip and catch and cook all at the same time, our dessert arrived, bearing an uncanny resemblance to the French crepe, which was what it was basically, stuffed with fresh fruits and decorated with chocolate sauce and rich vanilla ice cream.

The bill was astronomical compared to what our sushi bill once was in Singapore (we used to wait till 8.30pm before we bought sushi from the Japanese place in Bukit Timah plaza cos they are half-priced then), but then again, we are now 'expats', and 'expats' are expected to dine in five-star splendour, no??

Tonight, we're off to the Souq for streetside pratas and tehs.

Ramadan

Bahrain comes to a standstill during Ramadan.

Growing up in a muti-cultural, multi-racial country where everyone lives together harmoniously, I knew what Ramadan was. I remember my muslim friends in primary and secondary schools sitting out pf physical education periods during Ramadan, because they can't even take a sip of water to satiate their thirst during daylight hours.

However, Ramandan takes on a whole new meaning here. People seem to get away with so much more-they work shorter hours, things are expected to move slower, even malls and restaurants (yes, even MacDonald's!) are closed in the afternoon! Also, there is a ban on alcohol across the countries, except in expat clubs. There are public community police patrolling the streets ready to pick on unsuspecting individuals who eat or drink, and issue them with a fine on their first offence, and on their second, throw them in jail for the rest of Ramadan. It all takes a bit of getting used to, and I must admit, even though it's halfway over, I'm still not getting used to the idea. Working in a non-Muslim office, it's easy to forget the implications of Ramadan, and I'm afraid that I might unknowing pop a mint into my mouth on the streets only to be accousted by the police.

The country is a ghost town in the day, but comes alive after 9pm, when families have had Iftar after the last of the sun's rays, and shops, restaurants and malls stay repoen in the evening and stay open till the wee hours of the morning.

The lack of alcohol but didn't upset me as much as it did RJ. I can take it or leave it, but a man needs his beer after a hard day's work.

The Ramandan tents are a huge thing here. Literally an air-conditioned tentage set up on the grounds of 4/5 star hotels that welcome patrons after sunset, catering a whole range of traditional Arabic cuisine. We've only been to one so far, and a very quiet one at that, because the popular ones are all fully booked. To be honest, the tent itself was rather gaudily set up, and we sat out near the beach instead. The weather in Bahrain has cooled down considerable over the past week, and it's much less humid and mild, which makes it much more pleasant to sit out rather than being in the air-condition, which is always too cold.


RJ is walking around with a cast on his leg since wrecking his ankle in the rugby game in Dubai - his first, might I add. He was injured within 15 mins of being on the pitch, and he was gutted. He got his 15 min of fame alright, but he'll be out of action for the next 12 weeks. I have started playing netball for the rugby club, and the league began last week. It's all good fun playing netball again.

Work is going great. Very busy, challenging, and I'm loving it.

First Day of School

It’s 8.30am on a work day, and I’m listening to BBC Radio 2 through the almighty invention termed the Internet. If I sit back, put my feet up, turn up the air-con and closed my eyes, I could almost imagine being in the UK again. Much as I hate to admit it, I miss Edinburgh. I know I used to complain about the gray, miserable weather while there, and longed for the hot sunshine and island life, but at least towards the end of my few years there, I had oodles of friends whom I genuinely enjoyed being with, and the banter at work was brilliant.

The constant sunshine here does lift the spirit, but I am sorely aware of my lack of friends. Work mates are fine, but they are not Al, Dave or Carrie. We merely work together, and I can’t see myself being buddies with them over time, like many of my work mates turned out to be in the ‘burgh.

In a bid to meet more people and create a semblance of a social life, I turned up at the rugby club’s netball practice last night. In the motor on the way over, I realised it was the first day of school all over again! I would turn up on the court, not knowing anyone, and while everyone else was in their clique of friends, I would be the awkward one standing gawkily, warming up on my own. I suppose that is why most people choose not to leave their comfort zone. I have left my comfort zone time and again, and although I often find myself in compromising first-day-of-school experiences, they more often than not turn out fine, and I would suddenly find myself making friends.

Last night was the same. The netball crowd was surprisingly young-I’m talking about it comprising of girls aged 14-16, with a smattering of ladies in their 30s. The young ones obviously know one another and stuck together. For a while, I was chatting and warming up with an outcaste of the teenagers. Nice girl, but maybe not slim enough or good enough at netball to be with the ‘in’ crowd. I was appalled to find out she was only 14, 10 years my junior! Thankfully, I then got chatting with Susie, another girl my age, whom I liked a lot. She’s amazingly mature, very centred, and knows what she wants. She’s also bloody good at netball.

Susie confirmed my suspicions that there aren’t many people our age around, since the kids of expats normally go away to uni and stay away. All who’s left are wives who would be much older, or offsprings of expats in their teens. So after netball, Susie and I got ourselves a couple of bottles of cider and watched the boys playing rugby. RJ looked tiny among a field of big boys! But then again, it’s about the strength, not size.

We got talking for a bit, then she introduced me to what I assumed was the usual crowd at the rugby club-basically people our age and quite a bit younger.

I feel slightly misplaced-too old to mix with the teenaged crowd and get interested in details of who has shagged who, but too young to join the old wives club.

I’m sure things would work themselves out. I do hope to get to know Susie. She’s got a good head on her shoulders and in many ways, although I am a year older than her, she seems much more sensible and older than me.

For now-back to work. It’s been extremely busy, and morning’s the best time to get some work done before my attention span wans.

Weather forecast for the UK: Heavy rain without any breaks.

Heehee-I’m glad to be in Bahrain.