Crumpet

Hello

Again it's been some time but not as long as before. At least I don't think it has been. Umm.

Let's start with crumpets. I've had a real longing for them the past couple of weeks. I'm not sure why but thoughts of them dripping with butter and covered in marmite and melted cheese haven't been far from my mind. Maybe it's because they're not so easy to find here. Apparently there is a supermarket in Abu Dhabi that has them frozen. Maybe I need to take a road trip to Abu Dhabi and load up.

It's been a packed couple of weeks. Last week I was instructed (read 'ordered') to fly to Dublin for one day of work. It was a total waste of time and only for PR purposes rather than real recruitment. It makes me kinda mad that I have to raise people's hopes and expectations, yet in reality they won't ever be offered a job. The purpose of the trip was actually to sell seats rather than offer jobs to people on the brink of being made redundant. I'm not enjoying this aspect of my role. It's a strange company angle on marketing. In my previous company, this kind of tactic would never have been used - and that was a company who milked every ounce of opportunity from every situation. It's for reasons like this, and many dreadful others, that I've started to look for a new job. I really like living in Dubai so I don't want to leave. However, I can't live here without a visa and there are no visas without a job. So I have to find myself a new one before I can tell my current employers that they stink. I'll keep you all posted on progress. A recruitment professional looking for recruitment work during a recession... hmmmm... could be a while before something comes up!

I cooked a chicken for the first time in our apartment. Well, I say 'chicken'. The chickens on sale here are tiny. It's like stuffing a chaffinch. For 6 people I had to buy 2 birds, and I felt that was going to be a stretch. I made extra potatoes and stuff to fill everyone up. Dinner was a success. Hilariously, people didn't seem too arsed about the chicken - they were more excited about the potatoes - there were 2 Lebanese guests, 1 Indian and 1 Emirati. Roasted potatoes don't seem to feature in the cuisines from their homes. Who knew?! Roasted potatoes are cool.

It's Ramadan here now so we're not permitted to eat or drink in public during daylight hours. The place virtually grinds to a halt as the muslim followers get more and more tired as the month passes. It's so hot at the moment so it must be so difficult for them to get through to sunset before they can break their fast - even water is not permitted. However, as soon as that sun everyone eats like there's no tomorrow. It's great! There is no music in bars/restaurants and the atmosphere is much more subdued. Shops generally don't open until after sunset, restaurants/cafes are closed. So. What to do? Why, feck off to Mykonos - that's what!

In 6 days we're flying to glorious Greece and beautiful Mykonos. I can't wait. This time next week I'll be stuffing my face with dolmades and slurping on retsina.

I'll post about it on my return.