Cold Kiev

Kiev, Ukraine is a five hour flight from Dubai, United Arab Emirates and Ukraine Airlines offered a reasonable price, so I visited this beautiful old city for a three day weekend. I arrived early on Friday and left on Sunday night, which was enough time for me to explore the capital city.

The food and architecture was the best and made the whole visit worthwhile. The weather was too cold for me though, I thought late March would be warmer, but it was mostly around 6 Celsius or 43 Fahrenheit, which felt like punishment to my blood that is acclimated to Arabian warmth...

St Volodymyr's Cathedral

I spent most of Friday drinking coffee to escape the chill and the coffee is very good! Lots of coffee shops to visit, each with unique character. 35 hryvia will get you a very nice latte and that is about $1.35. I will admit I mostly ate and drank my way through Kiev.

View from the Small Talk cafe.

Savory "varenyky" dumplings, like pierogi.

Cherry and cheese, sweet varenyky.

On Saturday I took a sightseeing tour bus which left from Independence square and drove by the historic sights in about an hour and a half. This is definitely the best sightseeing bus tour price I've ever had-- only $7.
The historic Jewish district looked really interesting, but I didn't get to explore there at all. Golda Meir the fourth prime minister of Israel hails from this neighborhood.
I intended to visit a museum or art gallery, of which the city has many. But I never made it in time and the line was too long for the Pinchuk Art Center, for which several people recommended I visit. http://pinchukartcentre.org/en/ Maybe next time?
The Opera hotel was the only splurge, but was worth it. It is a beautiful old historic hotel with a spa. Great location and really felt Ukrainian.

Historic Opera Hotel, a very good location.

Would I go back to the Ukraine? Definitely. I love Eastern Europe, the food, the people, the charm. Compared to Budapest or Prague, Kiev didn't seem as developed for tourists, though there was definitely high end retail and lots of people ready to speak English. I liked that the city wasn't overwhelmed with other tourists at this time, but that could be because of the Crimea issue. I wish for the Ukrainian people that things settle down peacefully there and Kiev stays a vibrant city.

Al fresco serenade.

St Andrew's church

Back to the blog

I took a big social media break for a while... The worst has happened, we have President Trump, so what can we do? I'm freaking out, but life needs to go on... We have huge billboards all over Dubai for his property investments and it feels as if the Dark Lord has descended... I want to think that good will prevail.. perhaps the US needs to hit rock bottom before we can recover from the mess we have made?
The property bubble is going to burst again sometime, so we can just wait and hope that the wrongs will be set right little by little. Through hard lessons and with attempts at education we can maintain a positive attitude and work towards a literate, thoughtful and peaceful society.
I will continue my work at my library in Dubai and help students to flourish into professional women who will influence the world with their dynamic intellect. God willing.
I plan to blog in 2017 and avoid the troubles. I will be making a lot of trips to amazing places, for business and for pleasure, and plan to share all of these on the Dubai Diary too.
If you receive this blog through an email notification, then thanks for hanging in there!

From Erik's meeting with President Trump.

The Sum of Us

I can't figure out what the name of this restaurant means- but I know the coffee, pastry and food is amazing and also amazingly affordable! It has become my favorite place for every meal, now that I know they serve dinner. Plus, since the weather is cool, it's possible to walk from my place in the Trade Center. I'm becoming a little bit if a broken record, cycling through all my friends and saying "hey, want to have dinner at the Sum of Us?"

What's so great about it? Number one, REALLY good coffee- roasted in house. My favorite is called "magic," which is essentially a flat white, with less milk. Indeed magical.

Fresh bakery is the second most awesome--- I think I blogged about this already- if so sorry! There is great bread, especially the sourdough. But all the pastries are amazing too. Here is a blueberry lemon Danish.

Last but not least, the fresh, delicious, and healthy entrees. Breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner- small or large plates, all good. I've tried almost everything. No one has had any complaints!

Look how happy I am with the katsu chicken bowl! (That's not in the menu anymore, but there are plenty of other tasty veggie filled options.)

That's my review, best restaurant in Dubai.

Visual Literacy

"I don't like art."
Does it blow your mind when you hear someone say they don't like art? When I hear someone say they don't care about art, of any sort, it seems like they just haven't found what they might appreciate about art yet.. Of course I hear "I don't like reading," a lot and it hurts even more because I am a librarian-- but I realize that reading and finding sanctuary in reading is actually a luxury... That diatribe is for another time.
For now, I will express my concern that "Literacy" of all kinds needs to be addressed as a humanitarian issue. Starting with people not being able to interpret visual information and what that might mean to our society.
As a librarian I am concerned with "Information Literacy" by profession. The American Library Association defines this as: "Information literacy is a set of abilities requiring individuals to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information."
The International Federation of Library Associations is advocating for the United Nations to address the Information Literacy needs of the world as a measure to develop a sustainable society... This is a huge task and will take many years to chip away at the goals involved.. but at least it's out there and people are working on it in a systematic way.
The list below is missing Scientific Literacy, Financial Literacy and perhaps a few other important ones! But here is a basic outline of "New Literacy" found on the National Writing Project website from Antero Garcia:

a list with some brief definitions:

     1. Digital Literacy- Cognitive skills that are used in executing tasks in digital environments

     2. Computer Literacy- Ability to use a computer and software

     3. Media Literacy- Ability to think critically about different types of media

     4. Information Literacy-Ability to evaluate, locate, identify, and effectively use info

     5. Technology Literacy- The ability to use technology effectively in several different ways

     6. Political Literacy- Knowledge and skills needed to actively participate in political matters

     7. Cultural Literacy- The knowledge of one's own culture

     8. Multicultural Literacy- The knowledge and appreciation of other cultures

     9. Visual Literacy- The ability to critically read images

Is Visual Literacy being addressed in a similar way to how information literacy and some others are being addressed? Is this not seen as an urgent matter? I find it disturbing that people disregard the importance of evaluating visual information. What caused me to examine this issue is the recent symbol used in the "Peace for Paris" awareness logo design all over Instagram and social media. I made the mistake of thinking just one person was posting this in very poor taste, but then realised the image became "viral" from the work of artist Jean Jullian. I don't mean to critique the work of the International Visual Literacy Association, I'm just not sure what their plan is and would like to know more about how visual literacy can be addressed.
To be clear, Instagram is bringing images to people who really aren't well informed about many things-- which is good and bad.. So many didn't go over to Google to find out what the news story in Paris is, they were just asking random others about "what happened in Paris?" I realise now that many of the people on Instagram are young-- and perhaps digital natives who aren't really cognizant of what a news source can provide or what reliable journalism is-- this is all shaky ground right now anyway.. What credentials do bloggers have? If you've read this far, you will realize, I don't have an editor! So, my questions for you are:
1. Does this look like an anarchy symbol to you?
2. Should individuals use caution in posting an image that could be seen as in poor taste or inflammatory or perhaps further exacerbate a security concern? Or is that part of the freedom of expression we enjoy in contemporary social media?
3. Has Instagram downgraded our visual experience? Or has it brought images to a wider audience in a beneficial way?

I'm not an expert in etiquette or visual literacy, but every time I see that symbol it makes me feel unsettled, as if the image is celebrating the act of terrorism. But perhaps that is just a visual literacy interpretation and overly compassionate sensitivity, fueled by self-interest and fear...
The artist himself has not addressed the criticisms of his drawing in his interview with Wired, and this is the latest interview I've read.

I realise the popularity of this image was surprising for artists and everyone else. The "viral" nature of the image circulating so soon after the event also didn't give people much time to think and evaluate. As someone form New York, who lived there in the early 2000's I also realise this is really an awful, stressful and plain disgusting time for the city of Paris. People were only trying to express themselves in a way they felt would be helpful and provide support. But a discussion about visual literacy seems to be relevant right now for the world at large. Are we heading towards being a thoughtful and well-informed society or becoming more reactionary and impulsive?
Your feedback in the comments would be helpful and interesting.

Make it rain!

It's been looking cloudy all week and we finally got rain this morning. It really blows your mind when one hasn't seen water fall from the sky in months. 

During the winter we will get maybe 4-5 rainfalls in Dubai. They get more precipitation in the higher elevations of the UAE, like the Emirate of Ras Al Khamiya gets rain, even sleet, up in the Hajar Mountains. Saudi is reported to get snow! Last winter there were cool pics of camels with flakes sitting on their lovely lashes. I ❤️ camels, I hope they are ok with a little snow.

I woke up to this view from my window, stormy eh? 

Then, there was more rain while I was in Sharjah. I even had a big puddle near my car.

It has been said that to fill the reservoirs there is a cloud-seeding program, to trigger a cloud burst when it is needed. Here is an article with more information about this: http://khaleejtimes.com/nation/weather/cloud-seeding-making-rain-in-desert-by-a-naturalised-process

It's "winter" now, so the temp is about 20C/60F- brrr! We will get more wind and dust storms. And I can't go swimming at the beach every weekend again until February! Rough...

The Forbidden Basement

There must be a word for someone who feels euphoria at waterparks? I do. I actually felt hungover from the excitement the day after visiting Wild Wadi on the Islamic New Year holiday last  weekend. Or maybe that was just dehydration?

In addition to an awesome waterpark experience there was a haunted house that truly sent my heart into palpitations. We went through it twice!! 

It stuck in my mind to once hear a comedian critique the Middle East and say that building a water park won't help with the problems of the region... Yes it does! What is more peaceful, relaxing and nation-building than a lazy river? I don't think I will ever understand this critique, but now I can't even remember who said it. Colin Quinn or someone like that, he's probably never visited Dubai. Waterparks give a huge boost to an area. Would anyone have ever visited Orlando, if not for an amusement park?

Ladies only nights are so cool! I wish every place in Dubai had this sort of night where you know that your evening will be man-free!  Waterparks usually have one night per week that are open just for girls and women to visit. The picture above happens to be the only photo I got during my Wild Wadi visit.

Also, a new thing for me: Muslim women wear a full body swim suit- often called a "burkini." Google it!

There are 5 proper water parks in Dubai and several more in the UAE. I wonder if the economic and social value of waterparks can improve the state of world affairs? It seems like it does, but perhaps that is a question of which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Build more waterparks, build world peace!

Recycling in Dubai

One of the biggest adjustments for me in Dubai is the lack of recycling. Everyone drinks bottled water, I suppose desalinated water is not great drinking water- but with all the plastic water bottles I'm using now my carbon footprint is huge!

It makes me feel slightly better that I have finally found a recycling service that does home pickup. 

You can learn about what they recycle and make a pickup request through the Keep It Clean App. If you have any questions the people who run the company are responsive by email and phone.

I'm having a large amount of stuff picked up tomorrow. I schedule a pickup once a month. I wish I could find a way to compost organic material too, but at the moment HomeCycle only does coffee grounds.

I have only done this since July and I'm happy with this free service, it's better than everything going to a landfill.