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As if having the world's tallest man-made structures weren't enough, Dubai also boasts having the world's largest shopping malls and is proudly home to a diversity of cultures and trend setters.

I only had a limited 2.5 days to spend in Dubai, the last leg of my European eating extravaganza. Hence going about it strategically, I chose to explore Dubai's traditional Arabic cuisine versus their tempting availability of fine dining.

Zen and I were still massively sunburnt from Santorini and Dubai's 42°C+ heat did not help. The summer humidity left us hailing for cabs everywhere.

The hotel we stayed at: City Seasons

City Seasons Hotel: view of lobby from our floor

On the first day, we checked out the Deira City Centre Shopping Mall which was a 5 minute drive from our hotel. There were plenty of international brands and a grande food court which included L'Auberge Restaurant. We were excited by the new currency conversion rate (which made everything look like a bargain in comparison to that in Europe) and hence we over-ordered, over-ate and over-shopped.

I had the spicy grilled shrimps, cuttlefish and hammour (a flaky white fish with a similar texture to cod) and Zen had the mixed grill, both were as tasty as the other. We added a side of tabbouleh and also received a complementary DIY plate of freshly washed greens, carrots, tomatoes and cucumbers, and a plate of just-baked pita bread. It was a sublime feast which I am still constantly drooling for. I am actually looking to find a replica in Sydney to satisfy these cravings -does anyone know where I can get a really good grilled seafood and meat plate?

Traditional Arabic lunch at L'Auberge Restaurant, Dubai

Some restaurants in Dubai had private dining rooms for Muslim/Arab couples and families. L'Auberge had these beautiful golden curtains covering up the booths which ran along both sides of the restaurant.

Private rooms at L'Auberge Restaurant

Later that afternoon, we booked ourselves in for a desert safari-a must-do tour in Dubai. We were picked up in a luxury 4WD which featured a roll cage! You can imagine how much of a scare that was to me ;)

Zen and I inside 4WD with roll cage, on Oasis Palm's desert safari in Dubai

Camel farm in Dubai desert

In between the dune bashing, we stopped at a camel farm where I witnessed their strange chewing motion.

Did you know camels chewed sideways?

Camel chewing sideways

I was lucky to have my wide angle lens out when this camel got curious and started sniffing me out!

Wide angle close up of a curious camel

Thankfully, the desert was noticeably cooler than the city and towards dusk, I was able to walk around barefooted without any issues.

Sunset on Dubai desert safari

Buffet at desert safari camp

The tour included a dinner buffet of skewered camel meat, beef, chicken and lamb, salads, curries, rice, sweets, tea and coffee -yup, we were well catered for :)

Traditional Arabic cuisine

Belly dancer at Dubai desert safari

I wish I had been warned about how terrifying it is to ride on a camel! This is me screaming with fear:

Zen and I riding on a camel

While stocking up at the Dubai Outlet Mall (Dubai's answer to Australia's DFO and 5x the size), we ate at Automatic, a popular grill restaurant chain store. Zen and I shared my favourite fattoush salad, a brilliant salad which uses up stale pita bread, it is a seasonal mix of radish, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, onion, fried pita bread, sumac, mint, and plentiful salt, olive oil and lemon juice. We also had a mixed grill of tender skewered meats, some pickled vegetables, raw greens, flat bread, fresh mango juice, a honeydew milkshake and an addictive plate of fried eggplant, cauliflower and potatoes. This robust meal was exactly what we needed to power up the strength to drag our shopping to the cab chauffeur serviced car.

Lunch at Automatic Grill Restaurant in Dubai Outlet Mall

The second day saw us doing more mall-sight-seeing and shopping. Once the sun was down, we hit the markets! I unfortunately missed the spice souk because I was so indecisive at the gold souk. How can I be blamed -there were shops after shops and window after window of glistening delicate pieces.

At the Dubai gold souk

Golden displays at the gold souq

By night, we had driven past the Mall Of The Emirates (where you can find Ski Dubai, the indoor skiing field). Its entrance of parked luxury and sport cars was almost as intimidating as the high-end designer shops within it. We didn't have time to stop by because we were meeting up with our dear friend, Doyle, an expat living the high life in Dubai with Emirates.

So we got lost inside The Dubai Mall together and had an amazing dinner at Switch, a restaurant designed by Karim Rashid (a blog post on this to come soon!). The Dubai Mall features an ice-skating rink, an aquarium and just about every fashion brand in the world.

Inside The Dubai Mall

Designer section in The Dubai Mall

Ice-skating rink in The Dubai Mall

Inside Switch Restaurant

We're all coincidentally dressed in white! Zen, me and Doyle

I sure miss Dubai's opening hours! Most malls open from 10am to 10pm and until midnight on Thursdays through to Saturday.

L'Auberge Restaurant
http://www.laubergerestaurants.com

Oasis Palm Tours
http://www.opdubai.com/desert.htm

I've heard many theories as to what shoes hanging on power lines mean. Some believe it means drugs are sold nearby, others have mentioned it defined the boundary of a gang's turf... or maybe it was a harmless schoolkid prank. Whatever it is, this alleyway felt so creepy I had to photograph it.

Balcombe Pl, Melbourne

By the way, my commenting tool is still down! The helpful guys at Disqus are working on the bug. Come back soon and drop me a note!

Everything looks cute as a miniature model and food is no exception.

I've been playing with a Photoshop cheat which achieves the same effect as the tilt shift lens, turning everyday things into miniature scale models!

Check this out -

This was inspired by a video, filmed at Sydney's Circular Quay -

Bathtub II from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

Perfect skies, live music, good food and great company. The City of Sydney's Dank Street Festival was back again yesterday and attracted thousands of Sydneysiders. I was one of the many who took up on the free shuttle bus offer and trekked down to Dank Street in Waterloo for an afternoon of market shopping, queue lining and drooling.

There was a great turn out in Young Street with stalls of breads, oils, jams, marinades and trucks of farm-fresh fruits and vegetables.

We also wandered through a designers market where there were wall decals, hand-made jewellery, bags, bibs, retro furniture, fabric remnants, and plenty more.

And then there were roving entertainers including these Italian chefs of stilts and false security guards carrying giant plush dogs on a leash. Ha!

False security guard with plush toy dog

The gourmet food stalls was what I was really there for. Jones The Grocer were selling large blocks of rocky road, nougat and fudge. I treated myself to the rocky road in dark chocolate which was rich and satisfying. Fluffy marshmallows, glace cherries, dessicated coconut and peanuts were encased in thick chocolate. Mmmm...

At the Dank Street Depot stall this year was a mass production of BBQ pure bred Suffolk lamb rolls with pomegranate and mint salsa.

Dank Street Depot's stall

After eyeing this giant paella in the making, I had to have one for myself. I was a little disappointed the saffron rice wasn't well cooked through but it was still piping hot, moist and delicious.

Chef cooking huge paella

Also at the Seafood & Eat It stall were a stack of young coconuts for drinking and a scrumptious aroma of fresh BBQ seafood.

I've always been a little cautious with food prepared in high quantities but this mixed seafood platter which I shared with X was surprisingly tasty! Salt and pepper calamari, prawns and BBQ octopus were served with a nicely dressed gourmet salad on a cool bark plate.

Loren & Karen respectively had the spicy chorizo roll and smoked bratwurst served with sauerkraut from Eumundi's BBQ Blitz.

Some men are known to walk cute toy dogs to strike up conversations with women... this man took it to another level with 2 massive Huskies. They were gorgeous!

To cool ourselves down, we lastly indulged in gelato and snow cones.

Dank Street Festival
More info: www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/artandabout/ExhibitionsEvents/DankStreet
Other upcoming events: www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/WhatsOn

This year's ARIA Awards was held at the Acer Arena; the after-show party followed at The Ivy!

Since I was at the awards show for work, it wasn't much fun. I spent my Sunday afternoon preparing content for the live website updates, missed out on the live performances while I stressed about everything that needed to be done, wasn't allowed to take pics of all the celebs in the media room (although I sneaked the 3 below!!) and didn't get enough time to photograph or eat much of my dinner of steamed chicken with pesto, served with half a yabbie and broccollini... hmmm... was the 8 hours of hard work worth it?

Yes! Because here we are on the red carpet at the awesome after-party:

Me & Sham

And this is me in my pretty Alannah Hill pink Little Miss Sunshine Frock with Make Me Skinny belt! I thought the photo didn't do the dress fabric justice so have included another shot below it to show you the gorgeous intricate beading detail! I felt so girly and fabulous in it!

Yes, I am still blogging about Tasmania. It's funny how much you get up to when on holidays versus procrastination in between workdays. Anyway, despite being terrified of heights, the Tahune AirWalk was a great adventure. Zen almost pushed me to tears when he jumped mid-walk, causing the whole thing to shake... and the cantilever swerved nervously every time a light breeze blew over... being 20 metres above ground, I thought it was quite an achievement. Who cares if I had sweaty palms and shaky knees throughout the whole 597m walk!

Tahune AirWalk
Web: www.forestrytas.com.au/visiting/visitor-sites/south/tahune-airwalk

On our second day in Hobart, it was a gorgeous clear sunny day, so we decided to drive up Mount Wellington. I was thrilled to see snow, and there was lots of it! The panoramic views of Hobart was beautiful...

Hello Hobart.

Sorry for the lack of posts... some of you may know that after returning from Hobart, I fell ill and have been in and out of the hospital...

I'm hopefully in my final week of recovery, so will start filling these pages up with Tasmanian eye candy soon!

Thanks to the Soapie team for these gorgeous flowers -

On Thursday, I turned 24. And while I thought I'd make it a quiet one this year, Zen managed to surprise me at work again with a delivery from Roses Only.

Here are a couple of photos, taken with my new speedlite (Canon Speedlite 580EX II):

And more red roses...

During my first night in Brisbane, I couldn't help but notice the city's appreciation of graffiti. All these traffic signal controller boxes had the artists' personality buried in them...

Here are a few I'd spotted:

If you're interested in painting a traffic signal box yourself, visit the Artforce website.

On the weekend... I found myself at the Buddha's Birthday festival in Darling Harbour. I was there for the vegetarian food fair ofcourse!

The Chinese Garden Forecourt was filled with hungry families and volunteers from BLIA (Buddha's Light International Association) and IBAA (Fo Guang Shan Nan Tien Temple).

Here are some of my snapshots -

Buddha's Birthday Festival 2008
Saturday 10 - Sunday 11 May 2008
Darling Harbour

For more information, visit the official Nan Tien Temple events page: http://nantien.org.au/en/news/News_View.asp?NewsID=13

I created this today for my Blurb (which is still in the works), so thought I might as well share it here.

My current camera gear:

Its hard turning down a freebie, let alone the cricket finals (Australia vs India, One Day International Final Game 1)... so I didn't. I couldn't resist the stadium food of chips, hot dogs and meat pies. MmMm...

I had been back to work for exactly 4 weeks and felt like I needed a break more than ever. I love Stanwell Park because the Sea Cliff Bridge is absolutely amazing to drive on and the beach is peacefully full of energy. Hand gliders were out and about... but i simply enjoyed the sand and the sun.

Happy Monday! Here are some happy snaps from the weekend away:

See more @ my flickr collection.

Firstly, you'll have to excuse my watermark on the following photos. I'm experimenting with the watermark at the moment as I think this site is due for a design refresh... and looking at these photos just again now... they look ridiculously big! < rant > I wouldn't even need to use a watermark if people stopped linking to my images direct from the jenius.com.au domain. I don't enjoy paying for the hosting of my images on YOUR site!! < /rant >

It was only 2 weeks ago that we had attended Eugenia's Hens Night... and now she's married & off on the honeymoon! Saturday, 24th November was a day to remember...

Congratulations Mr and Mrs Tello!!! :-D

The food first; the reception was held at Liverpool Golf Club. We were spoilt with wall-sized window views of the golf course over sunset... and a delicious three course meal. There were starters for us to nibble on... calamari rings, samosa triangles and spring rolls, all goldenly fried.

Entree was a salad with cooked medium prawns, garnished with bits of dill. It was leafy and refreshing. There were alternate servings, so Zen had the second entree which was a tomato-based pasta dish.

Then with the main course, some of us ate a tender pepper crusted sirloin fillet with crispy sweet potatoes and a side of herb and garlic potatoes and seasonal vegetables. I had the over-baked chicken breast with sage which was a little dry, although compensated with a creamy mustard sauce and the same hearty herb & garlic potatoes and vegies.

Dessert at the Golf Club was underrated. I finished off the best pavlova I've ever had... craving for more. The meringue base was perfectly dressed with cream, fruit and a divine passionfruit sauce. I wonder if the same pavlova is served on a normal business day?

The alternate dessert were strawberries marinated in port wine and served with ice-cream. These were coincidentally similar to those at Machiavelli.

Just look at this beautiful cake... I was a little too full to try any, but I'm sure it tasted as good as it looks!

And finally, working backwards... here are some pics from the ceremony and the early bits of the reception:

[L - R] Zen and I

See more wedding pics here.

On Saturday 17th November, Zen's sister, Lily got married to Simon. What turned out to be a warm sunny day, commenced at 8am with a traditional Chinese tea ceremony at both parents' residence... then we drove off to St Andrew's Anglican Church at Summer Hill where they were pronounced husband & wife. The big day ended at Maxims Reception at Bankstown... with live music and a delectable banquet... it was a gorgeous evening indeed.

Congratulations again, Simon & Lily.

The big cake!

Wanna see more photos? Click here.

I took my 5 year old brother to a birthday party yesterday... here are some photos taken with the Canon EOS 350D & Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8:

Although it's not even my birthday yet, I feel like an absolute princess this year. I've been pampered with a massage, facial, manicure & pedicure -thanks to Christina... and bonus points to Zen for taking me to Tetsuya's and the Blue Mountains!

Oh, and here's my new hair-do... fresh from the hair salon this evening :-)

You know you've grown older once you have attended the first wedding from your circle of friends...

Saturday afternoon was beautiful and crispy. The sky cleared up from Friday's rain and the sun was radiantly bathing us in warmth. We attended an awesome ceremony at the Baulkham Hills Hillsong Church... and later, hit the dance floor at Ambassador Lounge, Fairfield. Congratulations Sarah & David!

I can't believe the big day is over. Wonder who's turn it is to get hitched next?

Vanilla Sundae cupcakes from Cupcakes on Pitt

Hoorah! A mini weekend getaway to celebrate the office's second birthday.

Friday 11.30am, last week, we all hopped on a coach to Hunter Valley. Two and a bit hours later, we wined and dined at Pepper Tree Vineyards, Tamburlaine, Petersonhouse, Hunter Valley Chocolate Company, Harrigan's Irish Pub and Oishii Restaurant! Talk about an action-packed weekend.

So... at the first wine tasting, I bought a lush dessert wine... it was sweet as honey: 2005 Boytrytis Semillon. I must admit though -I'm not at all a wine expert. After a while, they all taste the same. Here's what we swirled, sniffed, gargled and sipped...

Next was Tamburlaine Organic Vineyards. Ooh, so do organic wines give you less of a hangover? Apparently so, if drunk in moderation... because of its low sulphur dioxide content.

All throughout Hunter Valley were cute gardens and cosy cottages. Outside Petersonhouse were these adorable lanterns and garden chairs...

Inbetween the wine tasting, I craved something solid and starchy... so at Harrigan's Pub, we ordered 2 giant servings of wedges with sour cream and sweet chilli sauce and another 2 giant bowls of fries with tomato sauce. The wedges weren't anything fancy... but they definately were cut the perfect size. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.

A full day of vineyard hopping left me exhausted. Here's the view from our room at Harrigan's Pub. You never get to see this much of the sky in Sydney.

Dinner was at 8. Oishii Restaurant sits within Tempus Two's ultra-modern landscape. However, the food was average... so I didn't bother with any notes. Photos are below if you're still interested.

And then Ben, Hazim, Adam and Mat decided to see what gravity could do to their face...

Pepper Tree Wines
Halls Road, Pokolbin
Phone: (02) 4998 7539
Web: www.peppertreewines.com.au

Tamburlaine Vineyard
358 McDonalds Road Pokolbin
Phone:: (02) 4998 7570
Web: www.tamburlaine.com.au

Peterson Sparkling Wine House
Corner of Broke Road & Wine Country Drive, Pokolbin
Phone: (02) 4998 7881
Web: www.petersonhouse.com.au

Hunter Valley Chocolate Company
Corner of Broke Road & Wine Country Drive, Pokolbin
Phone: (02) 4998 7221

Harrigan's Pub
Broke Road, Pokolbin
Web: www.hvg.com.au/harrigans_pub.asp

Oishii Japanese & Thai Restaurant
Tempest Two Winery, Pokolbin
Web: www.tempustwo.com.au

More pics & bits on Hunter Valley below.

April is awesome! How often do you get a 4 day weekend? I've always wanted to see a waterfall... so here was my chance.

The Minnamurra Rainforest is a 2 hour drive south of Sydney. There are 2 fabulous walks which take you through elevated timber boardwalks and swinging bridges. Part of it was so steep... but the workout was definately worthwhile. The waterfall was amazing! And it was lovely to take in deep breaths of nature... ah....

And here are some photos from Wollongong. Lighthouses, canons and more.

Visit the Minnamurra Falls or Wollongong.

Last year, a spontaneous decision to go to the Grand Prix meant a lot of discomfort. Five of us were squashed in a car with barely any sleep for 3 days... and Zen's bro drove practically 12 hours straight! So having grown one year wiser... we planned it well this year. Plane tickets. Booked. Accomodation. Booked. Camping chairs. Tick. Sunnies. Tick. Sun hat. Tick. Ear plugs. Tick. 4 Day pass. Tick. DSLR with new lens. Tick. We were ready!!

And here's some panning action... motion blur!!!

To see more of my F1 pics, go to www.flickr.com/photos/foodiejenius/tags/f1

[Edit 25.04.07: more pics below]

with my new lens...

My first photo -->

The touch of this lens is amazing! Go get yours from D-D-Photographics.

And on Friday, we celebrated Sunny's combined 21st with Jackson & Geoff...

This is my baby brother Bryan. He's cute, sweet and super cheeky.

Just an update to let you all know that I've finally made the move. I'm on Flickr!!

Check me out @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/foodiejenius

Last post on Melbourne. Here are some night shots I took with my new wide angle lens (10-22mm)...

Thanks for such a fab trip Zen! Love ya babe.

What else could have brought me to Brunswick Street but the Alannah Hill factory outlet! Brunswick Street is probably the King Street (of Newtown) or the Oxford Street in Sydney. So we snagged a seat in the open terrace and watched the Brunswick Street crowds walk on by.

I was actually sick... so you'll have to excuse the absence of my taste buds! I do remember the occasional taste of sweetness from the creamy honey mustard though...

The Fitz Cafe
347 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy Victoria 2065
Phone: (03) 94175794

And here we are at the Great Ocean Road! Zen decided that we should opt for the hassle-free solution and booked the one-day tour via Go West. Hooray to no pricey car hiring, no tiring drive and plenty of rejuvenating sleep during the boring and repetitive sections of the road.

The Great Ocean Road is divided by three sections. There's the long and windy roads which wrap around the coast, the lush rainforest, and then the massive pastoral scenes.

First stop was the Narana Aboriginal Cultural Centre...

Next was Bell's Beach -surfing capital of Victoria...

This is probably one of the most photographed arches. We joined in with all the other tourists :-P

We then hopped on a helicopter with Great Ocean Road Helicopters (how original is the name!) to see the majestic 12 Apostles, Loch and Gorge, London Bridge, The Towering Limestone Cliffs & more!

And last but not least, London Arch. Formerly known as London Bridge... until 1990, when it collapsed and left two tourists stranded. One of them apparentally got busted for cheating on his wife (he was stranded with his other partner), and for taking a sickie @ work. LOL!!

Later in the night, at around 8.30pm, we stopped by a town named Colac for a quick dinner. Half of us rushed into Noodle Canteen which like it's name hints... is a noodle bar. Take note: the flyer stated that 'all dishes are low in fat'... but when Zen finished his meal, there must have been at least 5 tablespoons of oil left clogging around... ekk!

Go West Tours
Website: http://www.gowest.com.au
Phone: 1300 736 551 or +61 3 8508 9008 (from outside Australia)

Colac Noodle Bar
243 Murray Street Colac VIC 3250
Phone: (03) 5231 2807
Operating hours: 7 days, 11am - 9pm

For the last four days, Zen and I have been hiding out in Melbourne -another of our spontaneous holidays. I love the internet age... we were able to plan and book everything from airfare, accomodation to restaurants, all just a day before flying!

Royce Hotel provides stunning five-star accomodation in a super convenient location. It was just a short tram ride into the CBD, which meant Zen and I were able to familiarise ourselves with the tram ticketing system and routes. Our room also had a balcony with panoramic views to St Kilda Road, and the grounds of Melbourne Grammar School.

This holiday couldn't have come at a better time. As you can see, I was able to experiment with my new wide angle lens -the Canon UltraSonic EFS 10-22 F/3.5-4.5 USM.

Time for a big breakfast! Here we are at the Dish restaurant, which as the website says, is not your ordinary hotel restaurant. It offers a sophisticated ambience and award winning cuisine. And we are in luck! It's a buffet breaky...

Watch out for the next post on The Great Ocean Road!

Royce Hotel
379 St Kilda Road Melbourne Victoria 3004
Phone: 1800 820 090 or +61 3 9677 9900
Website: www. roycehotels.com.au

Circular Quay - Train Station (taken 24th October 2006)

Thousands of workers protested against the Federal Government's IR laws. (Thursday 30th November 2006, 9.48am - George Street Sydney).

I spent last weekend camping at Green Patch, inside the Booderee National Park at Jervis Bay. So it reminded me to post up some of these pics which were taken during another trip down the south coast, last year.

The next two photos were taken at Hyams Beach. This beach boasts the whitest sands in the world!

AMF Bowling at Randwick

Shamini, Jordan and me (being try-hards) - before The White Agency's 3rd Birthday Party at Shangri-La Hotel, The Rocks (taken on 30th May 2006).

Sydney Harbour Bridge, at Circular Quay (taken on 13th February 2006, at 9pm)

This was taken on a gorgeous sunny day in mid-Winter (Meriton Apartments at Moore Park, 29th June 06). I think it has a peaceful feel to it... some what reminds me of the architecture in Greece.

TwentyOneSunday
Listen to them @ www.myspace.com/twentyonesunday

Stanwell Park Bridge (taken on 25th Feb 06)

Callala Bay, and a pelican at sunrise (taken on 26th Feb 06, 5.29am)

Sydney International Airport at night (taken on 28th Dec 05)