BEDOUIN STYLE ENTERTAINING

Many Saudi homes have a Bedouin room, used for entertaining and special occasions. This one was decorated for the Eid celebration marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.  

Sweet treats, tea and coffee are generally served to guests 

 

SAUDI STYLE MAJLIS

Majlis is the Arabic term for living room (or sitting room), salon, or parlor.  It also can refer to the Saudi style seating.  The term actually means "council," which can describe business, social or religious gatherings. Red geometric patterns are often used to cover the cushions which are placed on the floor usually against the walls. Many homes have a room designated for the majlis and it is sometimes called the Bedouin room.  Saudis are known for their warm and generous hospitality.

 

Jeddah Winter Games Theme

This kid's entertainment area in a mall in Jeddah called Kidzania has a Winter Games theme going on now.  

LINKING TO :  OUR WORLD TUESDAY 

MY CORNER OF THE WORLD 

Jeddah Scenes from a Mall

Family entertainment areas in malls are commonplace in Saudi Arabia.  Due to the severe heat, outdoor activities are limited here during much of the year, so big air conditioned malls offer indoor amusement parks where kids can have fun while moms shop.  

  

There are unlimited fancy dress shops in malls too - plenty of fashions fit for a queen.  Malls also have food court areas as well as higher end restaurants too.  

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OUR WORLD TUESDAY 

MY CORNER OF THE WORLD  

Kids Entertainment Area at Mall

This area at the Mall of Arabia in Jeddah offers lots of fun activities for kids.  KidZania allows kids to assume the roles of various careers, like pilots, bankers, etc. The kids can earn wages and then use that to make purchases.  Billy Beez is an indoor amusement park with a variety of rides and physical activities like trampoline, tunnels, and slides.  

Family Entertainment Area in Mall

Saudi Arabia is abundant in huge ultra-modern mega malls, with worldwide chainstores, movie theaters, food courts, and entertainment areas.  Like everywhere else in the world, malls are a big attraction here on weekends and during the hot summer months.

Tantora's "Persian Nights" #MusicWithoutBorders

The Winter at Tantora Festival in Al Ula, Saudi Arabia, featured world class artists and entertainers from around the globe, including Andrea Bocelli, Kool and the Gang, Yanni, Enrique Iglesias, Lionel Richey, Il Divo, Jose Carreras, and more!

The concert on the evening I attended was a historic event called "Persian Nights," which highlighted four different fantastic musical groups featuring popular older Persian singers, all but one of whom were in their 60s and 70s, proving that they've still got what it takes to bring the house down.

There were even female musicians in the bands and one female Persian singer, Leila Forouhar. While these popular vocalists are banned from performing in their own country of Iran, their talents were celebrated at the Winter at Tantora Festival in Saudi Arabia

Inside the beautiful Miraya Concert Hall, a state of the art facility built just over a year ago, the laser lights flashed and flickered, changing colors with the beat of the music - and history was made in Saudi Arabia as the country welcomed these beloved Iranian performers to the stage.

Al Ula Winter at Tantora Festival Ends Today

The city of Al Ula's Winter at Tantora Festival is an amazing event rich in history, culture, music, art, and pure magic. Today the festival draws to a close until next year. I was able to attend one of the final days of the festival, climaxing with a concert event at the gorgeous Miraya Concert Hall.  The walkway leading to Miraya was flanked by about a dozen handsome Arabian knights on horseback.  I cannot describe it any other way than magical. The concert was called "Persian Nights."  Four different musical groups featured beloved Persian singing stars who entertained the festival audience during the evening.

Stay tuned for more to come about this year's Winter at Tantora Festival. 

Saudi Teacup Sets

I just adore the petite teacup sets one can find almost everywhere here in Jeddah.  These sets are always used when entertaining guests in one's home here in Saudi Arabia. 

These sets can be found in home furnishings shops, discount stores, department stores, and grocery stores. They come in many colors, designs and styles. 

Rainbow Theme Day

I haven't been able to catch sightings of many rainbows here in Jeddah - where I'm located in the city, the skies are mostly dusty and beige - so City Daily Photo's Theme Day choice of "Rainbow" had me thrown for a loop today.  The closest I could come to a rainbow was this arched entryway of colorful balloons leading to a huge family entertainment area called Sparky's in a big Jeddah mall.  Almost all malls in Saudi Arabia have family entertainment areas with games and rides for kiddies.

City Daily Photo is  an online community of photo bloggers that share images of life in  their cities around the world.  The first of every month is Theme Day  for City Daily Photo bloggers.  This month's theme is "Rainbow."  Be sure  to visit the City Daily Photo portal to view other participants' entries for today's theme day.

Jeddah - Let's Play Chess!

A big "Thanks" to my friend and amazing photographer Abdullah Yahya for allowing me to share this beautiful photo for today's post.  Stay tuned for more fantastic pics from around Saudi Arabia taken by Abdullah.  Follow him on Instagram and Twitter @ayaa1977

Yanbu Flowers Festival 2019 Scheduled

As usual, the dates for the 2019 annual Yanbu Flowers Festival are still murky at this point, but the event should be coming up soon.  The General Authority for Entertainment has put out the festival dates as running from Tuesday, March 14th through Saturday, April 8th, however other sites have differing information, starting as early as February 28 and ending March 30.  If I am able to confirm either way, I will let you know. 

The festival is free for all attendees and there are many nice places to stay in Yanbu.  Event timings are 4-11pm daily.  If you love flowers, you won't want to miss this colorful spectacle.  You can see my posts for lots more photos from some of the recent years festivals at these links:  Yanbu FF 2018 and Yanbu FF 2016.

A big "Thanks" to my friend and amazing photographer Abdullah Yahya for allowing me to share this beautiful photo for today's post from last years Flower Festival.  Stay tuned for more fantastic pics from around Saudi Arabia taken by Abdullah.  Follow him on Instagram and Twitter @ayaa1977

Our World: WWE in Jeddah

Last April the WWE came to Saudi Arabia and put on a show for a mixed crowd of 60,000 men, women and children at King Abdullah Stadium in Jeddah.  That women were allowed to attend an event such as this was in itself historic.  Until recently, women were not permitted inside a sports stadium - period. 

Some of the WWE legends making an appearance in the first ever Greatest Royal Rumble 50-man event were:  John Cena, Shinsuke Nakamura, The Undertaker, Chris Jericho, Triple H, Kalisto, Rey Mysterio, and many more.  For a video and more information about the results of the matches, CLICK HERE. 

A big "Thanks" to my friend and amazing photographer Abdullah Yahya for allowing me to share these beautiful photos for today's post of this event which he attended.  Stay tuned for more fantastic pics from around Saudi Arabia taken by Abdullah.  Follow him on Instagram and Twitter @ayaa1977

Be sure to visit OUR WORLD TUESDAY, where family-friendly bloggers share a unique glimpse into what life is like all around our ever-amazing planet.

Al Ula's New Concert Hall "Maraya"

It might be difficult to figure out exactly what you are looking at here in the first picture.  To the left is the natural sandstone rock landscape of Al Ula, Saudi Arabia.  On the right is a reflection of that landscape mirrored on the front of the new concert hall called "Maraya" which means mirror in Arabic.  You can see the entrance to the building in the lower right corner of the photo.  Two sides of the building are entirely covered in large mirrored tiles.

Perhaps you can see it a bit better from this angle.  Now you can see another part of the building as well, the white section which was used as a huge dining hall the evening before.

The above shot shows the front of the building reflecting the landscape behind me as I took the photo.  The walkway to the entrance is at the bottom and you can also see the sky at the top and the natural setting of the rocks to the right.

The above pic is one of my favorite photos that I took of the building Maraya.  The corner of the building is at the upper left section of the photo.  If you look closely, you can actually see the lines of the mirrored tile panels that cover the surface of the building.  At the bottom is the top of one of the big lanterns that line the walkway leading to the entrance of the concert hall.

To the right is the natural landscape and my friend Laura, an adventurous Finnish woman who lives in Riyadh and writes the awesome blog Blue Abaya.  Be sure to follow her on Instagram @BlueAbaya, where she has posted some amazing videos taken from helicopters over the landscape of Al Ula!  Her Twitter handle is also @BlueAbaya

Laura has also written a fabulous comprehensive guide and history of Madain Saleh with lots of fantastic photos - CLICK HERE to access it.

This last photo shows the corner of the building where the two mirrored sides meet.  To the left is the natural landscape.  The setting sun is reflecting on the side of the building to the right.  Last weekend I was fortunate to be able to attend an amazing concert in this venue as part of the Winter at Tantora Festival where I saw the fantastic Chinese pianist Lang Lang along with a phenomenal Chinese orchestra. To read more about the spectacular concert, CLICK HERE.  

Jeddah - Joy!

It's always nice to bring some of the traditions and holiday experience to our home in Saudi Arabia because it makes me feel not so far away from my family back in the US.  Thanksgiving is one of those times of the year when I feel nostalgic for the days gone by from my childhood.  Our house was the gathering place for our closest friends - often we would have 25-30 people over for Thanksgiving dinner. 

I can't fit that many into our home here in Jeddah, but I can squeeze in a few friends to enjoy the meal.  It was a pot luck with everyone bringing their specialty.  We enjoyed the traditional turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, corn pudding, green bean casserole, cranberry, sweet potatoes, mac and cheese, garlic bread, rice, and of course dessert!

Afterwards we enjoyed playing a word game called Fictionary, which is educational as well as fun.  Lots of laughter helped our overstuffed stomachs help digest the feast!  I have to say, it's my favorite meal of the whole year!

City Daily Photo is an online community of photo bloggers that share images of life in their cities around the world.  The first of every month is Theme Day for City Daily Photo bloggers.  This month's theme is "Joy."

Please visit the City Daily Photo portal to view other participants' entries for today's theme day.

Our World - Sloan's Sweets Shop in Jeddah

Sloan's Ice Cream is fairly new to Jeddah and already has several locations.  The atmosphere is fun and cheerful and sports a party room for special events.

From the black and white patterned floor to the playful pink lighted ceilings, this place is just beckoning families to come in and have some fun.

Sloan's offers more than just fabulous ice cream - they tempt young and old with all kinds of sweets, toys, and other goodies.  The Sloan's chain actually originated in South Florida, where my family lived prior to moving to Jeddah.

I adore the colorful chandeliers and the smiling Mona Lisa with her big ice cream cone.  This place just oozes happiness.  Don't you agree?

In addition to its many locations in the US, Sloan's has shops in Jeddah at Mall of Arabia, Red Sea Mall, and Aziz Mall, with a location opening soon in Riyadh.




Be sure to visit OUR WORLD TUESDAY, where family-friendly bloggers share a unique glimpse into what life is like all around our ever-amazing planet.

Yanbu Flower Festival Going on NOW!

Last weekend was the opening of the 2018 Yanbu Flower Festival, the 12th annual event of its kind.  I have been fortunate to have visited it for the past three years.  If you are in Saudi Arabia and you haven't been yet, I highly recommend it.  Every year, it has just gotten bigger and better.  The event is extremely well organized, there is plenty of parking, and it's FREE! 

This year's additions include additional water features, more great vendors, children's entertainment area, and regional artists painting live.

This event runs for about three weeks through March 25, open daily from 4pm-11pm.  Fridays and Saturdays will of course be more crowded.  The weather is still nice enough, so don't miss out!  

CDP Theme Day - Play

Chuck E Cheese's is a popular worldwide chain with several locations in our area.  I have to admit I don't miss going to this kid's pizza / entertainment joint - we had a few of my son's birthday parties when he was young at Chuck E Cheese's back in Florida. 

City Daily Photo is an online community of photo bloggers that share images of life in their cities around the world.  The first of every month is Theme Day for City Daily Photo bloggers.  This month's theme is "Play."

Please visit the City Daily Photo portal to view other participants' entries for today's theme day.

Our World: Saudi Arabia Censorship on TV

I watched the movie "Music and Lyrics" recently here in Saudi Arabia on the MBC channels (Middle East Broadcasting Center).  Music and Lyrics is a romantic comedy that stars Drew Barrymore and Hugh Grant.  It was very distracting watching this movie because there was so much censorship - all the female characters' bare arms, shoulders, and upper chests were blurred out in all of the scenes.  This type of censorship is also done on Saudia Airlines flights on all their in-flight entertainment.

So, why is Hugh Grant's chest area blurred out, you might ask?  This actually shows the lengths to which censorship goes here in Saudi Arabia.  Hugh was wearing a necklace of a cross - so, seeing as how it is a symbol of Christianity, it was blurred out in all of the scenes he was wearing it in the movie as well.  I've even seen children's books with Porky Pig blacked out with marker - because pork is forbidden here in the Kingdom.  I don't really understand why blacking out the mere image of a cartoon pig is seen as a threat to the people these censors are supposedly protecting from things that are haram (forbidden).  It's really taken to quite an extreme here.

This is actress Haley Bennett all blurred out in the movie "Music and Lyrics" because her skin was exposed contrary to Islamic standards.  My problem with all of this censorship is the inconsistency to which these standards are applied.  I'm watching another movie right now called "Divergent" on MBC2, and in it actress Shailene Woodley has exposed arms and chest throughout the movie, yet there is no blurring out at all in this movie.  The inconsistency with this censorship here drives me nuts...




Be sure to visit OUR WORLD TUESDAY, where family-friendly bloggers share a unique glimpse into what life is like all around our ever-amazing planet.