Culture – Page 6 – Ruth Badley

Tales from the Riverbank

Post author:RuthBadley
Post published:10th June 2016
Post category:Culture Dubai entertainment Expat Living Food Middle East Shopping Travel
Post comments:6 Comments

Back in Dubai, after a two-week, high octane visit to the UK and France it’s no wonder I’m feeling discombobulated. You what? Until this week, ‘discombobulated’, meaning ‘disconcerted or confused’, is a term I have only ever heard used in a comic context.

Listening to a heart-rending exchange on BBC’s Radio 4, the presenter chose this word to describe an interviewee’s state of mind following a particularly harrowing experience as a child. It jarred with me, as being merely ‘discombobulated’ did not come close to covering the situation being recounted, so I am now appropriating the word (thanks Woman’s Hour) for my own use.
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Three days in Budapest

Post author:RuthBadley
Post published:27th April 2016
Post category:Culture Dubai entertainment Expat Living Food Travel
Post comments:2 Comments

With elegant cafés, stunning architecture and history around every corner, there are a million reasons to visit Budapest. Our visit to Hungary’s esteemed capital city was a chance to catch up with old friends in a fabulous destination. By good chance, flight times to and from Dubai and the UK worked out, giving us a three-day window to get a flavour of what makes Budapest special. We knew we wouldn’t see it all but we could give it our best shot. (more…)

Write that book!

Post author:RuthBadley
Post published:6th April 2016
Post category:Culture Dubai entertainment Expat Living Middle East UAE
Post comments:4 Comments

I’ve been playing with the idea of writing a book for the last year so I thought it might be worth sharing a few tips on how I finally stopped talking about it and made a start. There used to be a sort of hushed reverence around announcing this kind of activity but in the age of self-publishing and blogging, writing a book is an achievable goal for pretty much anyone that has something to say. (more…)

Visit to Kerala (Part 3)

Post author:RuthBadley
Post published:12th March 2016
Post category:Culture Dubai entertainment Expat Living Food Travel
Post comments:2 Comments

Onwards by car to our next and final stop – the lakeside village of Kumarakom and the beautiful Zuri spa resort. This tranquil haven of beautiful gardens, stunning views and comfortable deluxe accommodation was greatly appreciated after the ‘rustic’ and altogether charmless houseboat facilities. (more…)

Visit to Kerala (Part 2)

Post author:RuthBadley
Post published:8th March 2016
Post category:Culture entertainment Expat Living Food Travel
Post comments:2 Comments

Kerala’s herb and spice trade dates back hundreds of years and even today the international market for these ingredients is a key driver of the regional economy. Locally grown pepper, cardamom, turmeric, nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, ginger, tamarind and curry leaves are highly prized both for their flavour and beneficial medicinal qualities.

Everywhere we went we had to reassure anxious waiters that, contrary to popular belief, many Europeans do like spicy food, so please bring it on! Tasty, with spice, rather than hot with chilli was our experience of the Keralan vegetable and seafood dishes we tried. (more…)

Visit to Kerala (Part 1)

Post author:RuthBadley
Post published:3rd March 2016
Post category:Culture entertainment Expat Living Food Travel
Post comments:0 Comments

Touch down in Cochin for a five-night trip to Kerala and even from the air our first glimpse of India looks so lush and green, abundant with vegetation and water-rich. Only three and half hours away but such a different landscape from the desert city of Dubai. (more…)

Diving into the River

Post author:RuthBadley
Post published:21st February 2016
Post category:Culture Dubai entertainment Expat Living
Post comments:4 Comments

These days, being a Bruce Springsteen fan is a tough call. If you have a friend that is a Bruce Springsteen fan, then please be kind. Take it from me they are experiencing a roller-coaster ride of emotions right now and they will need your support for a little while longer. (more…)

It’s Showtime!

Post author:RuthBadley
Post published:3rd February 2016
Post category:Culture Dubai entertainment Expat Living Middle East
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It’s a year since we started our expat adventure in Dubai and in keeping with my general aim of making the most of this fast moving experience, I will be making my entrance on the Dubai stage in the Short and Sweet festival this weekend.

Short and Sweet is the largest festival of ten minute plays in the world and the buzz around it is really exciting. Over six weeks, talented writers, directors and actors will present more than 80 bite-sized plays to packed houses and much applause. (more…)

On the Indian food trail

Post author:RuthBadley
Post published:23rd January 2016
Post category:Culture Dubai Expat Living Food Middle East
Post comments:2 Comments

Dubai is full of glitzy, expensive restaurants but there is another side to this food-loving city that is easy to overlook. Old Dubai, is crammed with Indian street food sellers, artisan food producers, family–run restaurants and ethnic grocery stores, offering authentic regional specialities at bargain prices, but where to start? We have made tentative inroads to this other world but knowing where to go and what to order requires some serious insider knowledge. Enter Frying Pan Adventures, a small, local tour company started and run by two food-loving sisters, Farida and Arva Ahmed. (more…)

New year, new view

Post author:RuthBadley
Post published:4th January 2016
Post category:Culture Dubai entertainment Expat Living Middle East UAE Uncategorised
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The unplanned New Year’s Eve ‘fireworks’ in Dubai caught us all napping. On the most predictable evening of the year we could see fire had broken out at the luxury hotel across the road but had anyone else noticed how rapidly it was moving up the 63-storey building? (more…)