Victoria Ying inspired ink experiment!

One of my aims is to be a little more experimental with different medias. The reason why Victoria is such an amazing artist is that she is so versatile with her tools; digital, ink, pens, felt tips, you name it, she probably has used them all.. She isn't afraid to mix and match. So when I saw her beautiful ink sketches I felt the need to experiment

I found a picture of a girl on google which I used as reference for this..

Played around with different colours, I think this turned out pretty okay.. Can't wait to experiment with this technique some more!

Back in UK

I arrived back in the UK on the 19th of Aug, midday, Birmingham airport. I had mixed feelings when I arrived; I was glad to be home and be reunited with my family again and seeing actual blue sky and white clouds, but at the same time felt quite sad that I'm not in Dubai anymore. Looking out the window from the airplane made me miss everything about it! The annoying sand that gets in between your toes, the palm/date trees that lined and decorated the streets, the sight of mosques in every corner of the street, even the 40C+ heat! and the heat was the most uncomfortable thing about this whole trip! I miss the friends I made during this trip and ending the day with a late takeaway dinner, a movie and/or a spot of wii gaming! Just everything! The whole Dubai experience and atmosphere! I loved it!

Speaking of takeaways.. the food is another great thing that I should mention. Everything's so good (although, the prices aren't always so nice haha). I also managed to get most of the things I wanted to see and do done! But, we didn't end up doing the desert safari in the end as it was just too hot! I could stay maybe 1 or 2 hours in the heat before I start to get a little lightheaded. Even the locals who should be used to the heat, find it too hot to be walking around outdoors for too long. Thats why most places, like the malls, are open till very late as people usually stay in during the day. Hopefully I'll be able to come back in the future and do all the things I didn't get to do/visit.

In summary..

..even half a mug that could've been designed better was still a little expensive for my liking. Buuut, Dubai is amazeballs! definitely coming back when I can! :D
Photos (but not all) from my Dubai trip on my ISSUU - Sorry if image quality is not very good.. had to reduce the file so it would upload..

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Now I have to get back to reality and do some work, with cold hands and feet and a bit of a headache..

ABU DHABI

Yesterday we went to Abu Dhabi. This was the day. The day I was most excited about as I really wanted to visit the Grand Mosque.. and just when I really needed my good camera most, it decided to die on me! absolutely unbelievable, that day of all days - so I've only got phone pictures from this trip, which is a bit pooey :-( Anyways, we were given a quick little tour of Abu Dhabi by Layla and visited the Emirates Palace Hotel and Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. Absolutely beautiful!! Enough said!

from the other side of Emirates Palace hotel

Main entrance of mosque

This is the place where you do your wudu before praying
(was like a spa, so nice)

Everyone were asked to dress modestly before entering the mosque.

Above is a clip of the Adhan (Islamic call to prayer) for Maghrib prayer (at sunset), my phone ran out of memory and so it cut the video short. This is just a small section of the ceiling in the women's prayer hall just to give you an idea of how decorative and pretty everything is, so so beautiful - the quality of the video and pictures doesn't give it much justice.

Still can't get over how gorgeous this mosque is. I loved every bit of it, even the doors!

Some facts (from visitabudhabi.ae):

• One the world’s largest mosques, with a capacity for an astonishing 40,000 worshippers.
• It features 82 domes
• over 1,000 columns
• 24 carat gold gilded chandeliers 
• and the world's largest hand knotted carpet
• The main prayer hall is dominated by one of the world’s largest chandeliers –10 metres in diameter, 15 metres in height and weighing twelve tonnes
• The mosque's first ceremony was the funeral of its namesake, Sheikh Zayed, who is buried at the site.
• Reflective pools surround the mosque, amplifying its beauty. The striking white and gold colours shining in the sun are transformed at night by a unique lightning system which reflects the phases of the moon.

Naif Souk

Yesterday we basically lazed about and watched Keeping up with the Kardashians and Giuliana and Bill nearly all day (hahaha, there was nothing else better in English to watch), to recharge from yesterdays, hot gold souk adventure.. Didn't have plans to go anywhere, but in the evening ka Maya's friend Layla drove over from Abu Dhabi to do a bit of wedding shopping in Dubai for her brother in law, so naturally, I followed.. We had dinner somewhere, can't remember where we went but it was a shopping centre with an indoor sky diving facility, which I nearly went on, but didn't cos I'd rather save the money for the real thing haha..

Today we went to another market called Naif Souk and also little shops in the surrounding area for Layla's brother-in-law's wedding purchases. It was crazy packed! Reminded me of Indonesia a bit haha! but like the Gold Souk, it was real fun to see the other side of Dubai thats not as expensive and fancy (although you can get pretty fancy stuff from the souks too!) Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures there due to time limits, uncomfortable temperatures and simply because there were just so many people about, so photos below belong to their respective owners..

I'm guessing this is what the souq looks like when its not packed:

The Biggest Ring In The World!

(Wed, 13th) We tried a second time to find the souks and finally found it! It's really funny cos if we had just turned around where we were yesterday when we got a bit "lost", we would have seen it hahaha! We went to the gold souk and spice souk, but didn't hang around too long as it was just too hot! It's really not that embarrassing for people (well, some of the men anyway) to have huuuuge sweat patches here because it's pretty normal and you can't help it; saw a guy on the metro yesterday with his shirt literally soaking, he didn't look too good but I don't think he cared much to be honest haha..

We saw the biggest ring in the world at the gold souk. It was pretty awesome! So sparkly and shiny! Then we got a bit hot and decided to jump into a taxi and off we went to Ibn Battuta Mall. Ibn Battuta Mall is a themed mall with 6 courts; China, Persia, India, Egypt, Tunisia and Andalusia. The interior was absolutely stunning and interesting artefacts form the past were scattered across the mall in glass casings. Unfortunately we missed 2 of the courts, Tunisia and Andalusia because we were feeling a little tired from the souk adventure so we went back to the apartment..

Lost

Today, we went to Deira city centre where I bought some stuff for some friends back home. I also want some cool traditional handmade stuff to take back home as souvenir, so tried to find some souks (traditional markets) but got lost trying to find it! So no pictures today I'm afraid! What I've gathered from our little trip today is that there aren't really a lot of signs for pedestrians to follow, so it's a little difficult if you're trying to get to somewhere new unless you ask other people for directions or just get a taxi! 

Being Tourists

(Mon, 11th) We went around to see some more of Dubai's tourist attractions such as the Burj Al Arab (too bad we didn't go inside though and couldn't see up close as roads were closed for new construction), The Palm, Atlantis, Dubai Marina etc etc. The view of Dubai skyline from the Palm Island was absolutely amazing! It would probably be more amazing at night when all the lights are on! I love walking around at night here, plus it's a lot cooler too! I found yesterday a little too hot than usual or maybe it was just because we spent more time outside than inside. We also went to the Mall of Emirates yesterday and there is a Ski resort inside it! The word impossible is clearly not in their dictionary.. That's what I love about Dubai so far!! a desert but they've achieved so much it's just so inspiring! So yeah, yesterday I ticked a lot of places off of my list and ended the day with a much needed burger! :-)

Ski resort inside the Mall of Emirates.
The word impossible  is clearly not in their dictionary!

BURJ KHALIFA

Went up the tallest building in the whole world! 'Twas a little hazy, wish it was a little clearer during the day, but it was still amazing! Stayed up there for two whole hours to watch the sunset and watch the city light up. Views were absolutely pretty at night with all the lights on; made the city look very magical! Photos don't show how it really is in real life! So much better through your own eyes!

Then watched the Dubai Fountain.. Absolutely mesmerising, so pretty! too bad I couldn't film the whole thing!

DUBAI MALL

Went to dubai mall yesterday! Tried to go around the whole thing, but it was just too big! And started to get a little crowed in the evening so we legged it..

Today, we went back to the mall, had an Italian lunch, looked around the Mall some more, took some pics outside in the 40C weather. Going up the tallest building in the world tomorrow! The mighty Burj Khalifa!

We ran into the cutie @officialbreannayoun at the Dubai Mall!
sorry for the blurry pic, camera wouldn't focus!

Massive aquarium, Dubai Mall.

DUBAI

Today I arrived in Dubai! Had my big sis kaka* Maya and her friend, Rumanna, meet me at the airport.. And daaaaaang it's so humid! (but still quite bearable I think). My glasses steamed up straight away as soon as I stepped out of the air conditioned metro station from the airport. Nearly everything is air contdioned here.. My body temperature keeps going up and down, up and down, up and down.. surely that's not healthy. Let's hope I don't get ill for the next two weeks that I'm here! 

Things I wanna see and do (not sure if I'll be able to do all of them but I'm gonna try!):

Dubai:

Burj al Arab - pics insde if allowed haha ;-P

Burj Khalifa - go to top?

Dubai Mall - aquarium, skiing & fountain show 

The Global Village

Palm Island & Atlantis

Dubai Marina (night) & Creek

Souks/traditional markets

Ibn Battuta Mall

Miraj Islamic Art Centre/art gallery

Desert safari? (If not too hot)

Wild Wadi water park?

Abu Dhabi (if poss):

Sheikh zayed grand mosque

Heritage village

Al Ain Palace museum

Try as many traditional food of the UAE

Buy souvenirs (traditional markets)

There is a Sky diving place near ka Maya's apartment, so skydiving over the Palm island (if poss)

Take lots of pics

Visit Ka Maya's office (Middle Eastern Film & Comic Con), maybe for a little work experience? - get contacts? Lol

*kaka is an Indonesian term of address for someone who is a bit older than you

END THE SLAUGHTER

Yesterday (2nd Aug) I decided to join in the march for Palestine in Bristol - my second time to be involved (first one was a couple of years ago, when I was a little younger and wasn't really aware of what was going on in these places). The Palestinian people are suffering from injustice, oppression and denied freedom and peace. It's so heartbreaking to know that so many innocent people have died; on the streets, in their beds, in hospitals, schools, daughters, mothers, sons, fathers, even little babies! No-one is safe. This has been going on way too long and frankly enough is enough!

Although it wasn't as big as the London one, it was still such an awesome thing to see so many people of different backgrounds and faiths unite to raise awareness and support those in need of our help. Let's hope we can see an end to this soon, justice and equality for all. We can do this if we all work together and help each other!!!

(Also, yesterday was my birthday. Turned 19)