Caffe Aroma, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

 May 25, 2012         

           While I was visiting the Red Sea in Jeddah, I ate lunch at a restaurant called Caffe Aroma located on Corniche Road in Jeddah. Here is a place that you can drink the finest coffee (qahwah, in Arabic) and smoke a water pipe called a hookah with flavored tobacco called shisha. The restaurant offers diverse cuisine from around the globe that will satisfy any pallet.

            For an appetizer, I ordered the Aroma sampler which includes French fries, French bread pizza, onion rings and chicken wings with a dipping sauce that was similar to hollandaise sauce. As an entrée, I ordered the fettuccine Aroma Shrimp which boasts nicely grilled, large shrimp and a sauce that would be hard, if you made it at home, to duplicate. Both sampler and entrée were delicious and plentiful for leftovers. My friend ordered Hot & Spicy Chicken Penne which includes penne with garlic, tomatoes and red hot chili topped with grilled chicken. Definitely a dish for those that can handle spicy food!

           Café Aroma…..delectable food, relaxing atmosphere and friendly staff who provides quick service. Another great find by the Red Sea in the “Kingdom”, Saudi Arabia.

All the best,

GMarie

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - The Red Sea

I start this day off early at Riyadh King Khalid international Airport. At 0900 I am in route to Jeddah, the second largest city of Saudi Arabia, for two days. It is Memorial Day weekend, I am off Thursday through Saturday, and so a short getaway to Jeddah is ideal. Jeddah is only an hour and 30 minutes by air and located on the Red Sea. After being in Riyadh for 8 month now, it will be a nice change of scenery and much awaited opportunity to see a body of water as infamous as the Red Sea.  I have a couple of hours to kill, so as I sit near the window watching planes get refueled or take off, I people watched the abaya and thope clad women and men coming and going. Western women are not required to cover their hair unless requested by the matawa (religious police), but I prefer to blend in. There are quite a few men in towels that are wrapped around their waist and one draped around their shoulders. I am told that Jeddah is the beginning of their journey to Mecca where they take their pilgrimages.

        With a slightly late departure, the plane takes off to Jeddah! I dozed a bit but am waken to the aroma of fowl mudammes (boiled fava beans with spices) with miniature flatbread and fruit. By the time I sampled a portion of my entree, we were making our final descent into Jeddah! Though the descent was turbulent due to the heat, the view was spectacular with visible views sand dunes. 

         I debarked the plane and exited the airport right into the morning heat and humidity! Suddenly I felt as though I was in the Florida! I was picked up by a driver and whisked off to one of the compounds in which I would be housed for the next few days. I immediately noticed that Jeddah was more diverse and cosmopolitan than Riyadh.

 

My anticipation just wouldn’t let me get settled in. A driver was not available, so I asked my friend to ask someone, …anyone to take me to the Red Sea. We were privileged to be toted around by one of his friends on the compound who was gracious enough to grant my request to go to the Red Sea.  The trek was short, but once we turned onto Cornishe Road, there before me was the inlet to the Red Sea!!

We parked the car and made our way across Cornishe to the water side. I stood there for several minutes just taking in the significance of this body of water before me.  The association of the Red Sea, which is an inlet of the Indian Ocean lying between Africa and Asia, brought to mind the biblical account of the Israelites, led by Moses, escaping slavery and the rule of the Pharaoh King of Egypt in the Book of Exodus 14:21-29 and in the Quran it’s Surah 26: AL-Shu’ara’, 60-67.  I am not trying to “hold church”, but you can just imagine the ambiance of being at the Red Sea was surreal!

Until next time,….

Alhamdulillah! (Praise to Allah, in Arabic)

GMarie

I Learned How to Make Shawarmas!

May 15, 2012

     In the past, I told my co-worker, Ablah that I wanted to learn how to make shawarmas. It seemed easy enough. So we planned that we would get together at her house and her family would teach me how to prepare shawarmas.

Here is the recipe that we used:

Ingredients:

Chicken breast, 3 each

Vegetable oil, 3 tsp

Onion, 1medium

Chick stock, can

Ginger powder, pinch

Paprika, pinch

Salt, pinch

Black pepper, 1 tsp

Vinegar, 1 tsp

Yogurt, 3 TBS

Mayonnaise, 1 TBS

Garlic, pinch

Whole dill pickle cut into slithers

Frozen French fries

Pita bread, 25 each

Wax paper or sandwich wrap, 12 x 12 in

Directions:

Heat up the vegetable oil in the pot. Add the cut up chicken breast. Add chopped onion. When the chicken begins to lose water, add the chicken stock, ginger powder, vinegar, paprika and black pepper and salt. Cook on medium heat for 45 minutes to an hour, until done.  In a skillet, fry the French fries to a golden brown.

Sauce:

In a bowl, mix together the yogurt, mayonnaise and garlic.

On the pita bread, spread the sauce on one half. Add two fries, a slither of pickle and about two tablespoons of chicken. Roll the pita bread up with the ingredients. Place the shawarma on the wax paper, roll and wrap.

     Some background: shawarmas is a sandwich-like wrap of shaved lamb, goat, chicken, turkey, beef, or a mixture. The meat is placed on a spit (a slender pointed rod for holding meat over a fire) and may be grilled for as long as a day). Shawarmas is considered a fast-food across the Middle East. It can be eaten with pita bread, a couple of French fries inside, then topped with hummus or pickled turnips.

     I couldn’t wait to try the shawarmas. You guessed it. They came out perfect!  We feasted on shawarmas, fresh squeezed mango juice, rice, soup and tabouli (salad made with parsley). We made a double batch, so I took some to work the next day to share with my co-workers who said they were the best they have had in the “Kingdom”! Mmmmm,I envision opening a shawarma stand in Florida………

All the best,

GMarie

Happy Mother's Day!!

May 13, 2012

Today, I receive this wonderful poem on a bookmark:

Mom’s Time Out

Moms are always on the run

Getting daily duties done,

In charge of other people’s lives

As workers, helpers,

Moms and wives.

But every Mom needs

Time apart

For nurturing her tender heart,

Time not to “do”, but just to “be”,

To savor some serenity.

So find yourself a quiet place

And give yourself some mental space….

Relax, refresh, recharge, renew,

Review and rediscover YOU.

Don’t feel guilty-you deserve

This time to fill your

Soul’s reserves.

For Heaven knows it’s surely true

That mothers need a Time Out too.

Happy Mother’s Day!!

Note: In Saudi Arabia, Mother’s Day was celebrated on March 21; the first day of spring. This also applies to Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Oman, Palestinian Territories, Sudan, Syria, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

All the best,

GMarie


The Jarir Bookstore, Riyadh Saudi Arabia

      Today, I wanted to purchase a mobile Wi-Fi so no matter where I travelled around the Kingdom, I would have connectivity to my laptop or iPad. I never claimed to be totally literate on electronic devices and after I asked my friends several questions regarding this electronic device, I was mentally equipped and ready to articulate to the customer services representative in Jarir Bookstore my electronic needs.

     The Jarir Bookstore is a popular Saudi Arabian electronic store chain in the Middle East. The driver took me to the one located on Olaya Street in downtown Riyadh. Upon entering the front door, I was immediately reminded of the electronic store chain called Best Buy in the U.S. minus the home appliances. After a small exchange on mobile Wi-Fi types, I settled on a Huawei E586 (which is smaller than my Blackberry) which would enable me to connect my tablet, Blackberry and iPad to Wi-Fi even in the U.S. and could support up to five devices at the same time. This device is outfitted with a port for a SIM card so I can use it even in the U.S. The price for this mobile Wi-Fi was SR 599.00 ($159.75)! Not a bad price for the freedom and autonomy to Skype, access email or Facebook anywhere away from home-base. I don’t understand all technology, but I am making the translation slowly but surely. Yet another great find in the Kingdom, Saudi Arabia.

All the best,
GMarie