Foodgasm and fairy lights

Because it's very late...and because I've had too many drinks - red wine and some unknown shots, this blog post will be mainly pictures. 

We left at 7 to head to Anjelique for our dinner event. However due to terrible traffic, we were diverted to ferry docks to catch a water taxi (more of a yacht). 

It was a nice cool evening, skimming across choppy waters, and we made it to the Anjelique, passing some tourist attractions. 

When we finally docked at Anjelique and disembarked, a dizzying array of canapés were offered to us. I loved the prawns the most, but they were overall very yummy and u tend to do, ate too much!

After a speech presentation introducing the new M4, they brought out a sparkling concoction and after double shots, I knew it was time to head home.

So we caught the first shuttle van at 10pm (alternate shuttles arrive at various times up to 11pm), and now it's time for some shut eye to rest up for a brand new day tomorrow! 

We are here!

Our final flight to our destinations was a short 4.5 hours from Abu Dhabi to Istanbul. We had left Melbourne at 9.30am on Wednesday. When we finally arrived at Istanbul, it was Thursday 9.15pm! Total time in the air was almost 20 hours spanning 3 flights! Luckily, I'm a sleepy head who can snooze anywhere and in any position, but with age catching up, my body was protesting the long flight times. 

On arrival, we were pleasantly surprised to be met at the gates by airport staff to get us fast tracked through passport control and a porter to carry our bags! With the great service provided to us by BMW, we whisked through and were seated in our van to the hotel within 30 mins. It would have probably taken us another hour had we gone through the normal plebeian lines, it was at least 5 times the length!

From the Atartuk airport to W hotel, thought us roughly 45 mins and we had a few glimpses of the local traffic and some of the tourist sites we will be visiting...

I spotted the Police as we were approaching our hotel, surprised to see them holding machine guns and by the time I recovered, my photo of them were not very clear!

W hotel was at a busy little intersection, unassuming on the outside, flying the BMW M flag and looked to be filled by M experience guests. 

After a quick check in and a refreshing shower (felt sooooo good), we hit the pavements ahead of the start of our official experience (dinner at 7).

We wandered with our tour guide (Jeffrey) to our first location, a little bakery shop with sweet and savory baked goods. 

The owner and his son spoke little English, and we finally managed to use time honored finger pointing and holding up how many fingers to indicate what we wanted, and he had a calculator to show us what we owed. 

We wandered next to the Besiktas Fish Market, with its unusual structure. 

And had some kebabs. 

The mussels looked yummy, but we hesitated to try them with the late summer heat...

The eagle has landed! 

We then wandered to Kafadaroglu baklava and had some sinfully sweet baklavas!

Now pretty full and a little hyped from the sugar, we made our way back to the hotel. On the way we saw this cart going up and down the street selling his herbs. 

Back at W hotel, with an hour to rest up, I sit outside our room, writing this blog...

Time to get ready for tonight's events! To be continued....

Almost there...destination within reach!

          Selfie before take off in KL!

And here we are, in pristine Abu Dhabi (based on glimpses from my seat window). We won't actually be able to explore Abu Dhabi for another few days, so it's only impressions from the window and our airport layover for the moment. 

The flight itself was pretty good. In spite of the older plane - rattling, loose tables and no USB plugs to charge our devices (ermahgerd!), the plane was only half full, which meant that the moment doors were shut, we could all grab 4-seater rows to ourselves (makeshift lie flat!). 

But the lack of sleep caught up, and before the plane took off, I had already dozed off. 

Hours later, and feeling refreshed, we were served our 4-course breakfast. 

Nasi goreng with satay chicken! Yum!

The airport was a bustling space, being a stopover for a multitude of destinations. 

We browsed the gift shops and were amused by the sheer number of camel souvenirs :) 

Another interesting point was the "smoking boxes" and lounges available. Just little square boxes that were filled with people puffing away!

One last selfie with my little sis, and we're ready for our final leg in this journey! Istanbul, here we come!

And waiting to board....

Killing 12 hours in transit..

What does one do with 12 hours in transit? 

We arrive in a very hazy KLIA2 - the new low cost carrier airport just opened barely a month, just after 3.30pm local time. 

We made it out of the plane in record time, mainly because we were in the 2nd row. The airport still had fresh paint smells lingering in its hallways, and we made our way through, no crowds, no noise. 

It took us a very short time to get through immigration, and our bag was one of the first through on the carousel - yet we lingered, for almost an hour on some pristine benches next to the carousels owing to the fact we had excellent free wifi reception and was loath to move. 

When I suddenly realised that we had not eaten for 6 hours (omg, seriously how did  I manage that length of time?), we decided to finally pass through customs in search of substanance. 

The amount of options available was plentiful, and we decided to "scope" our choices. Fast food? Local delicacies? Snacks on the go?

We walked 3 levels compiling our list - and ended up exactly where we started! 

Local favorite Old Town - eating Nasi Lemak and kaya toast :)

 Another hour and aimless walking brought us to the Thai Odyssey. The huge sign beckoned me with the tantalizing 25% discount on all massages! After a little cajoling, and discussion of prices and the value of R+R, Jeff and I were settled in a couple's room to enjoy - for me, a foot and body massage and for him, just a foot massage. 

I must say, it was extremely good to have my aching feet pampered and those tensed knots in my shoulders and neck kneaded. I only wish that I had plonked down for 2 hours instead of one!

By now, it was almost 9.30 - time for another meal! This time we decided on fast food. Texas Chicken sounded interesting...but oh so sinful!

We sat in the comfy seats and then our partners in crime joined us!

Yippee! Time flew much faster from then and next thing I knew - 11 hours has passed and we are checked in and waiting at the boarding gates! 

Off to the next stopover! Just one more before our final destination! 

Running on fumes..

It's been an exciting few months silently leading up to our planned "excursion". 

The day has finally arrived! After a flight cancellation, lost hotel reservations, butt loads of emails with miscommunications due to foreign language translations and a night of barely 2 hours of sleep...here we are! Waiting for take off :)

A little pre-flight shopping for items to pick up on the way home...

Then walked about and decided on some last minute fast food before the start of our Middle Eastern food journey begins..and while waiting fit our hungry jacks muffins, our names were called! Option town upgrade was a success and so here now we sit waiting for take off in our lie flat seats! See you on the other side!

 

Something all dance mums should have!

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Blueberries

I recently started eating oats in the morning. Mainly because it is the start of the new year, and we all resolve to be healthier and good during January, and partly because I'm coming to terms that I'm getting older and need to start looking after myself.

I happened to mention to my Mommy whilst at the shops that I'm looking for a healthy topping to put on top of my oats - I'm eating the plain rolled oats as opposed to ones with added sugary stuff, and she suggested "blueberries"!

My instant response was, "Ugh blueberries, yuck!".

Mommy said, "Blueberries are yummy!"

I replied, "I don't like them. They're err sourish..."

Mommy then dragged me to the fruits section and said, "Try one!", and grabbed one, insisting I try one.
At this point, an image of me, trying to entice Kaitlyn to try some mango a few days ago, flashed in my mind.

I had tried to introduce food to her that Kaitlyn does not like, mushroom and mango among them. And I had lectured her that we should always try a little of the food available on the table (during meals). No harm in taking a bite, she might discover that her taste buds have changed and she would like something different. Always take a little to try, and if you don't like it, swallow it politely (without making gagging noises) and leave it for another day!

Mindful of my own advice, I accepted the little blueberry from my mother, and tasted it. To my surprise, I liked it. Instant conversion!

Why have I been shunning this little fruit! Oh, all the blueberry muffins I have declined. No more!

(And yes, I made Kaitlyn try one when I put it in my oats this morning. Her reaction? "Bleh. Too sweet!")


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