The Taste of Korea

Full House by Rain and Song Hye Kyo was the first Korean telenovela that I have watched and loved.  Since that telenovela, I have been fascinated and deeply in love with everything Korean, especially their food.  The only authentic Korean restaurant that we have been to here in Abu Dhabi was Hankook Restaurant in Muroor, Abu Dhabi.  Coincidentally, while we were looking for a pet shop in Khalifa Street, we passed by Eclipse Hotel and saw the signage of The Taste of Korea.  Of course, we got interested knowing that we have another place to go to once our Korean taste buds attack.

The Taste of Korea is one restaurant in Eclipse Hotel.  It is actually at the Penthouse of the hotel.  Eclipse Hotel is not a 5-star hotel, so of course one should lower their expectations when inside the hotel.  However, when you reach the restaurant itself, you will see and feel the very cozy ambience that you can usually find in high-end hotels.  I so love their dining table and chairs, which are very comfortable.  Also, when you leave this restaurant, you will not smell like kimchi (the smell of whatever's cooking at Hankook's kitchen is all around the place) or smoke (there's no separate smoking section at Hankook).  They also have a large LCD TV that features Korean shows to keep the guests entertained while waiting for the food to be served.

Inside The Taste of Korea

The table setting is typical Korean.  The chopsticks are there as well as the long handled spoon, which is not seen in this picture as my son was playing with it.

Table setting

I love their tabletop grill.  It is safer compared to the one in Hankook, which needs gas to operate.

Grill on your table

It is typical Korean to serve their guests with small portions of different types of side dish.  They served us eight side dishes to be exact.  Some are spicy and some are not, which is good because the kids loved their hotdogs!  We also had to literally ask the waitress to stop refilling our side dishes.  They were sooo generous in giving the side dishes in that once they see that one plate is empty, they will immediately pour over some more!  Isn't that great?

Side dish

We ordered this fried dumplings, which the waitress told us contain only very little meat.  I think she was wrong because the dumplings were meaty and full of flavor, which the kids loved!

Fried dumplings

This sort of (sorry I dunno what it's called) miso soup comes in when you order the bulgogi meal and that includes steamed rice, too.  For me, this was the only negative part on my experience with this resto.  The soup was bland, but hey it was free so wag na tayong choosy!

Miso(?) soup

Bibimbap is a rice dish with veggies, meat, egg and spices.  In Hankook, their Bibimbap does not have meat.  Just a tip when you order this dish, make sure that you will mix the ingredients right away when served or else the rice will form crusts (tutong) at the bottom.

Bibimbap

My daughter's favorite Korean dish is the Bulgogi.  As part of a meal, I can say that the serving is generous.  They said that it's enough for two, but I think even three or four people can enjoy a single serving.  The flavor was of course a 5/5!

Bulgogi

They also served us complimentary iced coffee, which surprisingly was very tasty!

Iced cold coffee

The Taste of Korea truly deserves its name.  Just look at the kids' faces and one can say that we really enjoyed our experience here.  We will definitely come back for more!

Kids lurved it!

The Taste of Korea
The Eclipse Boutique Suites
Al Markaziyah
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Telephone number:  (02) 6521013
Website:  www.eclipsesuites.com

Help Typhoon Maring Victims

For the last three years, the Philippines has been suffering from major floods both in the rural and urban areas alike.  OFWs most of the time feel helpless when calamities like this happen.  We are very far from home and will need at least 8 hours' flight to reach home.  The most that we can do is to call our families back home to make sure that they're okay and stay glued to the tube for further updates.  Most importantly, we ask help from our Father above to help the helpless victims.

Photo credits to Yahoo Philippines

I know that prayers are important and powerful, but we can also do something in addition to this to help the poor victims.  We can always DONATE in cash or in kind.

Yahoo Philippines has written a very detailed article on how we can reach out to the victims of Typhoon Maring.  Please click this link to learn more on how we can help.

I know that we OFWs cannot volunteer, but at least we can donate a bit of our hard earned money to those who are in most need right now. 

How to Obtain a Pet Passport in the UAE

Vet services here in the UAE are rocketing sky high.  The cheapest that we could find here in Abu Dhabi were the National Veterinary Hospital and the Falcon Hospital.  The National Veterinary Hospital, although cheaper than other vets, is still a little bit on the pocket.  Falcon Hospital on the other hand offers cheaper services; however, it is in the middle of nowhere and requires at least a 45-minute drive from the city to its location near Swehan.  So I googled and googled for "cheap" dog services here in Abu Dhabi and found this website of the Abu Dhabi Police.  

Little did I know that the Abu Dhabi Police's K9 Unit offers services for dogs such as training, treatment, surgery and even sheltering and their prices are way more affordable than what other vets offer.  Aside from that, they also issue pet passports.  

Charlie's Pet Passport

What is a pet passport?  It is a document that states all the necessary information for your dogs like the microchip number the vaccines that he/she had and treatment/surgery if applicable.  The pet passport can simplify the transport of pets between one country to another thus avoiding pet quarantine, which can sometimes take up to six months.  This is required and a must in some countries such as the UK and countries in the EU.  This should not be confused with the health certificate that the vets issue.  These are two different things.

How can one obtain a pet passport in Abu Dhabi?  

1. Bring with you the necessary documents:
    - Your passport (original)
    - Emirates ID card (original)
2. Fill up the application form.
3. Have your dog vaccinated.
4. Pay the necessary fees (AED 15 for membership and AED 140 for vaccination).

Voila - you now have your pet passport.  

Abu Dhabi Police

Security Inspection Department K9

Working hours:  7:30 AM to 2:30 PM

Telephone number:  (02) 444-6639 (this is the direct line; the one displayed on their website will direct you to this number)

Website

Spaccanapoli

While browsing through some blogs, I came across some reviews about Spaccanapoli, an Italian restaurant in Crowne Plaza, Hamdan, Abu Dhabi.  What really caught my attention was its promo - 50% off your bill before 7PM - including booze.  So last Eid, we decided to pay this resto a visit.

Spaccanapoli, Crowne Plaza

The restaurant's facade is simple yet elegant, romantic and cozy.  However when we went inside there was no one there to greet or welcome us.  We did not know if we should stay at the ground floor to be seated or go upstairs to the first floor.  Anyhoo, we just went upstairs and the attendant was there who welcomed us and led us to our table.

Facade

One meter pizza

Table setup

Their service was good.  However, I found it hard to understand our attendant as she had this strong accent and we asked her to repeat whatever she was saying a couple of times (my bad!).  As soon as we were seated, they gave us this complimentary yummy bread basket and spread, which we almost finished!

Complimentary bread and spread

We ordered this half-meter pizza, as we were only a group of three adults and two kids.  They offer 1/2, 3/4 and 1 meter pizza.  For half meter, you have to order two pizza flavors.  In our case we ordered Americana (AED 85) and Marinara (AED 45).  So the cost of our pizza was approximately AED 130, of course this was before discount.  For 3/4 meter pizza, three flavors had to be ordered and for 1 meter - four.

The Americana pizza for me was okay, but the Marinara pizza was a NO-NO for me. This was the first time that we tried pizza with anchovies and I will never, ever comit the same mistake again!  It tasted like pizza with fish sauce (if you know what I mean).

Half meter pizza

The spaghetti carbonara was excellent.  For pastas, you will have two choices - lunch and full portion.  Please note that the 50% discount is not applicable for the lunch portion.  The carbonara, if I may say, was excellent.  The pasta was el dente (spell check please).  It wasn't too greasy and saucy!  It was just perfect.  They also asked us if we wanted extra cheese for free and gave us chili sauce if we wanted an extra kick to the pasta.

Spaghetti carbonara

The squid salad was okay.  Veggies were fresh but the salad on the whole lacked flavor.

Squid salad

Our total bill was  supposed to be AED 320, but we only paid AED 160 inclusive of taxes.  I would say that it was a bit pricy, as there was nothing really special about the food.  Of course the restaurant is in a hotel that is why it is quite expensive, but at least the quality of the food should go along with the price.

Spaccanapoli

Crowne Plaza

Hamdan Street, Al Marzakiyah

Abu Dhabi

Telephone number:  (02) 616-6261

Meet Charlie

Dogs have been my favorite pet since I was a small kid and I think my kids inherited those genes from me. They kept on asking me to have a pet dog 24/7.  As I also would like them to be responsible pet owners someday, I gave in and got them a dog.  I browsed through the pages of Dubizzle and found this 7-month-old puppy for adoption.  His former owner was leaving and would not bring him along that's why he posted him up for adoption.  

The former owner posted Cavalier King Charles Spaniel puppy for adoption.  I did not have any information about this dog's breed at all, but when I saw his pictures, I fell in love with him immediately.  Those gorgeous eyes can really take your breath away.

Charlie and his favorite toy

According to Wikipedia, "Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is a small spaniel classed as a toy dog by The Kennel Club. It is one of the most popular breeds in the United Kingdom. Since 2000, it has grown in popularity in the United States. It is a smaller breed of spaniel, and Cavalier adults are often the same size as adolescent dogs of other spaniel breeds. It has a silky, smooth coat and commonly a smooth undocked tail. The breed standard recognizes four colours: Blenheim, Tricolour (black/white/tan), Black and Tan, and Ruby. The breed is generally friendly, affectionate and good with both children and other animals; however, they require a lot of human interaction.

The King Charles changed drastically in the late 17th century, when it was interbred with flat-nosed breeds. Until the 1920s, the Cavalier shared the same history as the smaller King Charles Spaniel. Breeders attempted to recreate what they considered to be the original configuration of the breed, a dog resembling Charles II's King Charles Spaniel of the Restoration.

Various health issues affect this particular breed, most notably mitral valve disease, which leads to heart failure. This appears in most Cavaliers at some point in their lives and is the most common cause of death. The breed may also suffer from syringomyelia, in which cavities are formed in the spinal cord, possibly associated with malformation of the skull that reduces the space available for the brain. Cavaliers are also affected by ear problems, a common health problem among spaniels of various types, and they can suffer from such other general maladies as hip dysplasia, which are common across many types of dog breeds."

His first pedicure

Having a dog in the Philippines back in the day was different.  Before, dogs were only considered as a "guard" and not as a pet, were put on a leash or a cage and not free to roam around.  The food they had were only left overs and not proper dog food.  We gave them baths daily using detergents, which is bad for their skin.  We did not let them inside the house, as we were afraid that they will poop or pee anywhere.  Horrible - yes, I know.

As I have been living in the UAE for almost 10 years now, I came to observe how other nationalities take care of their pets - be it dogs or cats.  I will not call our ways before cruel - I would rather call it "lack of education" on how to take care of pets.  It can also be lack of financial resources, if I may say.  But now, having been educated through observation and reading, we are taking care of Charlie not the typical Philippine way.  He now has his own dog food, is not on a leash (except when we have to go out) or cage, takes a bath every week with his dog shampoo, and gets a regular visit to the vet.

Falling asleep while having a bath

Keeping a dog demands a lot of committment.  Charlie is not 100% house trained, but he is getting there. We have to bring him down at least four times a day to do his thing.  No matter what we do, he will not do his thing in the balcony.  He prefers the spacious greenery near our flat.  It is very tasking but rewarding at the same time especially when I see the smiles on my kids' face whenever they play with Charlie.  Charlie may cause a few more holes in my pocket but is definitely worth it.

Charlie - Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Staycation: Novotel Abu Dhabi Gates

Once in a while, we indulge ourselves to relax in one of the hotels here in the UAE. This time around, we decided to spend our weekend at Novotel Gate Hotel in Bain Jesrain.  This hotel is really close to Dalma Mall, so my stingy blood kicked in again and went there for dinner!

Anyways, I was really happy as we only had to pay AED 312 plus 16% tax for the whole family.  The room we got had a double bed plus a sofa bed, which is good for three adults.  Two kids under the age of 12 can also stay in the same room with their parents provided that the kids will share beds with Mom and Dad.  The room rate also included our buffet breakfast.  This was really a good deal.

Lobby

The kiddos while waiting for Dada checking in

Still patiently waiting

All four of us were able to fit on this double bed.  We had enough space and yes - we could still move.

Double bed

The sofa bed, where my mother-in-law slept.  This was comfortable enough and they provided us with extra pillows and blanket.  The only thing I noticed was the soap/fabric conditioner they used for the extra blanket was so strong, it made me and my mother-in-law sneeze quite a bit.

Sofa bed

There are several ports that you can use for this entertainment system.  There's a USB port, audio/video port, etc.  You can bring your portable hard drive here, relax and enjoy a movie.  Isn't that great?

Entertainment unit

Complimentary drinks

Mini bar

It was such a fantastic view especially at night.  The water was so enticing.  And yes - your're right the window wasn't clean.

View from our window

The bathroom was quite spacious compared to other hotels that I have been to.  The shower has a raindrop head and there's also a tub for those who want to soak themselves and relax a bit.

Lavatory

Toilet

Toiletries

Now comes the breakfast.  I would say that out of 5 stars, I would give their breakfast buffet at Horizon restaurant 4 stars.  There was a great variety and the orange juice was to die for!  There was no live cooking station, but for AED 312, who am I to complain right?

Salad bar

Cold cuts

Bread selection

Hot dishes

My breakfast

Cheese, salad and turkey

For recreation, the hotel offers two pools, one for kids and one for adults.  Aside from the pool, guests can also enjoy playing billiards and table tennis for free :)

Let's have a dip

Overall, I can say that our stay in Novotel was fantastic and superb!  We will definitely go back for more and will add this hotel to one of our favorite weekend spots in Abu Dhabi.


Novotel Gate Hotel
Road 34
Gate City, Bain Al Jessrain
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Telephone number:  (9712) 508-9999
Fax number:  (9712) 508-9990
Email:  H6948@accor.com
Website:  www.novotel.com