Max Burger

Max Burger claims to be Europe's oldest and Sweden's most popular hamburger chain.  They have now conquered the Middle East and we, Abu Dhabi peeps, are fortunate enough to taste what they have been bragging about.

I know of only two branches here in Abu Dhabi; one in Abu Dhabi Mall and the other one in Al Wahda Mall.  So one day while waiting for our kids to finish from their workshop, we decided to give it a try.  We ordered their Frisco meal, which comes in beef, chicken or vegetable patties.

Frisco meal

I was really surprised when I tasted it.  The flavors were playing in my mouth.  First the bun - it was very soft and sweet!  The patties were fresh as well as the vegetables, and the sauce they had was just awesome.  It had this distinct tangy flavor that is different from the usual over-the-counter burgers that we have.  The fries were also excellent and they used sea salt instead of the ordinary table salt.  It's like Wendy's in the sense that their fries still had some skin on it.  

Yummy burger

You can also add on some dips and the dips come in different flavors - sweet mustard, teriyaki, barbecue, green garlic, mayonaise, etc.

Dipping sauce

The price was just too afordable - only AED 14 for one Frisco meal.

For me, Max burger is way better than other overhyped, if not overpriced, burger joints here claiming to be 100% organic and 100% natural.

Try Max Burger and you'll know what I am talking about.

Loving the Abu Dhabi Bus Service

Most expats, if not all, had the same reason for leaving our mother land and braving the steps to move into another country - that is to earn more.  My husband and I are both employed, but job stability has always been a question here in the UAE especially now that the government is really serious in the country's Emiratization plan.  We are taking advantage of the opportunity that we have and are saving for our kids' futures to the best of our ability.

Photo credits to Visitabudhabi.ae

There are many ways to save with the fast paced lifestyle here in the UAE.  One way is to use public transportation rather than taxi services.  I know that taxis are far more convenient than buses.  One doesn't have to wait forever for taxis to come compared with the never ending waiting game with the buses.  With taxis, one doesn't have to spend almost 30 minutes for what was supposed to be a 10-minute ride.  However, don't you know that by using public transportation, you could save some hundreds of dirhams a month.

I live in the Corniche area and I use the bus to go home from work.  Going to work is no problem for me since my husband gives me a ride.

Let's do the math here:

My taxi fare from Karama to Corniche is around AED 10 to 12 depending on traffic.

I work 5 days a week, four weeks a month and that would equate to:

AED 10 x 5 days x 4 weeks = AED 200 per month

If I use the bus, I only have to pay AED2 plus a few minutes of walking.  Putting this to a Mathematical problem, that would be:

AED 2 x 5 days x 4 weeks = AED 40 per month

The difference might not look sooo big at only AED 160 per month, but multiply AED 160 to twelve months, and that would give you AED 1920 worth of savings for one year.

Just imagine if one would commute two times a day, that would automatically rip off AED 400 per month or AED 4800 a year just for transportation.

Aside from the reasons stated above, I think most of us here do not know which bus to take if we want to go to a certain place, so I visited Department of Transportation's website and put into a table the places/landmarks with the corresponding bus numbers:

DESTINATION	BUS NUMBER
Abella Supermarket	5, 34
Abu Dhabi Courts	34, 52
Airport	A1, 170
Al Bateen (Bainunah)	8, 9 , 10, 11
Al Maryah Island	5, 40, 52
Al Mina Souq	9, 56
Al Muhairy Center	7, 8, 32, 34
Al Wahda Bus Station	11, 32, 34, 52, 54, 56
City Terminal (AUH Mall)	5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 40, 44, 52
Corniche Road (Family Beach)	34, 63
Fish Market	8, 54
Hamdan Street	5, 54
Ikea, Ferrari World, Yas Water World	195
Immigration Dept/St. Joseph’s Church	44
Khalidiya Garden	5, 7, 32, 40
Khalidiya Mall	8
Khalifa Park	56
Khalifa Street	40, 63
Madinat Zayed Shopping Center	32, 52, 56
Marina Mall	5, 7, 9, 11, 32, 34, 63
Masdar City	163
Mina Fishermen Association	11, 44
Mina ISC	10
New Airport Road	34, 54
Officer’s Club	44
Petroleum Institute	54
Ras Al Akhdar	10, 34
Reem Island	7, 63
Spinney’s Khalidiyah	5, 7, 11, 32
Souk Qaryat Al Berri	32
Tourist Club Mina Road	8, 9 , 10, 11, 44, 54, 56
Yas Island Hotels	170, 180, 185
Zayed Mosque	54, R
Zayed Sports City	32, 34, 44, 52, 54

I hope this information is helpful.  There are also maps available in the website for a more detailed bus route. I know that most women, including me, can't read maps, so just in case you need help just call the DOT's help desk at 800-88888.

For those who do not want to bother looking for coins for the bus fare, there are Ojra cards available. A weekly pass costs AED30 and a monthly pass costs AED80.  Senior citizens and persons with disability can avail of the bus services for free.

More information is available here.

Late Post: Crafting with Kids - Christmas Tree

I know, I know, Christmas is over, but please forgive me for this very late post.  I have been very busy the past few weeks and was not able to update my blog on time.  Still, I would like to share this post as this could also give you guys an idea on your future craft activities with your angels.

The materials needed are:

1. Christmas tree template (just google for this one).
2. Punchers of different shapes
3. Colored paper
4. Paint
5. Glue

Materials

First, I had the kids paint their trees green and paint a star on top of the tree.  Once they were done, we let it dry.

Let's paint the tree green

Then I let asked them produce different shapes with the use of punchers.  This was a little difficult for my youngest as the puncher was a bit hard, so I had to give him an extra hand. 

Punch, punch and punch

Just look at how colorful the shapes were!

Cutesy!

This was the part they got most excited about.  Have your kids stick the cut-out shapes to the tree.  Just let them do their own style and try not to be perfectionist about it.  This will help your kids be more creative and confident, too.

Stick them up

Look how colorful they are.

Finished product

Thumbs up

Mission accomplished!  Another fun and easy craft completed.

Rolls N Rice

Hidden in the Al Nahyan area, Rolls N Rice is creating noise and slowly making a name for itself.  I have read good reviews for this resto, so we decided to give it a try.

Rolls N Rice

We were actually the only customers in the resto the night we went there and when a restaurant is empty it could only mean two things - bad food or sky high prices.  However, we still gave it a shot and conquered our fears!

Looking at their menu, I've noticed that price-wise it is very affordable considering that Al Nahyan is a commercial area surrounded by numerous business establishments and offices.  Most of the dishes they serve are Mediterranean. 

Restaurant Interior

We ordered chicken barbecue for the kids and we made the right choice.  My youngest does not usually eat chicken with any sauce in it, but this one he devoured till the last piece.  The serving was also huge!  My two kids were able to share in one order and they were both full and satisfied.

Chicken Barbecue

I had the spicy grilled chicken with safron rice and salad.  When they say it's spicy - believe me, it was the true definition of the word!  Flavor wise, I found it a bit too salty for me and I think it's very dry even with salad on the side, which was F-A-B by the way .  One should have something else, say a soup as a side perhaps?

Spicy grilled fish

My hubby ordered chelo kebab and it was divine!  It was served with yogurt cucumber and chili paste.  It was really tasty and very tender.

Chelo kebab

In addition, we also received excellent service from the staff who were very corteous and helpful.

I will definitely make sure to drop by this resto whenever I'm in the area.


Rolls N Rice
Y-Tower Near Al Mamoura
Al Nahyan Area, Muroor Street
Abu Dhabi
Telephone number:  9712-555-6589 / 9712-445-1118
Website:  www.rollsnriceuae.com

Chicken Kitchen

I have been warned by a friend of mine not to eat at the Chicken Kitchen, a new resto at Al Wahda Mall Extension.  However, I still wanted to give this resto a shot.

Chicken Kitchen

My friend and I went there and we were immediately attended to by one of the staff.  We told her that we wanted to eat at the back side of the resto since they have an open kitchen and we would not want to go out smelling like roasted chickens!  Little did we know that we will be surprised with such an amazing view.  We could oversee the Al Jazeera Stadium at the comfort of our seats!  For this, I will give them a plus point. 

The view from the window

So we started browsing their menu and, as the name implies, everything on the menu was chicken!  However, they do not have broasted or fried chicken here.  

I was eyeing for the Mexican Chop-Chop, but our attended recommended their rotisserie.  So okay, I took her word for it and ordered one.  I wanted to have the dark (meat) part, but she told me that the portion was very small and told me to have the white (meat) part instead.  Another plus for staff honesty.

So I went ahead and ordered as she suggested and this is what I got.  The portion was really too small.  Just imagine if I had the dark part!  Now the taste - the rice was "kinda" Mexican in a way but still I believe they still need a lot of improvement in terms of the flavor.  The chicken was way too spicy for me.  I love spicy food, but I think they have overdone the spices on this chicken.  The chicken was also too tender, if not overcooked!  I didn't need to chew the chicken.  It melted in my mouth instantly.  This was a no-no for me. I want to savor and enjoy the chicken, and having had the chicken done this way made my dining experience with them unpleasant. 

1/4 chicken rotisserie

My friend had the Original Chop Chop.  It's like tacos placed on top of a rice platter.  It was served with two different kinds of dippers - honey mustard and Cesar's.  According to his review, the presentation was appetizing, the portion was huge, but flavor wise - it is lacking big time!

Original chop

We also ordered steamed veggies on the side.  As the name implies, the veggies were only steamed.  They didn't add anything to give flavor to the veggies.  Another negative point from me.

Steamed veggies

The bill came out to be AED 10 shy of AED 100.  I believe that this resto has a lot of potential but still needs a lot of improvement, too.  

My Filed 2014 Planner

Look what my friend brought for me straight from the Philippines.  It's the Filed 2014 planner.  It's my first time to use this planner and I think I am going to enjoy it up to the last day of 2014.

Filed is different from the usual boring planners that we have in stores.  It comes in two colors, black and white.  I chose the white planner so that I can still customize the cover.

Free pen bandolier

It comes with a free pen bandolier where you can put your pens.

Tag

January

2014 Resolutions

On the first few pages, you can jot down your 2014 resolutions.  Now it's up to you whether to stick to those or not.  A color chart is also included.  One color will represent how you felt that day then you can put it in a chart.  At the end of the year you can look back and see how your year went.

Color Chart

It has a monthly as well as a weekly planner.

Weekly planner

At the end of the planner, there is a page where you can jot down the movies that you'd like to watch, list the restaurants that you plan to dine in, books to read and places to visit.

Movies to Watch and Restaurant to try

Books to Read and Places to See

Wait there's more, there's also a monthly expense tracker.

Expense Tracker

At the very end of the planner, there is a craft pocket where you can keep your receipts, stickers, etc., and of course a page muncher is included, which you could also customize, and will serve as your bookmark.  Most of all, it's very light and small, and will fit almost any bag.  Did I say that it's also cheap?  It's worth approximately AED 50 only.

Muncher

With the Filed planner, your inner artistic ability will come out.  Too bad it's not available here in the UAE.

Late Post: McDonald's Fun Day

I am pretty sure that only a few of us know that McDonald's Khalidiya holds a "Fun Day."  How did I know?  Well, my family was dining in one time and one of their staff approached me and asked me if she could have my phone number and told me that they will call me for if they will hold one.  They are also posting an announcement near the cashier a few days before the event.  The staff called me approximately after three months and informed me that they are going to have that event.  However, due to my super hectic schedule, we weren't able to go.  

Just a few weeks ago, I received another call from them saying that another Fun Day will be held.  This time around, I decided that I should take my kids there.

So what's in store for the kids who are going to participate?

The event was only good for two hours, but I assure you that not a single second will be wasted.  They have like about five parlor games, singing and dancing, and of course the opportunity to have your pictures with one of their mascots.  Aside from these, their games come with prices!  But hey, do not expect prices like the ones given on TV shows.  The prices are mostly the happy meal toys from the past, and the kids loved it.

Special awards are also given like the "Early Bird Award," "Best in Art," "Most Active," "Best Dressed," and so on.

At the end of the Fun Day, the kids will also be given certificate of participation for the said event.

Did I have to pay for it?  Well, not really.  I only needed to purchase two happy meals for my kids to be able to join the Fun Day, meaning I only had to pay AED 20 for all of these!  Believe me, it was really worth it.  The kids had fun and their tummies got filled up, too.

I am looking forward to more Fun Days at McDonalds.


McDonald's Khalidiya
Zayed the First Street, Opposite RAK Bank
Khalidiya, Abu Dhabi
Telephone number:  (02) 6666065

The Christmas that was and the New Year that will be

I celebrated my last Christmas in the Philippines in 2007.  Since then, I have been celebrating Christmas abroad here in the UAE.  Christmas back home is different.  It is more fun in the Philippines as they say.  However, having lived in a foreign country for almost 10 years, I have learned how to adapt well and accept things as they are. 

UAE has been very accommodating to Christians like us in this special occasion, which I am very thankful of.  However, Christmas is not a holiday here, it is just an ordinary day.  This means we had to work on Christmas day.

So we celebrated Christmas without my better half, as he had to work night shift on that day.  We just had our usual Noche Buena and gift giving for the kids and attended Christmas day mass the day after.

The kids had all sorts of gifts from friends - toys, clothes, etc.  I wasn't really expecting anything on Christmas, but I received the best gift so far.  My daughter made this "notebook" from scrap.  I think she had the idea from our usual craft activities during the weekends.  He just put whatever she thought was cute and helpful and made this special notebook just for me.

My daughter's Christmas gift to me

New Year's Eve was a little bit different.  I asked my husband if he could file a day off on that day so that we are complete in welcoming the New Year.  Fortunately, his big boss gave him a go so we celebrated the New Year with the whole family, Charlile included :)

 Obviously, all of us wore green as they say it is the lucky color for the year of the wood horse.

We had our usual media noche, but compared to the previous years we didn't make it grand.  We only had enough for the whole family and a few friends.  As a tradition, I asked my children to jump a couple of times so that they will grow tall and scattered some coins for luck and prosperity throughout the year.  We also had the 12 round fruits and 7 dried fruits on the table.  And while Dubai was having the grandest NYE celebration ever, Abu Dhabi was - blah!

Looking back, 2013 was full of ups and downs, failure and hope.  I have lost some and I have gained some.  Life is like this.  It's always bittersweet.  It could never ever be a bed of roses.  I know this New Year, I will have a lot of challenges along the way, a lot of changes and new beginnings.  I am looking forward to a better New Year, but along with it I am preparing to face the future trials that it may bring and equipping myself with faith, prayers, love and hope.