Top five holiday destinations where you mostly likely to pick up weight

I heard this on a radio station the other morning...not sure where they have sourced the stats from however it was interesting....




1.U.S.A
2.Caribbean
3.France
4.Greece
5.U.K

My two days off in pictures

Yesterday....




We got paid a little earlier than I anticipated due to the 4 day Eid holiday coming up.I am working ;)



A treat to take home for tea from Magnolia Bakery. I mean how can I go to Dubai Mall and not pick up one of theses for tea.


A migraine headache came on which was building from the day before!I felt so so sick.



I felt so ill I had to turn all the lights off and sleep....




Today I got that broom out....



I then treated myself to Jamie Olivers "fiery" pesto with pasta and I am sorry to say that this wasnt fiery at all!It was yum anyway...




And now I plan to hit the gym in a bit and then read and prepare for the new week ahead.

I never know if I should laugh or cry when I see this!

This morning I headed on the train to the shops and true enough each time I get on and look around the majority of the people are scrolling on their mobiles.I am sure their listening skills improve as they need to listen out for their stop rather than look out the windows.The older generation(and I am not reffering to me)are not offered seats as people seem to then only have tunnel vision! This really amazes me.I then got onto the bus and realised that I was the only person in that area reading an actual book.LOL!Ok I know we have e-books these days but at the speed of the scrolling I see on the trains and the speed of the bashing of the keyboard I doubt people are reading. What does the future hold??????

Within a typical week which grocery item do you buy the most?

For me...."bottled water" wins hands down!I go through almost a litre a day at home aside from the water I drink at work.I definately dont buy HK bottled water-just loved this image I came across :)Now you might ask why dont I rather buy a six pack than making regular trips to the local mini-mart?Well....carting it on the bus and train doesnt work too well and going past the mini-mart post an evening run or walk strenghtens my discipline.How you ask...Well as I stand in the snaking line of people to pay for my water the biscuits and sweets attempt talking to me asking me to please buy them(cheeky hey) and my inner "NO" unleashes and upon exiting the store it smiles largely inside of me and feels a little stronger.

Plunge boldly!

“Plunge boldly into the thick of life!”
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

One of those awesome unexpected moments that life throws you!

I got into work on Friday morning and as I was settling in at my desk I received a message from Adhil saying that Lisa was in transit in Dubai en-route to Australia and would like to see me if possible.I was so thrilled at the thought of this.Absolutely sheer excitement.I asked him which hotel she was at and it turned out that out of the MANY hotels in Dubai Lisa was at the hotel next door which belongs to the group I work for!!!! I mean what were the chances.A buggy ride away and Lisa was in the lobby to meet me.I was so so excited.I had an immediate flashback to the night before I left Cape Town to Dubai. Lisa,mum and I had shared a cab ride home after Adhil and Bridgets' engagement dinner party.....little did we know that the next time we see each other mum would be gone.Lisa was so in tune with me and asked me directly how was I coping and how am I doing. I was so grateful for this question as I have realised that people tend to steer away from this "real"question as its something uncomfortable for them.As I was on my lunch break and time was precious we quickly headed to Starbucks only to find that we can buy take aways however are not allowed to sit there and drink it as its Ramadaan.We were handed our drinks in starbucks brown packets to "disguise" them and as Lisa was a guest of the hotel group we were able to head down to the beach where hotel guests are allowed to eat.We sat in the scorching sun under umbrellas of course and while catching up with Lisa I was smiling to myself thinking"Its not everyday that one can pop out on their lunch break onto the beach at their workplace and spend their lunch break there."The view of the ocean was beautiful and my heart was glowing. Thanks Lisa for making the effort during your very short visit to see me.It really meant the world to me.

A trip to visit lil sista Sue

A short while after settling back in Dubai post my dear mums funeral my sister mentioned to me that she was thinking of coming to spend some time with me in Dubai as she imagines its not easy being out here on my own and having to process mums passing.Well my sis was sure right and next thing you know a ticket was booked and my sister arrived for three nights.(I had been going through a challenging time with my emotions so the timing of this visit was perfect for my heart and soul)Seeing my sis at my front door was such an awesome and special feeling(felt surreal).Zsa arrived with a suitcase filled with goodies for me from mums cupboards that she thought I would like,an unexpected gift bag filled with pressies from Meena and loads of yummy goodies from Zsa herself.As a treat I had booked us into the hotel that I work at so after a small brekkies and some chats at my place we headed to the hotel.I found out post our stay that it was thanks to my manager that Zsa and I had a complimentary upgrade to a room with a sea view as well as had a complimentary sizable fruit bowl.We had a most comfortable stay at the hotel and shared three really SPECIAL days of great bonding. Reflecting on the time spent together I must say we had a good balanced three days-relaxing on the beach,swimming in the pool,a day at the malls(as you do in Dubai)general exploring,leisurely chats over meals and just some good sisterly bonding.(Morning coffees shared with my sis-big smiles)Of course the time flew by as it does when you having a good time.The day before my sis was due to leave that morning my tummy felt ill at the thought of her leaving in a days time.I gave myself a talking and before you know it I blocked it out and savoured the last day together.The morning my sis left I cant tell you how from out of nowhere this ill feeling ran through my entire body.Standing in the porte cochere area waiting for her cab to the airport I was speechless.There was so much I could have said or wanted to say but silence was best and I could feel that my sis felt the same.As the cab pulled away my heart was smiling with gratitude for our time together and the tears were streaming down my face.Tears of joy and gratitude for my sis having made that trip and tears around the loss of my mum as that was the motivating factor for my sisters visit.Who would have thought that Zsa would be visiting me so soon after my move to Dubai?

(Picture 1:Zsa happened to be here over the time of the monthly organised swim around the Burj so can you imagine my joy having been able to share this awesome experience with her.Hoping that during my time here I can have that same experience with my brothers too.A little something about the matching hats....little did we know that we both had picked up a hat each of mums in Durban and then both unexpectedly pulled them out of our bags on our first day of our stay at the hotel. Mum was with us all the way)

Picture 2:Dinner on our first night at an authentic Chinese restaurant at the hotel)

A weekend filled with love

Wishing you all a weekend filled with love....

You've got mail or maybe not?

While in Durban I recalled that my mum had text me around my birthday while I was in Dubai to ask for my postal address.Knowing my mum she probably had the intention to post me a birthday card.It was over the time of my birthday that my mum went downhill rapidly however once back in Dubai I couldnt help but think that maybe there was a very slim 1% chance that she did manage to write a card and ask a visitor to post it.Highly unlikely I knew as I know my mums world was at its end however I still to put my mind at peace wanted to go to the postal counter to check if anything was perhaps waiting for me.I avoided going to the postal counter as I guess I didnt want to face the reality that there wouldnt be anything.Today I plucked up the courage to put my mind to rest and felt strong within my emotions to face the outcome.At least now my mind can rest as I saw for myself that there wasnt any post awaiting me.My heart is warm knowing that my mum had the intention and if she physically could she would have sent me a card.Stay tuned for a write up on the beautiful memories my sister and I shared over three days in Dubai....

My addiction to fun and unusual coffee mugs!

I dont think my addiction to gorgeous coffee mugs will ever stop!Came across this mug in a store recently and it makes me dream of a trip to Italy in the future.
It came in an interesting range and also had matching espresso cups and a tray.I have taken a pic of the front and the back for you and I love the way the spoon fits into the holes in the handle.Neat and gorgeous!

New day....new dawn

Yesterday I had a rather "off day' and hated every minute of feeling like that.In a nutshell I battled with my feelings....felt so tired and felt flat!I guess this is the part of the process of dealing with mums passing and I am allowed an off day now and then right?!I went out for a walk last night and came back feeling a tad better and this morning I made sure I had a good work-out indoors and I can feel I am on the rise again.Sjoe!