Hangin' with the Kings

Last night, our band had a gig in Dubai.  I decided to make a weekend of it by getting a hotel room and taking a stroll at Emirates Mall in the afternoon.

Lunchtime view of skiers.

I walked over, had some lunch at Miu Shanghai where I had a nice view of the ski slopes.  After lunch, I moseyed on down to the viewing platform.  I guess there is a small penguin show at 2:00; it was 1:57 when I got there.  Perfect timing.  To my surprise, there was an announcer with us saying he was going to give away a free ticket to anyone that could answer a question.  The question was:  "Name one of the two kinds of penguins that are here."  I was listening, to the show so I knew the answer!  The answer was King Penguin (I heard the guy mention it, but thought he meant Emperor penguin, so I said, "King penguin or Emperor penguin."  Luckily, I only had to name one correctly, so I won a free ticket to the Penguin Encounter."

The show begins.

I was really happy and went straight downstairs to claim my prize.  It was me, two Indian women, a Saudi Arabian man and his two small sons, and four French girls in our group.  They emphasized that we were not allowed to bring any camera or take our own pictures; they have a professional photographer to do that.

After putting on our cold weather gear, we were led to an area to watch a video about how the proceeds of our admission price will go to penguin research and penguin etiquette.

The penguin habitat a Ski Dubai according to their website:

Our King and Gentoo Penguins at Ski Dubai reside in the most sophisticated habitat in the UAE. The enclosure consists of several areas including a private pool, a top deck area with rocks, and a private holding area. For guests who will be doing the Penguin Encounter, there is a possibility to see the penguins through a glass wall, as they will reside in their private pool or on the top deck. The private holding area will not be visible directly to public.

Our kitchen is fully equipped to provide daily fish banquets for the Penguins, and if needed, a hospital facility is available. The penguins are free to move around the private pool, top deck and their private holding area.
During scheduled times, our guests will be able to get up close and personal as the penguins are invited to join us in one of the encounter areas. This is where our guests will meet the Penguin Trainer who will be guiding them through the encounter, and of course, meet our Penguins.

At set times, our Penguins will also be able to move from the private pool to a splash pool, which is situated in the Snow Park of Ski Dubai. Playing around in the splash pool, our penguins will be visible for all guests in Ski Dubai, as well as all guests in the Mall of the Emirates through the glass wall looking out over Ski Dubai. Last but not least, our penguins will have a ‘Penguin March’ through the Snow Park every day, escorted by the Penguin Trainers. This will give guests the chance to see our Penguins up close and to learn all about our Penguins, as their trainers will tell you everything you want to know about Penguins.           

The trainer with one of the Gentoo penguins.

The King penguins.

 A bit of penguin video from the show.

First we got to see two male Gentoo penguins and have our pictures taken with them.  Of course the obnoxious French girls pulled out their cell phone cameras and snapped some photos much to the dismay of the trainer who had to reprimand them. 

Gentoo Penguin Facts: 

• They are the 3rd largest specie. 
• They mostly live on the Falkland Islands. 
• All of the penguins came from SeaWorld in San Antonio,Texas.  
• They weigh about 10-14lbs. 
• They are the fastest swimmers and can reach speeds of 22mph!  
• Life span: 15-20 years.

Me with two Gentoo Penguins

Posing with two male King Penguins.

Hey handsome!

King Penguin Facts: 

• King Penguins are the second largest penguin specie. 
• They have four layers of feathers to help keep them warm on the cold subantarctic islands where they breed.  
• They are about 3 feet tall and weigh up to 35lbs. 
• Life span- 15-20 years. 
• Like Emperor penguins they only lay one egg at a time.  
• They mate for life.  One penguin offers a female a rock.  If she accepts it, then they are married.

Me with two King Penguins

Kiss kiss!

I had a really nice time with them.  They are super cute.  Btw.  The 18 pictures that they took basically cost me over $100.00!  Yep.  That's how they get ya.  You can't take your own pictures, and if you don't buy theirs, then you don't get any.  What a racket!

Afterwards, I decided to head back to Al Ain.  Just before I got on the highway, my car started to fill with smoke.  Crap!  The a/c/motor had a short or something.  I called the police and it took them about 20 minutes to find me.  Ugh.  By then the smoke had stopped.  Eventually, I decided to drive my car home with the a/c/ turned off, rather than pay $100.00 to have to towed back.  I made it home in one piece, thankfully.

The sunset reflecting off the Burj Khalifa as I attempt to drive my disabled Jeep 1 1/2 hours back to Al Ain.

A Family Feast

I entered a travel writing contest in 2012.  There was a 2,000 character limit, so I had to change some details of the story to make it all fit.  I didn't win.  :(  But here is the story:

A Family Feast in Roseto

Hundreds of wind turbines dotted the hilltops as my taxi transported me through the Italian countryside and, it seemed, back in time. I was on a mission to fulfill a promise I made to my “grampa” many years ago to visit his place of birth. I chuckled to myself as I recalled his tales, told in his heavy Italian accent, of the goats with "biga, biga, teats!” We spent hours on his gold sofa as he mused over a simpler time, proudly showing me each and every photo in his tattered black and white album.

Darkness drew nigh as I relaxed at a small café in this diminutive village of Roseto Valfortore. Tourists are rare in this tiny town, so it wasn’t surprising when a robust little man with graying, curly hair approached me, proclaiming, “My name is Domenico DelGrosso. I speaka English. I cana help you if you like.” His accent was heavy; reminiscent of Grampa’s. I explained that I was on a pilgrimage of sorts, to the town that my grandfather spoke so fondly of. He made a face mimicking disapproval. After a short silence he asked, “Did your grampa have a sister named Bibiana, one named Giovanna, a brother named Joe…” I interjected, “Yes! This is my family!” He exclaimed, “I am your cousin!”

We huddled together at the table as he deftly scribbled a family tree illustrating our kinship. Minutes later, we were sauntering down the narrow cobblestone streets. I marveled at the stasis that seemingly afflicted this village as he showed me my still-standing great-grandmother’s house. We capped off our tour with a wonderful nighttime barbecue in the family’s garden that included an old stove and a picnic table canopied by grape vines. We feasted on pasta, chicken, bread, grapes, prosciutto, fresh ricotta cheese and homemade wine. With a twinkle in his eye, Domenico looked over at my empty plate and barked at me, “If you wanta more food, you cana helpa youself, and if you don’t, then that’s a you problem.” For a minute I was sure it was Grampa’s voice, welcoming me home. 

Celeste Policelli. My great-grandmother.

My aunt Rose, my dad, Grampa, and Uncle Tony

Here is the link to my original story:  http://journals.worldnomads.com/trvlgrl24/story/85974/Italy/My-Scholarship-entry-A-local-encounter-that-changed-my-life