Summer with Kids: Enma Mall & Pirate Land

When we got back from vacation at the end of July, I was faced with filling six weeks before school started with temps in the 120s! I immediately went into planning mode. I arranged swimming lessons for the girls; I went to my go-to place, Pinterest, and made a list of things to do with …

Advertisement

Summer Truths

Summer truths in Bahrain 1.  There will be no cold water coming out of any tap. The coldest water possible may still be too hot for kids and sensitive people. But the hottest setting will boil pasta in record time. 2. You may wake up some mornings thinking it's monsoon time.  It's not.  It (almost) never …

I Hope This Is Just a Phase

Here’s the problem. I clearly have a full diaper. But I still have to tap my butt like a baby to let Mom know. So what does she do? She says in a sweet voice, “Do you need a new diaper?” No, I just like tapping my butt. Yes, lady! I’m carrying around 10 hours …

Bahrain? Huh.

An Egyptian friend of mine who has lived here for years told me that when her husband announced they were moving to Bahrain she asked, “So… where exactly is Bahrain?” It’s not an unusual response. Most people know it’s in the Middle East… maybe. But that’s about as far as folks get. So let me …

Kitchens, Castles, and TeePees (oh my!)

When we first arrived in Bahrain, before all our stuff arrived, I asked my then-four-year-old what she’d like made out of the boxes. In Jordan, she asked for a library (with loaner kittens and a Jacuzzi). Amazingly, our library made out of two large moving boxes, lots of duck tape and some paint, lasted over …

The Fairest Piñata of All

There are moments when I have a good idea. Lately these are few and far between, so when they happen I have extra appreciation (with a little added self-fanfare for effect). My recent good idea came in the aftermath of my five-year-old's birthday party.  Since I was running with the party-planning momentum, I planned out …

Summer with Kids: Marina Mall & Saar Mall

The mall exploration continues: Marina Mall and Saar Mall. Marina Mall is located between Dana Mall and Bab Al-Bahrain (the souq).  I should add that I've gotten lost both times I've attempted to go there.  I gave up the first time, but persevered the second and finally made it.  Gotta love road blocks and no-left-turns.  At the last …

Beaches, Beaches, Beaches, Part 1

Being an island, and having 100 miles of coastline, you might think that Bahrain is just one big beach. This is not quite true. However, there are useable beaches and we are slowly seeking them out. One of our favorites remains the public beach at Budaiya Beach Park/Al Budaiya Park (coordinates: 26.208530, 50.446891).  It's not …

In Search of the Tower

Much to my husband's mild amusement, I am always searching for something new and exciting to explore. Granted, my definition of "exciting" might be on the lower end, but I'm a stay-at-home mom with three kids age five and under, you do the math. As I was poking around online amassing a list of sites to …

Al Fateh Grand Mosque

On a recent April day, I dragged the kids and my visiting mother out to Al Fateh Grand Mosque, located in Juffair.  This was actually my and the kids' second visit here. Following our arrival last July, we explored it one sweltering August weekend. My primary memory of that day was that it was the first …