community

Trochet (local)

Thank you everyone, for your encouraging words about the article! Now, there's a short video too!


*Do note that the ladies are covered in the video, but they are not dressed like that while they work, as they are in the privacy of other women.

If you'd like to help and are not sure what to do, don't fret! You will soon! For now, just hold on to those plastic bags! 

Book Collection for Algerian Action (local, inernational and online)

Emma of Algerian Action is collecting books for a travelling library in Algiers, for children in hospitals, orphanages and various community venues. What a noble cause! Do you have new or gently used children's books that you'd like to donate? The books should be suitable for children between the ages of 0 and 14 and can be in English or Arabic. There is a link on her website for the address in the UK to post to, or a contact number if you are in Algiers. 
But if you are in Jeddah, you may drop me an email (fruitfulfusion AT live DOT co DOT uk) to arrange a drop off or pick up. 
Farhana of Sketched Soul, over in Canada, is also collecting funds to puchase books, so you can take a look if you'd like to donate that way. 
Algerian Action has a Wish List on Amazon, so you could donate the books that they need in a few clicks!
Don't forget that if you are in Jeddah and would like to donate books, perhaps Arabic books in particular, get in touch!

An Art Exhibition (local)

Manal Al Dowayan's first solo exhibition at the Athr Gallery in Jeddah. Read more about it here.

FREE Kindle download ONLY today (online)

Crochet Saved My Life by Kathryn Vercillo is available as a free kindle download ONLY for the rest of the weekend (ie. TODAY). I'm reading mine! 

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local artists - geekfest jeddah gamma

... took place yesterday. 

The idea was great! Like-minded, yet original types, that are passionate about various things, came together, could network and possibly collaborate on future projects. And, not feel so alone!

I was able to connect with quite a few crocheters. One wants to yarn-bomb. One has lots of ideas for the plastic crochet project. So many want to get involved! It's exciting! The organisers or "UNorganizers" where friendly and helpful and made us feel right at home. 

There were geektalks about Arabic sci-fi, gamer girls in Riyadh, community-building and design. The last one was presented by one of the TechnoCases, Graphyte, a local Graphic Design company. The geektalks were interesting but I found that last one, the most interactive, interesting, funny and one that I could relate to most. They even had a comic-making activity. I felt that one of the speakers really hit the nail on the head about creativity, when he mentioned that not being in the habit of creating, hinders creativity. But everyone can be creative! One of the designers also mentioned a couple of books that anyone interested in design should check out:

• Thinkertoys - by a regular contributor of this great site!
• Change By Design - by a great speaker on TED [More on this later in sha Allah!]

Another TechnoCase, Samsung had smart TVs around the venue (one of which was used for an Angry Birds competition!) and they have a Samsung TV app development contest on too! 

TechnoCase 3, Virgin provided GeekFest with some of their products and hosted another meet -up today (Friday 12th October).

All in all, it was a great event and I think there was something in it for all geek-types in Jeddah, venturing out to connect with others. Although there was artwork displayed, I unfortunately didn't notice it, as the venue itself houses so many vintage pieces on display. Speaking of which, I loved the feel of The Store. Although it's a clothes shop, I'd love to pay another visit, just to relax in the cafe! 

* Yes, I'm still blogging!

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experiences - more of malaysia

We've been working on "Recounts" in English here. And although our trip to the Far East was a whole. year. ago. I've asked the kids to recount it using their newly learnt skills. I think it's about time I finished off some of my draft posts and shared some more of my pics.

Here are some more of our experiences:

Changi Airport, Singapore
Probably the nicest airport I've ever seen. Ever. It's aesthetically pleasing to the eye, but most importantly, has excellent services (including rest areas and free foot massage machines).

Sentosa
Like most amusement parks but with some slightly unusual rides like the Segway and the Luge (we loved that one). I thought it was pricier than other places. It did have prayer facilities, which was great!

Orchard Street
Famous for its malls! Plenty of shopping opportunities there!

Genting Highlands, Malaysia
Up in the clouds, sits another amusement park. Pretty usual stuff, but lovely accommodation and an unusual setting. You can take the cable car down too!

Bukit Bintang 
An area full of malls, back street hawker food, fruit and juice stalls and Arabs! There are lots of spa and massage opportunities too.

The Islamic Arts Museum

Central Market
All sorts of traditional items can be found here AND the infamous fish treatment, which was great ma sha Allah!

The Night Market - Jalan Tuanku AbdurRahman
It gets busy, but it's great on the pocket!

KL Bird Park 
A firm favourite!

Templar Park Falls
This was by far my best experience. The beautiful surroundings were just amazing and climbing in to it all was wonderful! There were little pools of water where people were swimming too.

Thermal Springs

Putrajaya
A beautiful city full of government buildings.

Beryl's Chocolate Factory
We were expecting more from this and could easily have given it a miss. It's more like a big chocolate shop, where you can taste a little of the chocolate and feel under pressure to buy something!

KL Zoo
Who doesn't love a big zoo?

We experienced lots of different sights and sounds, but we also experienced new flavours!

Tastes:
ABC - Air Batu Champu - Like an ice cream sundae with kidney beans and sweetcorn!

mee goreng 
nasi lemak
Morrie Brown - Fast food Malaysian style!
fried snacks on the street
satay
roti canai

Delicious fruit juices and drinks:
cucumber juice - new for me
green apple - the best
pineapple - refreshing

Delicious new fruits:
dragon fruit
mangosteen - This was my favourite. I thought it was like a citrus lychee!
rambutan - Tried before, but always good.
durian - Strange, almost oniony smelling fruit. If you can stomach that, it might be ok.

Ma sha Allah it was such a wonderful experience! Have you been? Would you like to? Have you tried any Malaysian delights?

* I'm joining in with Blogtoberfest this month and trying to blog everyday for the rest of this month!

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local artists (and geeks) - geekfest gamma!

Geekfest Jeddah is just days away! A gathering of geeks! Here in Jeddah! My kids have asked me a number of times, "What's a geek?" and I've always said something along the lines of "someone who's passionate about something, so passionate about it, they want to talk about it ... all the time ... in detail ... it's cool ..." by this time, they're probably thinking "You're being geeky about Geekfest"! 

Poster by Graphytes

Now, I never really thought of myself as a "geek" but I know that if I find someone who loves what I love, I can go on and on about it. Obviously, I blog about most of these things. But one of my passions that I don't go in to too much detail about here, is Graphic Design. I think it's because I tend to look at it as a "job" ... even though it's not my job ... really. But I would love to meet other designers and artists in general! So I'm quite excited about that part of it. 

This will be Geekfest Gamma, held at 5 pm to 10 pm on Thursday 11th October at The Store, Jeddah, so of course there has to have been an Alpha and Beta, which I couldn't get to. But hey, in sha Allah, I will be there this time! If you're in Jeddah and also have geeky tendencies, check out the facebook page! It's by invitation only! You can follow on twitter or instagram too! Have a look and you'll se why I'm excited! 

There will be ArtStuff, GeekTalks, GameFest, something to eat and drink of course and TechnoCases (companies that will be participating). At the Gamma, the TechnoCases are Samsung, Virgin Megastore and Graphytes, a local design company that seem to have a great workshop lined up! Can't wait!

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my creative space - this week ...

... started in Madinah, a city four hours north of Jeddah, where the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) migrated to.

The climate there is hotter and drier than Jeddah.

And it was probably our last trip there before we leave!

Later in the week, I met up with a lovely young lady, who has some great ideas on giving back to the community ma sha Allah! 

We spent the morning discussing a few things that I'd love to tell you about. It has something to do with recycling plastic bags, crochet and impoverished women. Are you in Jeddah, like to crochet and think you'd like to get involved? Let me know and I'll fill you in!

I've also spent time with friends and family. At times I've felt that I was "catching up" and then realisation dawned on me that I might not see these beautiful people again. Living in foreign countries, moving to foreign countries, this is how it goes. I can't imagine how I will feel when my parents leave on Thursday after living in Saudi Arabia for 23 years! So I will deal with that first and then my own move. There is a lot going on in my head. But yes, JenMuna, Anne and Kate, it will be an adventure, with lots of new things to learn and experience in sha Allah. I am looking forward to that.

While walking around and taking it all in, I spotted these

Contemporary, Arabic artwork on sale.

Finally, two things before I leave, to spend a bit more time with my family and friends. 

Tracy Ann has included one of my patterns here. There are some lovely crochet bag patterns there! It's an honour. Thank you Tracy Ann!

And that funny shaped spoon thing I asked about last time?

Yes, a spoon holder! Well done, A New Wife! You got that right!

Check out some great creative spaces here.

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sweets to share

It's becoming a blog ritual! I've done it here, here and here, but I can't NOT share these with you! The photos have been lurking in the files for a couple of months now. The sweets, that were sent over from Algeria, had no such luck though!

a variety of light pastries filled with nuts

baklawa

maqrout

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truly experiencing

When I used up my last packet of curry paste, brought over from Thailand by my nearest and dearests, I remembered yet again, that I hadn't posted anything about our trip to the Far East. Several months later, I can say again, it was a trip of experiences alhamdulillah.


Experiencing ... 


familial bonding in new surroundings
exotic cultures
having our heads in the clouds(!)

historical beauties

artistic Islam

 lush greens

water therapy

amazing creatures

vibrant nights

architectural wonders

unusual flavours

other people's everyday life

exciting (sometimes hectic) city treks

and fun and relaxation too

Want to see more of Malaysia?

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