50% gone and 50% to go

Reflections on the water in Dubai Media City


On the way into the ocean


Sunset on the highway


Maeve, Albert and I with the ski slope in the background

I arrived back in Abu Dhabi after a two year period, two weeks ago today. I just wanted to give you all a little insight into what I have been up to here. Shock horror and well done to me - I have mainly been perched at my mum's dining room in front of my laptop writing essays for Uni... I am just about there and feeling very proud of the fact that I have admired the sunshine from afar, and have managed to only go to Dhabi Dames (my version of Nelos) once! Dara arrives tomorrow and then Linda next Sunday, so I have saved my party shoes and dresses for their arrival.
Now this is not to say that I haven't been having a mighty fine time the past two weeks! I have first of all been basking in the wonder of being spoilt by my mum. I have been enjoying good food and lots and lots of sleep.
There have been the adventures as well. The first being last weekend when my mum and I drove up to Dubai to see 'The War on Terror - The Comedy Tour'; it is a wonderful standup comedy show consisting of three Americans of Egyptian, Palestinian and Iranian origin and their take on the whole American perception of the Middle East and people in the Middle East perception of themselves. I haven't laughed that hard in a very long time. It was all thanks to Jamil and Patricia for inviting us so thanks again for a fab night.
Next trip was to Al Ain where we caught up with friends and ate in the Super - the best Indian restaurant outside of India! On Wednesday, my mum was off for Eid and so we headed over to the east of the country for a spot of diving. It was the best dive I have ever done - we were under the water for 74 minutes! I saw Reef Sharks, Turtles and Barracudas!
Today, I braved the craziness of Dubai and drove up to the Mall of the Emirates home of the largest indoor ski slope. First I had brunch with Vickie; it was so nice to see her after 3 years and to see her looking so well in the 8th month of her pregnancy. Then I caught up with Albert and Maeve who are in town from Dhaka. It was so cool to see them there and a little bizarre as well. My finally rendezvous of the day was with Xheni (pronounced Jenny) who was my initial friend when I moved to Abu Dhabi 6 years ago - how time flies! Her son Cole is now almost four! It was a lovely day although the mall is a crazy place.
Being back in the UAE - it is bizarre and is actually hard to articulate clearly into sentences. I feel like I have left and lived an entire lifetime and come back to see the place through 'new eyes'. The place has grown at a phenomenal rate, that is for sure, but the general feel of the place is the same - it is souls, money hungry and individualistic! But there must have been something that kept me here for three years and something that drew my mum back - there are people and there are the little things. There is the tailor, the little Indian restaurant, the beautiful desert, shisha cafes, Arabic speakers and friends.
I hope that the small part of the traditional culture here remains and triumphs over hyper-capitalism, but then again I want the same for the entire world...

Travels outside of Brighton

I may be a poor student, but I am 'fortunate' to be living in a country where cityjet and ryanair are cheap and readily accessible. I have place 'fortunate' in italics marks as I still have issues with my carbon footprint!
On the 9th of November, I got to go and see the wee one in Barcelona which was as fantastic as it was in July although about 20 degrees cooler! The weekend was spent eating taps, drinking sangria, hanging with Rafi and Maral, cultural expeditions and lots of hanging out on the back of the Vespa! I even managed to get some reading done while Dara proved her worth as an architect extrodinaire.


Rafi and I on route to lunch


Dara outside the University of Barcelona's Philosophy department - it seems I am Philosophy obsessed at the moment!


Hanging with Rafi and Maral


The Vespa and its owner - the white helmet represents me


Dara with a 'cat' on Les Rambles

Next trip was Carcassone on the 23rd of November. The weather was also about 15 degrees colder than July, but the wine was just as good. The city never fails to leave me in awe of its beauty and the magic which surrounds La Cite. It was Ciaran's first trip out of Ireland and his first time on a plane - although I think I was a lot more affected by the whole event than he was! It was lovely to meet Brian and lovely to hang out with all the Irish crew as always. The wee one made it up from Barcelona which was great, and we had lots of fun around the winding streets. I have not included any pictures of the view, as that has made it onto the blog several times.


It was Blanaid's birthday while we were there and we celebrated in Divine Comedy with sparkling ice-cream


Hooray I finally found a friend who went on the carousel with me! Gillian and I had too much fun


It was so pretty and my horse was so handsome


These chicas have been friends for over 10 years now - hard to believe it, we must really like each other...


Ahhhhhhhh Sean and Gillian - too sweet for words

Bits and bobbs from Brighton

Waiting for the train to Lewes


The whole town seemed to be on fire


The bonfire model of a police-officer which would later be set on fire


Members of the marching band


Check out the sexy attire and poses.


The white cliffs


Hanging over the edge

Please excuse the momentous delay of this entry - I am a student again after all and it seems that this is a busier engagement than I remember! Barcelona is coming up next, but I thought I would give you a little insight in to my activities here.
Most of you will have heard of Guy Fawkes; for those who haven't, he tried to blow up the English Parliament way back in the day, but was caught and hung along with his accomplices. Anyway, every year on the 5th of November England celebrates this occasion with bonfires, fireworks and lots of noise. One little town in the South East of England has even managed to create a tradition of bonfire societies! Lewes is about 12 miles outside Brighton and on the 5th of November this is where I headed with some of my fellows migrationists. We were very kindly invited to the head of our postgraduate school's house for soup and home made bread before heading down into the town to watch the parade. he town was completely cordoned off for pedestrians only and it was alive with colour, people and lots of noise. We set up camp at the side of the main road and where we remained for the next couple of hours watching the fire, bonfire designs and amazing costumes go by. Unfortunately I was too tired to stay for the later fireworks, but there is always next year.
Yesterday, myself and three friends took a very very slow bus to the Seven Sisters Country Park and walked up to the top of the Seven Sisters cliffs. They are the chalk cliffs that are the first thing people see coming to the south east of England coastline. Having seen the second Elizabeth film just a couple of weeks before, they also held another interesting point for us. In the film Elizabeth stands here as she talks to her troops who are awaiting the Spanish armada. Her speech is very nationalistic and motivating in the film. Yesterday, Inez made the very important point that there is no way her troops could have heard it though, because up on those cliffs the wind is so strong it is hard to hear anything!! The cliffs were amazing and the wild sea was intoxicating. We rewarded ourselves upon return with a pub lunch including a Guiness.

London baby

This one is for you mum


Caitriona with Oscar Wilde


The men who have shaped the world today...


The bells of Saint Paul's


Can you spot me?

It was so wonderful to have Caitriona come visit me soon after my arriving here in Brighton. She arrived on the Friday night and we headed downtown we some of my flatmates to try to find an RnB club, but this proved difficult. Cait and I gave up at 1.30am and headed back to campus, where two people in my room's single bed proved to be a difficult task and resulted in a sleepless night! With heavy heads but light hearts we headed into Brighton on Saturday morning for a quick wander before setting off for London. This proved slightly more difficult than anticipated as the trains were not running the whole way, and the bus and train journey resulted in a 2 and a half hour journey; slightly more than the normal 45 minute train journey. We arrived in London and frantically rushed to meet Fiona and Sarah, where after an extremely rapid lunch we rushed off to Madame Tusand's, stopping briefly at the left luggage in King's Cross station to leave the bag.
Madame Tusand's was amazing - as you will see from some of the pictures. I was not impressed however, with the fact that there are 3 different wax figures of David Beckham! The most interesting part of the visit was when we attempted to go to the live chamber, which I only discovered as we got towards the door was with actual actors playing serial killers who came right up close to you but did not touch you. We got to the door, I saw one and freaked out and turned to leave and guess what... he followed me... I was almost in tears by the time we got out, but Caitriona held my hand and made it better :-) The rest of the visit was fantastic with a black 'taxi' ride through the history of London and celebrity show.
Another running frenzy back to the station to pick up the bag and drop it at the B&B before running over to the West End to go to Chicago! It is amazing and sooooooo much better than the movie! Back to the B&B and I fell into bed.
The next morning was thankfully at a much slower pace. After a big breakfast, we headed to St. Paul's Cathedral which is absolutely amazing and were lucky enough to attend a service and hear the boy's choir sing. After church we headed to Camden Market, a place which has so many memories for me as a child, and it was not to disappoint with bright colours everywhere, people of all shapes and sizes and a sense of general madness! We wandered and shopped - of course. Amandine joined us for lunch and it was so nice to see her after such a long time, and now she is so close to where I am so lots of catching up I hope.
THEN THE RUSHING STARTED AGAIN!! Caitiona had to make it to Gatwick and time just seemed to pass us by. She made though, you will all be happy to know with 10 seconds to spare. For those of you who know Caitriona you will know that this is rather odd and would be very stressful for her; for those of you who don't know Caitriona think of how I would be if I was that tight for time!!!
I headed back to Brighton with a new jacket and a wonderful weekend to remember.

First two weeks as a student....AGAIN

Hoorah, we qualified and got tickets for International Students night at the Dome in Brighton, where the mayor spoke!


Sara from Sudan advertising English fish&chips on Brighton Pier


My international girls


Dancing at the Funky Fish with Aliaa and Simran

It's two weeks to the day since I landed here in the University of Sussex with my 5 bags and my insane jet lag! The first few days were spent in what is referred to as induction. We got to know the university and each other. I was amazed and very pleased at the vast range of nationalities that I met. Everyone just seemed excited to be here. My classmates are from a vast range of nationalities as well as academic backgrounds. Closer to home, or rather home while I am here this year, and my flat mates and neighbours could not be more diverse. It's wonderful to be able to use English, Arabic and Bangla all in the same conversation. I have yet to make a French speaking friend, but I am starting classes on Thursday...
Last week then the classes started. Philosophy of Social Science is rather challenging and I am open to any offers of help; particularly in coming up with essay titles and relating them to migration!! I am also attending some migration MA classes which are really interesting.
At the weekend myself and some flat mates decided to try the dancing scene in Brighton and after an adventure involving a very interesting trip to a gay club, we ended up at The Funky Fish which was a lot of fun and had good music. On Saturday I was invited to Penny's house for her birthday - YES IT IS PENNY FROM DHAKA - randomly it turns out she is working in the University.
This week I have tried to put y head down and get really serious about it all. My supervisors are great and very encouraging so lets hope it all goes to plan. Wish me luck as I embark on the hardest thing I think I have ever had to do!!

My week of travels

Grampa George and Charlotte enjoying my mashed potatoes


Grampa George and Charlotte with a picture of two people whom some of you may recognise...


My favourite place in Vancouver - sitting on the shore of Granville Island with a coffee and a triple berry bran muffin.


Granville Island


Dinner with Andrew and Scott


Grampa George and I just before I got on the plane

Well this entry is a little late, but that was unavoidable as I was unable to connect the internet in my room. With a little persistence and some unknown computer skills I am now connected hoorah! Before I launch into my Sussex blogging days I wanted to dedicate an entry to my momentous week of 2 continents and 4 countries!
The week all begins in The Hague on Monday morning, the 17th, following the fantastic wedding; the majority of the day was spent in Amsterdam before returning to Dublin. Tuesday was spent running around like a headless chicken trying to close the chapter of my brief life in Ireland over the summer months. That evening at 8pm I caught the 'bus and boat' as we like to say in Ireland, which is literary the ferry across the Irish Sea to Wales and then the bus from there to London. The ferry was quite pleasant when I discovered that they had a proper cinema on board where I watched the Bourne Supremacy. London was a manic day of eating and catching up with old friends. Niamh and I had had breakfast in a fantastic bakery style restaurant, then I met Sarah and Fiona for lunch in Covent Garden and finally I met Vic for Japanese food on Oxford Road. It was so wonderful to see everyone and reminisce on times gone by.
Thursday morning I headed to the country of my birth on a 9 and a half hour flight, which turned out to be rather pleasant as I had two seats to myself and the movies were good. I spent the days in Vancouver sleeping, enjoying the McPhee sense of humour from its original source - my grandfather, and eating far too much! I walked around the streets of the city and caught up with my cousins.
Monday and once again I was back on a plane! This time the plane was from 1987! I didn't even know they were still allowed to fly planes from 1987 - they came with the horribly tight seats and the bright green covers. We experienced terrible turbulence - so as you can imagine I was not a happy camper and was very pleased to get back to England.
After two horrific taxi journeys and a train journeys with 5 bags, I made it to Sussex! My room seemed nice and my two flat mates whom I managed to have a semi-conscious conversation with were great. I fell into bed dead with exhaustion.
And there it is my manic week of travels and far two many carbon footprints!!!

Hague Wedding

So a little late, this could not be helped due to my week of travels, here is the entry for Sofia and Michel's wedding. Now I will not give you a detailed account as Anna's entry on her blog is a fantastic account of the weekend. For further information on the events please follow the link on my page.
I just wanted to create an entry to thank Sofia and Michel firstly for an absolutely wonderful weekend; and secondly for the best wedding I have ever been to! The relaxed disposition of both the bride and groom was something special - they both just seemed so happy to be getting married and their joy spread not only through all their guests, but seemed to affect the people on the streets of the Hague as well! It was touching to hear the words from their friends from different walks of their lives, and it was obvious that they had touched a great deal of people.
On a personal note, for the first time in my life I actually really want to get married and have a wedding. I have always been a skeptic on the 'Big Day' and sometimes failing to see the significance of the whole event; however, the Hague wedding was a real tribute to real love, happiness and friendship and I am honoured that I got to be a part of it.

Update on Brussels - the madness pics

Me being cold...



Spot the crazy people outside the restaurant!



Seriously scary how much my expressions and poses in these pictures are like my dad's...

Brussels - a flying visit

Breakfast


The Peter Pan statue given to the children of Brussels


The Shamrock restaurant! Trying to figure out why...


The very long, but enjoyable dinner


The McPhees

On the 30th of August my dad rang me from Kenya and asked if I could spare a few days to come see him after his work meeting in Brussels! I couldn't say no... The weekend was lovely. It was spent relaxing, seeing the wonderful city and catching up with friends. We enjoyed a walking guide of the city Saturday afternoon curiosity of Ms Gemma and that evening we had a nice dinner with the Lougheed's although we waited 2 hours for our main course! On Sunday we all went our separate ways: Dara and Tariq to Spain, my dad to Amsterdam and I took myself back to Ireland.

Craziness in Dublin's fair city

Tim - now an LLM man


Kieran McEniry - King of the Dance floor


Alicia and Caitriona's failure to capture Kieran and I on the dance floor resulted in several pictures like this


Alicia, Frances and I


Cute DJ...


The gang in the gardens


Kieran hanging with the sheep


Frances with the pretty flowers in the Botanical Gardens

On Friday Tim handed in his LLM thesis and Frances came up from Cork and so there was plenty to celebrate! It all began with dinner at Cafe Bar Deli on Grafton street, which has the best pizza in Ireland and the cheapest wine. The party then moved to 4 Dame Lane - the dancing place from our MPhil days, where we were joined by another bunch of party people. We strutted our stuff on the dance floor, although the music was a little disappointing at times. The DJ was rather cute, and he reminded me of a certain person. We dragged ourselves home at 3am and retired for the evening.
Saturday morning came and very quickly passed us by, but not wanting to feel that the day was wasted myself, Frances, Tim, Caitriona and Kieran walked up to the Botanical Gardens. They are a 20 minute walk from my house and I have never been - SHOCKING. It was a lovely day and we enjoyed a yummy lunch in the garden. Home again and it was time to get ready for another evening of fun. Frances and I went to Alicia's for dinner where we were treated to a feast of fish, roasted vegetables and fabulous salad. The cherry on the cake was the Pumpkin cheese cake for dessert - I wanted to dive into it!! The night was young and we headed into 'Howl at the Moon' to meet up with Caitriona and Aisling, and once again danced into the wee hours of the morning - this time the music was more to our taste.
Today, I am trying to treat my sore feet and aching body, but it was a great weekend and lovely to catch up with everyone.