Some Pictures...

Hello everyone,

Here are some random pictures I took from my recent trip to Lahore. All pictures were taken from my new Nokia N80 phone. Amazing phone.


This was a donkey I saw in the local bazaar. My mom was inside shopping while I was waiting in the car. This donkey had the saddest eyes, and I could sense what a plight it was for him to be carrying such a huge burden on his shoulders. I asked the man to sell the donkey to me so I could set him free from captivity. The man thought I was crazy.



Here are six boys on one bike. It can only happen in Lahore. It was pretty darn amazing to see the cyclist balance all five boys around him to be able to drive around bends and main roads. Lol.


This is my sister Areej with the exquisite henna design on her hand which was made by one of our second cousin.



That's me and my sister. I always buy brown colored shalwar kameez, but this year, I opted for a dark purple striped khadee suit. It's amazing and it's my favorite piece of clothing now.



Me with a cat at a friend's house. They had two cats and the girls were treating them like they were some piece of furniture. When I asked one of the girl to give me one cat, she threw this cat across the room! Literally THREW the cat as if I were supposed to catch it.



My best friend from high school for the last 10 years, Maria. This was taken at Hot Fuzon (pronounced fusion), which is a pertty decent place to get desserts. We hung out here with some of my cousins and my sister till 1am, after which my mom and uncle were making frantic calls to get back home fast!



My favorite cousin in the whole world, Hina. She and I really hit it off this trip. We always do, but this trip was very meaningful. She takes pride in confiding in me and I treat her like a sister I never had (I have to say this before I get any marriage questions!)



Zaeem and Adeen by the pool.



My nephew Zaeem, or Zaymi as we call him affectionately. He loved being in control of the elevator of the hotel they all stayed in. He was just the cutest thing ever.

Mansur

Marriage Vows, I mean Woes...

Hello,

One of the reason why I went to Pakistan for so long this recent trip was to spend time looking for the right girl for marriage. I was supposed to be there for a month, but my stay eventually exceeded to 40 days. I was initially excited, for I was pretty sure I would find the right person on this trip. My aunty had lined up a list of families who my mom and I were supposed to go meet. My aunt was hopeful, as were we.

The first thing that we realized was that I went to Pakistan in the month of Ramadan. That's the month everyone is fasting, and hardly any meetings happen between prospective families. However, there were two families that I did get to meet during Ramadan, and both families were all right, and the girls exceeded my expectations. However, things didn't work out with these families. The first girl we met showed too much attitude. The second girl's father refused to let the girl and I meet in absence of any elders.

So after Eid, we met up with several more families, but things were just not clicking. You see, I was not just looking at the girl. I was looking at the entire family package for everything matters. It's not just about the boy and the girl; I need to know what kind of family I will be getting myself into. I remember meeting one family who spoke in such heavy Urdu, with very basic English, and I knew I would not be able to get into that family, despite their daughter being a great girl.

I was indeed a little disappointed I didn't find any girl. The situation was such that a large pool of girls were either in two camps: in hijabs (nothing wrong with that, but not what I am looking for) or too partying-shartying kind, with drinking and a long list of boyfriends (they can do whatever they want, but these kind of girls aren't what I am looking for!) Where are the girls who are in the middle, the moderates ones? According to one of my relatives, they are all abroad, or are all engaged or hooked to someone or the other. The problem boiled to the fact that I don't live in Pakistan thus rendering me out of the social scene.

The good news is that since my parents have moved to Lahore, they will soon be meeting people they know, and through them we can get to know of families who are looking for a guy for their daughter. I tell you, it's not just about the guy and girl anymore, its a lot more than that.

The coolest thing was that I met up with Maria, my high school friend after three years, and it was awesome meeting up with here. We had been in touch ever since we left high school 10 years ago, and it's amazing how our friendship has lasted. Of course, I had to hear from everyone why I don't consider for marriage, since she is single too. I would tell them, Maria and I have discussed this issue and we have our reasons.

My brother and his family were here, and having met up with my niece (3yrs) and nephew (1yr) I so wanted to get married and have kids of my own. I am so ready. I have a job, a house and a car, and I need is a wife.

A quick question. There is one girl we know of who is a great girl, coming from an amazing family, very rich, well educated and down to earth. However, she is a divorcee with a 1yr old baby. I was ready to consider her but many around me were advising me not to. I don't see anything wrong, so why should others?

Mansur

Goodness Gracious Me

Hey friends,

I don't know how many of you have seen the Asian British comedy sketch show Goodness Gracious Me. I bought the entire collection (three series) and have been watching and re-watching them. They are just absolutely the best, and a lot of it does ring true. Who doesn't have an uncle who tells them to come to them for everything? Who doesn't have an aunty who tells everyone she can make it at home for nothing? Who doesn't know aunts who force feed you at meal time? Who doesn't aunties who brag about their sons? These character sketches and whole lot more are just too funny. I guarantee you, watching these episodes over and over certainly does make you laugh out loud.

I don't know if non-Asians can truly appreciate the Asian humor though.

Mansur

New Books I Want to Read

Hello friends,

I was browsing at the mall last night, and I saw four books that I suddenly felt like buying and read them in one go. I think I will buy them when I'm bit more free so I can read them.

1. Lisey's Story by Stephen King
They say this is Kin'g most personal and most powerful story ever yet. It's not a traditional King horror story, but rather at its core is a love story, albeit a sad one. However the premise looks promising, and I ama huge King fan even today.

2. In the Line of Fire by Pervez Musharraf
A very controversial choice I know primarily because this book has been dissected, over analyzed, looked into and studied word for word and the general consensus is that it's mostly fabricated, filled with wrong information. However, it would be still be an interesting read. Many say that Musharraf life's in danger, and once he is out of his position as a general, people will make attempts on his life, hence his writing the book while he is still in position, for he may not be alive later.

3. In the Name of Honor by Mukhtaran Mai
Mai gained worldwide fame when her story was heard around the world. Mai is one of the100s of women who are raped for tribal reasons and with the controversial Hudood Ordinances (which have just been repealed of sorts recently) women like Mai find it difficult to prove their innocence. They say Mai has given Musharraf a run for being more popular.

4. For One More Day byMitch Albom
Albom became a favorite authorof mine after his hugely popular Tuesdays with Morrie, and a successful follow-up Five People You Meet in Heaven. For One More Day has an interesting premise, and his books tend to make you re-evaluate your life and make you realize how much you have to live for.

If anyone of you out there have read any of these books, any helpful review, advice, comments or suggestions would be helpful for me.

Mansur

Unblocked Sites...Finally

Hello,

For all the times Etisalat (the sole monopoly telecom company in the UAE) have received their share of negative publicity and complaints, I for one want to the first to say Thank You to them, for unblocking three websites that had been blocked unfairly.

1. Flickr
2. YouTube
3. Orkut

So while the internet rates are still obscenely high, I am thankful to Etisalat for unblocking these sites.

Mansur

Adventures in Babysitting

Hello friends,

Along with The Goonies, Labyrinth, Stand By Me, Spaceballs and countless other 80's movies, one of my sole favorites was Adventures in Babysitting. My brother brought me the DVD of that movie and I watched that movie much delight. It still holds up to its name and is still one of my favorite movie ever.

Adventures in Babysitting is about Chris Parker, a 17 yr old dumped by her older boyfriend, and is asked to babysit the Anderson kids, a 10 year old girl whose hero is Thor, and her older brother who is a freshman in high school with a massive crush on Chris. Chris' friend Brenda makes a frantic phone call from downtown Chicago, and thus begins the adventures as Chris takes the kids, and an annoying neighbor friend too. Car blow outs, get car-napped, almost shot at, followed by gangs, getting stabbed, having to sing the blue, and climbing the outside of skyscrapers.

Every second of the movie was so enjoyable, I was immediately transported back to my home in Saudi where I watched this movie countless number of times. The two songs And Then He Kissed Me and Babysitting Blues are still cool to listen to.

It's amazing to see a movie more than 10 years later and have all your memories, some forgotten ones too, come back in an instant.

Mansur

Movie Recommendations

Hey friends,

Since I was away, and had lots of free time, I watched a bunch of movies I had missed otherwise at the theatres. So here are my recommended lsit of movies to watchout for.

1. Paradise Now
The fictional story of two Palestians life long friends, who are asked to blow themselves up in Israel as suicide bombers. A circumstanial miscalculations forces them to re-think their decision, with consequences unforseen. Amazing movie, with a lot to discuss and think over about the sticky issue of suicide bombers.

2. American Dreams
A satirical look at the American Idol alike competition, where the owner a la Simon Cowell figure, wants to bring in a change to his stratospherically popular show. He hires a seemingly bitchy otherwise innocent white American girl, enlists an Iraqi jihadist whose secret desire is to be a performer among others. The American president is asked to be a guest judge on the show. A certain change of direction in the life of one of the contestant changes the course of the whole show.

3. A Walk to Remember
The story of a religious girl in high school, who doesnt compromise on her beliefs in order to fit in. This sweet story, seen by many as a chick flick, is actually a nice one, with an encouraging lesson on to stand up for what you believe in. Bit too overly sentimental towards the end, but otherwise a great movie.

4. The 40-Year Old Virgin
Probably the last one to see this movie now. Highly enjoyable and a light comedy. Not entirely re-watchable for me as the "sex" talk got too repetitive. The issue of a 40 year old man being a virgin was over-highlighted and after a while it felt boring.

And the one movie that I wanted to like a lot but ended up hating a lot is

5. My Super Ex-Girlfriend
Uma Thurman stars as G-Girl, a super heroine who finally finds the right man for herself, only to get dumped later. She unleashes her super powers to get back at her ex-boyfriend. Silly, pointless, boring and over hyped up at release. Avoid at all costs.

Mansur

I am back!

Hey friends,

I arrived in Dubai today, and what's the first thing that hit me? The 2 hour traffic home from the airport!

Anyways, I am back and I was looking forward to all the blogging I have to do and to catch up on my reading the blogs on my reading list.

But guess what? My brother, his wife and their two kids are coming to Dubai tomorrow from London. So I will be super busy with them till the end of their stay. So While I am back, I will start blogging once my brother and his family leave.

Hope you all are doing well.

Mansur

Eid Greetings!

Dear friends,

As Eid is beckoning upon us, I wanted to wish all my Muslim readers a very happy Eid Mubarak/ Mabrook! I hope the month has been a rewarding and a blessing to you, and that you have reaped the spiritual benefits.

I am myself in Pakistan now, getting an opportunity to celebrate Eid with my immediate and extended family members, which is always a fun time. We get to get up early in the morning, take cold showers, wear our new clothes, go for prayers, come back and have breakfast, which is almost always vermicilli, and then give money away in charity. We also go visit families to wish the Eid greetings too.

I had been meaning to write so much stuff on my blog, but time has been very limited, but I will just give you a few brief points on what has been happening.

* I have visited two families to meet with the girls for marriage. One of them didn't work out and the second one looks more promising. I have yet to see other girls. It's sometimes very difficult to find the right girl because either girls are in complete seclusion behind the hijab, or completely pratying it up with drinking and tonnes of boyfriends. There are very few moderates left in the middle.

* The progress on our house being built is slow but picking up. I am really excited. They have dug out the basement and have poured the concrete.

* The weather has changed for the better after we received rain for 24 hours, which was amazing. I miss the rain and cold weather a lot when I am in Dubai.

* The one thing everyone was talking about when I came here was the extremely controversial book by President Musharraf, In the Line of Fire, which has received a lot more ciritical and negative reviews. I could write a whole essay on that, but the general trend is that it's not entirely factual and true.

All right friends, a lot more will come on this blog once I settle into my routine life post Ramadan. I expect to get back to Dubai on the 3rd of November.

Once again, Happy Eid to you all!

Mansur

In Pakistan!

Hello friends,

I am in Pakistan now. I just arrived last night from Dubai to Lahore. The flight wasn't spectacular and there was no on flight entertainment, so it was the longest three hours on my flight. My iPod battery had died and I had no reading materials on me. I was so bored I actually read each and every word of the flight safety manual. So if you ask me, I will know how to open the emergency door, and how to jump on the inflatable slide. Just remember to take your high heels off, and cross your arms across your chest should you find yourself in a position to jump on that slide. Oh, also, when you have the life jacket on, don't inflate it till you are ready to jump on the slide, because if you inflate it from your seat you will find it harder to move across the aisle as you may need to crawl if there is smoke so you can follow the emergency light on the floor.

Anyway, I am here in Lahore now and there are so many things to do. Our house is being built now, and I will be spending time on site to check everything is going on schedule and that the workers are not being dodgy. My sister arrived today morning, so I know I will be hanging out at all the right places. Oh, my sister and I will be joining the Royal Palm club to go gymming too, so expect to see me all buffed up when I get back to Dubai.

All right, just wanted to let everyone of you know where I am and I expect to be here till the 3rd of November. If you miss me too, just drop me a line and I shall miss you right back. Ok, that sounded corny. Lol.

Looking forward to blog on some exciting stuff in Lahore!

Mansur