“Well, it might seem crazy what I’m about to say“….but it seems as if “Happy” by Pharrell Williams is the new “Gangnam Style” of 2014. They’ve done a Happy AbuDhabi video (over 200,000 views so far) and one for Dubai as well (almost 300,00 views!). I was wondering how long it would take for a video representing Oman to be up on youtube! Well, the staff at Intercontinental Hotel put together this “happy” video which is a lot of fun. You might even recognize someone you know, Muscateers!
My kids are “happy” fans as well. Whenever “Happy” comes on while watching “Despicable Me 2”, they just gotta dance! So, do you feel “like a room without a roof”? What does that even mean? Does a room even feel? Maybe I’m overthinking those seemingly odd and simple lyrics…I love having a great time just as much as the next guy, but this song has to get you thinking about what true happiness is versus superficial fun, no?
Clap along Comment if you know what happiness is to you… 😉
It was real honor to be invited by Rasha Al Mandari and the gang at Shangri-La’s Barr al Jissah Resort & Spa for their very 1st “Full Moon Beach Buffet” which was a smashing success! The appetizers were so good! I wasn’t able to get all the food choices in these pics as otherwise it would have been a 40 pic blogpost! The chefs are ready to cook you up whatever you desire. Ingrid Hotanijaya (Communications Executive) and Chef Lila Shrestha King Fish. I couldn’t believe the size of these fish! 2 more of our favorite folks at the Shangri-La: Eihab Attia (Communications Manager) and Rasha al Madani (Restaurants Marketing Manager). The live band was fantastic! Here is a clip of them playing, “Have I Told You Lately that I Love You?“:Almost every guest who attended the full moon buffet opted for the full course deal which included unlimited beverages including: house red&white wines, Mojito cocktails (awesome!) and a couple of choices of beer as well. Just a quick pic of one of my plates! The food was phenomenal!Always leave space for dessert! 🙂Ingrid and Eihab pictured with Khalid Orabi, the editor of Al Isbou’a, Oman’s free Arabic weekly. It’s the Arabic version of the popular “The week” English publication. It was an amazing evening socializing with such fascinating people!We had a table right next to Dahlia Al Riyami and her husband, Mohammed. Dahlia runs the wonderful blog “Aish Elaqtta” (one of my favorites!) which is Arabic for “What’s Happening?“. Here’s another clip of the live band. In this clip, you can hear them performing, “Red Red Wine“, “I Saw Her Standing There“, “I Feel Good“, a Spanish tune called “Besame Mucho” and “Moondance” (so appropriate for “Full Moon buffet”!). I was not surprised to learn that the talented singer is in fact a Filipina! 😉It’s always nice to meet up with this super social couple! Susan is the owner of Totem clothing. I just blogged about their new shop opening at MGM. She has also started a new food blog, called “HeyFatsu“. Her husband, Maurizio, runs the ever popular Muscat-Collective-Intelligence blog and is a social media expert and organizer. These guys had the right idea; they selected the Arabic style seating on cushions near the beach! Scott Armstrong is on the far left. He is the new Chief Executive Editor of the Times of Oman and we wish him all the best with his new post. Got a pic of this friendly European couple enjoying a romantic evening on the beach. They were staying at the Bander Hotel. (Just in case you get the wrong idea that it was only bloggers and members of the media at this buffet! 🙂 ) There were plenty of guests who enjoyed the full buffet + all you can drink. If you plan on attending the next Full Moon Beach Buffet, I would highly recommend making a reservation at (+968)2477-6666. I think Shangri-La plans on having another Full Moon Beach Buffet in April. I’m guessing that the evenings will be too hot and humid from May to September. Details: 35OR++ including wine,beers, soft drinks, signature cocktails and non alcoholic beverage. Food only: 20++, Beverage 15++
Totem Boutique is now open in Muscat Grand Mall! We were there at 6pm on Thursday for their official opening.
If you consider yourself a “fashionista”, this is definitely a shop for you.Even their changing rooms are incredibly fashionable!They have all kinds of jewelry at Totem, both on the wall and also laid out among the clothing items. They have these great one-of-a-kind watch pieces (not pictured) that my wife really liked and so she picked one up for something like 19 OR.My wife loved the items in the store and we ended up staying a lot longer than I expected, haha! She picked up the cute orange handbag pictured at the top of the rack in the picture above for something like 34 OR.That’s Susan (the owner, in the middle!) pictured with her employees, Riazal and May, on opening day.Cupcakes on opening day from Cake Gallery!Totem is a great addition to the Muscat Grand Mall. Tel: (+968) 94101901. They are into Social Media bigtime! You can find them on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/totemclothing, on instagram @totemclothing, on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/liketotem, and they have their own blog at http://www.cometototem.blogspot.com. You can also shop online with them at http://www.come-to-totem.com.
If you love art and happen to be somewhere in the Qurum area, you might want to stop in Qurum City Centre to check out some fantastic artwork currently on display on the ground floor. Riyam Park in Muttrah I really love this piece! Unfortunately the artist or artists weren’t around to answer questions about prices when I was there at noon today. Does that read “Jasim & Suliyam”? Hard to make out the artist’s (or artists’) name on the bottom of each painting. Anyone have any info on whose artwork is on display there? Camel Kiss! A masterpiece! 😉
Just one more thing I love about Oman: you never know what you’re going to see next. Tip: always have a camera with you when traveling around Oman!
Every Thursday from 9pm t0 3am. Just got off the phone with one of the organizers. Doors open at 6pm and they start playing sometime between 8:30 and 9pm. This will be Mc Mo’s 2nd Thursday playing in O’Malley’s Irish Bar at the Radisson. Should be a lot of fun!
"The suppression of ideas and thought is a major sin, and we will never allow anyone to stifle freedom of thought." (His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said)
Andy in Oman 