arabian delights

when i was about to go for umrah, 2 of my students who had gone for umrah told me "teacher, you should try the ice cream". the other one said "teacher, dont forget the kebab". oh please, i'm going there to commune with God, not to satisfy my palette!

however, i'm a culture vulture and a foodie and so i cant resist the temptation. as Saudi Arabia has higher temperature compared to Malaysia, it is a common sight to see ordinary food stalls serving soft serve ice cream. even more amusing is to see grown men in ihram licking their ice cream away on a typical summer day which is around 40+ degrees celsius. fruit juices are big in Saudi Arabia - and i mean, real undiluted fruit juices, unlike the ones sold in malaysia, which is very much diluted so that cheapskate people can make more money. carbonated drinks are arabs' fave, a can only costs SR1, compared to our RM1+ over here. however, when i was there i missed my fave drinks - soya bean milk, winter melon tea, chrysanthemum tea, lychee drinks- typical south east asian drinks. and talking about drinks, i was offered kahwa by an arab woman in Masjidil Haram. it is supposed to be coffee, but it's not like turkish coffee that i had when i dined at Al Rausyar with my Seri Puteri friends. kahwa tasted more like some natural remedy for something - i could taste ginger, cardamom and god knows what else they put in there. and it tasted bitter. i took a sip. probably half a sip. and decided that i just couldnt drink anymore.

arabs eat a lot of breads, so you see breads everywhere. not sandwich breads, but rustic breads that look like thick pitta bread. they can eat it plain with yoghurt. my fave is shawarma chicken, which is thinlike unleavened bread (chapatti style) with chicken kebab and fresh vegetables in it. i also tried falafel, thought it was mince meat, but i was wrong. it's like vaaday, only less spicy. the briyani rice is nice, although i think a little bit more spice in the rice would be nicer. the portion was big, 2 persons can finish 1 serving. unlike in malaysia where we're so used to eating briyani rice with an abundance of dhall curry or honeyed chicken or ayam masak merah or pickles, their briyani rice only consists of rice and chicken/lamb/mutton. i guess you've to pay extra if you ask for curry. a container of briyani rice costs SR10. my brother the pilot had mentioned the rice he ate in a big tray, which is typical arab style of eating. he told me they love to eat the rice with kibasy (i really dont know the term in english). on the last day we were in mekah, the rayhar officer brought 2 trays of rice with kibasy, and feeling curious i decided to have a taste. and it was awful. i couldnt stand the smell and nearly vommitted, the smell reminds me of mutton. okay, so i know that i cant stand mutton and kibasy.