blogger | Selectively Curious

Notes of the morning

Posted on January 29, 2020 by Selectively Curious

Journeying my way through the mall every morning has become almost therapeutic. I love that I get to see the mall at its quietest in the mornings, before the shops have opened and arguably at its loudest in the evenings. I love how the tourists pop in around the time I make my way to the metro, all dressed up ready to explore this concrete jungle that is currently my home, until I move to the next place.

The weather has been delightful, cold and crisp in the mornings. The morning air is beautifully refreshing and it’s probably the first time in the UAE I’m enjoying every moment of it before the heat seeps in. We don’t get many “cold” days but the days we do get, having lived here most of my life, I don’t think I’ve ever savoured it as much as I am this year. There isn’t really a walking culture here, to get around, you need a car. Driving makes you miss out on the good weather and positive effects it can have on you. It’s one of the reasons I miss London and look forward to moving back.

One thing I’ve definitely noticed is that people are always on the rush or on their phones. There’s no interaction and God forbid there be any eye contact. They say a silent retreat is challenging because you can’t speak or communicate with anyone, not even with your eyes. Ironically it will probably be more challenging for those that are fixed on their phones not interacting with “real” humans around them than the ones that aren’t glued to their phones all the time. It’s a bit sad that no one makes eye contact anymore. Makes me curious why some people fear the zombie apocalypse, it’s already here and we’re surviving.

Stay curious, my loves. X

Selectively Curious©

Sensitive soul

Posted on April 3, 2017 by Selectively Curious

The most difficult thing I’ve come to realise is trying to still be good to those who only do you wrong. When I was younger it would make me curious how my parents were always good to those, even if they were wronged. I grew up with such morals and have been taught that no matter what happens, always be kind.

How do you maintain a balance? I am a sensitive soul, in hind sight, I always have been. I feel deeply about everything, whether it be happiness, sadness, confusion, anger, and anxiousness (can’t think of any more words to describe emotions).

You may ask, what is a sensitive soul? Well for one, don’t be fooled by such individuals, they may be sensitive but they are far from weak. They have the ability to put aside their own needs and feelings to cater to those that need a boost. Their ability to feel deeply makes them great empaths thus helps them truly understand what the other person is going through. Often times people are unable to express how they feel and the sensitive soul will verbalise those feelings to the point, which shocks some people, sometimes. The emotions they feel are their strength as they allow themselves to feel deeply, thus making them able to handle a situation and controlling their feelings better than those who brush their emotions to the side. They can handle more than most because they’re used to feeling more than most.

Being a sensitive soul also gives you a hightened intuition in someways because they notice everything, even the most minor details such as a change of expression on someone’s face, which may have only lasted for a second. At times when logic makes no sense, their souls are able to come up with answers that does make sense. However there is a flip side, often such people have insecurities that cloud their intuition, as I have experienced many times and I think it’s important to listen to your intuition. Even if your mind tells you otherwise, listen to your inner voice, before the voice disappears forever.

Being around a sensitive soul, you will notice that they give you their undivided attention (to be fair sometimes people drag on a story longer than it should be and I get distracted). They can judge a situation and give you what you need. Even if it is just someone to sit quietly with. There is comfort in silence.

They have compassion on a deeper level and have the ability to move the world. Their kindness shines through their face and you can feel the genuine love they have to offer. They have so much to give and the ability to give wholeheartedly without being worn down. If anything the giving fuels them, especially when they see the joy on people’s faces. That is priceless.

Selectively Curious©

Berlin, I love you

Posted on March 20, 2017 by Selectively Curious

I would like to share my Berlin trip.

It started with me landing:

Immigration was super fast, just as I expected and I stepped out with my luggage. As I walked out, a man in a taxi yells at me “Taxi?” Without thinking about it for a moment, bearing in mind it was my first time in Berlin and the first time I was completely on my own in a new place, I said yes. He helped me with my suitcase, and off we went. I told him where I was staying:

The cab journey was quite enjoyable, on the way to the hotel, he told me about all the places I must see during my stay. His name was Thomas and he was the most friendly cab driver I ever met, we spoke throughout the car ride and he wished me a pleasant stay.

As I was settling into my hotel, I remembered that a friend of mine, I went to university with, whom I haven’t spoken to in some time lived in Berlin. I got in touch with him and we had dinner together every day. It was nice to have someone to eat with. We even went to the Blue Man Group show, which was, well weird so say the least. It was an experience though but I didn’t enjoy it as I thought I would. At the end of the show, one of the members of the Blue Man Group, took a selfie from my phone:

I was only there for almost two days and managed to see quite a few places, before I took the train to Hamburg, where I attended a work event. Berlin also made me realise how small the world is and I loved it. I bumped into an old classmate of mine, we were in law school together and it was almost surreal catching up with him on a random street in Berlin.

During the day, when I was by myself, I saw a few touristy places such as Victory Column:

Before I got to the column, I had to go through an underground pass and I was slightly obsessed with:

Here’s a full photo of the column:

I also went here, which was more of a stop over. I wasn’t entirely sure what it was, at first I thought it was graves as the cab driver pointed it out. I then read all the information about it and it turned out to be a memorial for all the lives lost as a result of the holocaust. Human beings always shock me.

I then walked to Brandenburger Tor:

Let’s not forget about the remnants of the Berlin wall:

And last but most certainly not the least:

I have a lot more photos, but that’s basically the highlights of my trip. I would most certainly go back to Berlin as I was mostly on west Berlin, during my stay and have missed out entirely on East Berlin.

It was one of my favourite trips, mostly because I was never brave enough to go to a place entirely on my own and when I went I wasn’t even the least bit anxious. I had a great time, even when I didn’t bump into random people I knew.

Until, next time Berlin, I will see you soon:

Selectively Curious©

Never lose your childish innocence

Posted on March 6, 2017 by Selectively Curious

As I was grabbing lunch today, I saw a little girl, skating on her scooter and as she went past me she was in her own little world, humming away.

It made me remember a line from the movie Under the Tuscan Sun, which is one of my favourite movies, when Katherine says “No matter what happens, always keep your childish innocence. It’s the most important thing” It is also something the Italian director and writer Fedrico Fellini said. 🙂

I really like the idea behind this, we get so caught up by the unnecessary stresses of life that we lose our childish innocence and it’s sad. I think it’s important to take a step back to reflect, re-ground ourselves and just keep it simple. To quote Leonardo Da Vinci

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication

I wholeheartedly agree with him. There’s elegance in being simple, which is why everyone I know owns a simple black dress (although their reasons can be entirely unrelated to this idea) and would also explain why Mona Lisa was such a masterpiece. If you analyse the painting, there’s nothing spectacular about it and at the same time everything about it is spectacular. It’s a simple paining of a simple looking woman and it represents so much grace, elegance and sophistication, in the way that she is smiling, sitting and looking at the painter. Arguably, she was drawn from the imagination of Leonardo Da Vinci and wasn’t an actual person, but still. I can somehow understand where he was coming from when he said that, even though maybe the context of why he said it might be completely different.

This also makes me think of Einstein’s quotes:

Things should be made as simple as possible but not any simpler

Things should be simple, I don’t understand the incessant need people have to complicate matters. For example, lawyers are known to be all fancy shmancy when usually they can say what needs to be said in three sentences rather than 3 paragraphs. Although, in our defense, this has changed immensely and good lawyers are known for their succinctness and the following quote emphasizes and proves that:

If you cannot explain it simply, you do not understand it well enough

and lastly, since I am speaking of keeping it simple, Einstein’s quote:

I believe that a simple and unassuming life is good for everybody physically and mentally

This is where I don’t agree with Einstein. I was listening to a song called Happiness sung by Needtobreath, a song I felt they sung for me as it resonates with me on so many levels and in the song they sing:

I’ve got dreams that keep me up in the dead of night telling me I wasn’t made for the simple life…

I don’t think everyone is made for the simple life and I don’t think one should be simple in every aspect of their life, just maybe in the way they communicate. I think a conscious effort must be made to keep things simple, don’t over stress and don’t sweat the small stuff. Sometimes it’s better to take things at face value and not allow yourself to overreact to something that’s nothing, don’t assume anything without having hard facts, as Eintein did say “unassuming life”. This point is crucial as the less you assume the more peaceful your life will be, mentally and if you’re mentally at peace then you’re mentally healthy, I think that makes you somewhat physically healthy too.I mention this because often times I find my girlfriends complaining about a man in their lives, where they’ve gone 100 miles away from the facts because they’ve assumed the worst and built a whole story in their mind. Having said that, a lot of the times they get the worst advice from their girlfriends.

If I can add any value to anyone’s life, please do not assume anything about anyone, until you know for a 100% that they’ve done something wrong and even then, give them the benefit of the doubt and hear their side of the story. 🙂

Featured image: I chose this photo for the featured image because there is nothing more innocent than nature, it’s simply beautiful and I didn’t use filters to enhance the image. At the same time, I like that over the horizon you can see the complexities of life, aka high rise buildings and it’s complex nature, thus demonstrating a balance in the world.

Selectively Curious©

The City of Bath

Posted on February 26, 2017 by Selectively Curious

I went on a road trip to Bath with my best friend.

It was one of those holidays I want to re-live over and over again. It was just before the christmas market stalls were set up, so the magic of christmas was everywhere. I love the way the air felt when we got out of the car and took our luggage out. We were quite lucky, it was a sunny day and we had the chance to really enjoy the city.

This is where we stayed:

It was the cutest little hotel and in such a convenient location. It had a really satisfying english breakfast and the best pecan danish I have ever had. I LOVE pecan danishes, it’s probably my favourite pastry. It was perfectly crisp and fresh and the pecans were crunchy, just as they should be. It was delightful.

We were only there for one night and when we woke up the next morning, I nudged my friend awake. We were just getting our teas when I noticed that we could climb out of our windows and sit on the roof. This was our view:

We sat there for a few minutes just taking in the freezing air. Crazy how things have changed so much since that day, she’s married now, with the cutest kid I’ve ever met, I moved away and I feel our lives have gone in such opposite directions, it breaks my heart at times. I feel I don’t have much in common with her anymore, however I do have a tendency of over exaggerating things in my mind. Well, regardless of how things pan out in the future and where our lives take us next, we will always have Bath, London and Scotland (all the places we’ve been together) and she will always be my best friend. It boggles my mind how it’s been almost three years since we sat on the roof, enjoying the view, not even speaking. It was pure bliss.

Saying that I miss it is an understatement and it’s weird because I haven’t really thought about that trip of mine until today, as I was flicking through my photos and remembered it. Bath is a beautiful city and here are a few photos of the city:

We were only there a day and a half and I think we covered all the main attractions. Things you must see/do:

the Roman Baths (of course), it’s a natural spring and the water is naturally warm, the temperature ranges from 69 -96 degrees celsius. Quite fascinating.
You have to eat a Bath bun, I’m salivating by just mentioning it.
You must also try their fudge, it’s divine.
We did a very touristy thing, which was to have high tea at the Pump room, it was my favourite part. I love tea and scones and everything that represents high tea.
Bath Abbey
The Royal Crescent and the Circus (shame the trees were so bare, otherwise the circus is quite a sight)

Would I go back? Absolutely. It’s no wonder Jane Austen was such a good author, aside from her talents, she lived in a place that I feel does inspire so much creativity.

The city has so much character, it’s charming around every corner, not to mention it’s drenched in such rich history. The people are equally charming. 🙂

Everyday is a fashion show and the world is the runway – Coco Chanel

Posted on February 25, 2017 by Selectively Curious

I went to my first fashion show today.

It was a great experience. It started off with a networking event and as we walked on the velvety red carpet up to where they were serving the hors d’oeuvres, I felt like a star. More so, when my picture was taken by professional photographers, one was from the national newspaper, Khaleej Times… I wonder if I will be in the newspaper.

I love fashion, I’m too lazy to go shopping most of the time but I really love clothes and shoes, oh especially shoes. A few years ago, I wanted to be a designer. I designed my own dresses sometimes sadly my drawing isn’t great but my tailor is great, he understands what I want, most of the times. However, when I say designer, I actually wanted to be a bag designer, rather than a clothes one. I had a great idea for the next big thing, the only problem was, I didn’t know where I could get the bag manufactured. I had figured out how to get leather from a wholesale supplier. I haven’t given up on the idea and today’s fashion show was a reminder for me to go through with getting the bag manufactured and see how the world reacts to my design.

Today’s designer’s story is so great. It was her first fashion show. Before I continue, I want to share a few snippets of the show:

She had been designing clothes from a young age and opened her own boutique in 2012. Since then, her client base has grown consistently and it’s truly impressive how her popularity has grown, yet it is not surprising and the photos speak for themselves, every piece is beautifully unique. Her style is original and tailored for the individual’s style rather than just what’s in fashion. Goes back to what I’ve mentioned before, never give up because one day you will make it and have the privilege of having your own fashion show. How delightful!

I loved being a part of this. If you would like to know more about the collection, please visit this website (p.s. I wasn’t asked to advertise this, just thought that it’s nice for us to stick together and help each other achieve our dreams 🙂 ).