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Bahrain, Middle East, Travel

Bahrain Eats and Nightlife

May 13, 2015

Bahrain

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I had no expectation of food in Bahrain, except that the original Ric’s Kountry Kitchen is there. Ric’s is an American Style Diner in Doha, which I tend to frequent on Friday mornings for Texas-style French toast and fake sausage. It feels like home in there. Needless to say, I wanted to go to the original one. Not only because it’s the original, but because they have real sausage and bacon! Yes, Bahrain has pork in restaurants. I ordered my usual, The Rig. The Rig is two eggs any style with Texas French Toast and two sausage patties.  Plus I got a half order of the biscuits and sausage gravy. Yes, my cholesterol probably went through the roof as I ate it all. Real sausage just doesn’t compare to the fake stuff we get here. I was in heaven.  So much so we went both Friday and Saturday morning. They also serve beer! Ric’s in Bahrain was great although the coffee was just as bad as in Doha. But if you want an authentic American breakfast Ric’s is the place to go!

Bahrain

People kept telling me there was good Mexican food in Bahrain. As a Texan, my ears perked up and I was on a mission to find it.  Two people had recommended Señor Pacos. My friend and I agreed that we needed to go. My friend that lives there picked us up and had invited a few of her friends. The decor was definitely Mexican. There was Mexican tile all over. I failed to get pictures as all I could think about was food.  I ordered the Enchiladas Suizas, which is sour cream and green sauce with chicken inside.  My friend and I split a pitcher of Margaritas. This was the best Mexican I have had in the Middle East. Also, there was a terrible cover band, but we danced anyway and had a great blast!

The party then moved to a great bar called, JJ’s Restaurant. Not much of a restaurant that I could see, but great dj. There was a small dance floor that we spend several hours on. For someone not living in the Middle East, this is just your basic bar. But we have nothing like this in Doha. We didn’t want to leave. My feet were killing me by the end of the night and that is always a sign of a good time.  We also went to a bar called Dublin’s the night before. Not great, but okay if you are nearby, but I wouldn’t seek it out. Also, avoid Match Point. Can’t say why but just take my word for it.

I really enjoyed my time in Bahrain and am already planning to return! Where have you been lately that surprised you?

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Bahrain, Middle East, Museums, Travel

Exploring the Bahrain National Museum

May 11, 2015

In my quest to visit more of the Middle East this year, I decided to go to Bahrain over the weekend. It is a very short flight. The airline website says it is 55 minutes, but the flight back was about 20 minutes. I wasn’t keeping track on the flight over as I fell asleep! A friend of mine who is also interested in exploring the Middle East came with me.

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We had both been told about the Bahrain National Museum and how amazing it is. We were not disappointed. This isn’t to say it is the best museum in the world, but when you live in a country with few museums and almost no local artifacts on display, this was a treat. The Bahrain National Museum was opened in 1988. It is a mix of history, archaeology and modern art.

The first thing I noticed when I walked in was the giant aerial photograph of Bahrain that was on the ground of the main floor.  It was very cool to see the scale of Bahrain. My friend and I walked around trying to find our hotel, but we think it was underneath a model display. The first floor had two temporary exhibits. One was on folktales and the other movie costumes from a specific designer. I don’t know who the designer was as I missed the label and the museum doesn’t have a good website. The permanent exhibit spaces on the first floor contained artifacts of the Dilmun civilization, which encompassed Bahrain and other Middle Eastern countries. Many of the artifacts were very old, but in very good shape. There were seals, pottery, coins, scrolls, documents and metalwork on display. Upstairs there was a life-size Souq with dioramas. While dioramas are no longer the norm in museums, they were great even if some of the mannequins needed a facelift. Look in the photo gallery for the poorly taxidermied cat! I think the dioramas worked because you walked through them instead of them being faced out behind glass.  It felt very real. There were two other galleries that were being renovated that looked intriguing. I will have to pay a visit the next time I go to see what becomes of them.

Outside is sculpture garden. It starts on the entry side and goes around the back of the museum to the water side. Some of them were huge. I am not usually a fan of sculpture but these were very beautiful and done in a modern style and seem to tell a story. Unfortunately, it was too hot to stand outside looking at them for too long.

Interesting story, my friend and I walked in the entrance and we were already hot from the 50 yards or so we had to walk from the cab. We commented on how hot it was to the guards at the ticket desk. When we asked how much, they said nothing because it’s hot. We were like okay, sounds good to us! Unfortunately, when we were leaving they were charging a family 1 dinar each for adults! We aren’t really sure why they let us in for free and I am not sure I want to know. However, if you get to Bahrain, make the museum your first stop!

Next post, Bahrain food and nightlife! Have you been to Bahrain? What was your favorite spot?