Tag Archives: Best mummy bloggers Dubai

The Residence Maldives by Cenizaro | Dining Options

The Residence Maldives is run by Cenizaro, a Singapore based company, and that made me curious as to what the daily menu at the resort would be composed of.  I was thrilled to know that the head chef is from Indonesia with much experience in Asian and Western cooking.  Then, the next concern was if the children would like the menu  – every parent’s worry.  My children are not fussy eaters in general but out of 4 children, one is bound to disagree with something the others like.  For more about their special offers see below.

Asian Delights

When I discovered Pad Thai, Mee Goreng, Hainanese Chicken Rice, Nasi Goreng, Char Siu Wonton Noodles, on the menu I was delighted, and even more delighted that the authentic tasting dishes were prepared well.  The pool side restaurant where we ate at almost everyday served all the mentioned Asian delights as well as good quality pizzas, burgers, pastas, and sandwiches.  One of my husband’s favourite request in the Maldives is Spaghetti Alio, Olio e Pepperoncino using the extremely hot Maldivian chilli.  This was made to perfection.  If you are into spicy food do ask to try the flavoursome Maldivian chilli, perfect with Pad Thai and Mee Goreng but heed my warning – they are very spicy!

Breakfast & Dinner

Breakfast and dinner is usually served in the open-aired main dining room.  Breakfast has a wide variety of options from deli meats, pancakes, chinese porridge, pastries, yoghurts, fresh honey comb, sushi and so forth.  Perhaps the only missing thing was more organic options but the children loved every meal regardless and lapped up   their food at meal times. Dinner is an a la carte menu with different curries varying from Maldivian to Thai or pasta with crab as well as vegetarian options.  On occasion when we chose in-villa dining, the food was also of excellent quality, and we were excited for meal times.

Formal Dining at Fulhumaa Restaurant

For formal dining options, the hotel has its signature Fulhumaa  Restaurant nesting itself on a pier where you can hear the lapping of the waves over the reef, and guests dine under the stars on a clear night hoping for no evening showers.  The dishes are thoughtfully creative in line with any fine dining restaurant and we tried the tenderised pork dish and the tasty wagyu beef served on a bed of Himalayan salt cooked to choice.

The Residence Maldives also caters for other dining options but we didn’t have time to try it all including a dinner at the Sunset Grill, a private dining option, and a picnic on a deserted island.

Fishing

Our deep sea fishing expedition led my son, Lorenzo, to catch a large local fish called the Wa Hu, and can be described to be from the same family as the Barracuda.  The kitchens then prepared the fish in a variety of ways including sashimi, Thai curry and grilled.

To check out our family’s review click here.

For more information visit www.cenizaro.com/theresidence/maldives-fm 

Summer Island Savings with Seashellsonthepalm. The Residence Maldives is offering 50% off Best Available Rates, complimentary room upgrades and USD 100 resort credit per day.

Exclusively for Seashellsonthepalm.com, The Residence Maldives will offer an additional 5% discount on Best Available Rates (Total 55% off BAR Rates), along with the room upgrade and USD 100 resort credit.

Quote “EBO 5%/SeaShellsOnThePalm” and send enquiries to sales-maldives@theresidence.com

Marmarland | Online shopping portal for furniture and other gorgeous children products created by stylish mum of 2, Maren Gerber

Maren Gerber is a tall, stylish and striking-looking mum of two, who moved to Dubai from Germany with her husband in 2005, and the family was sent to do a short stint in Singapore, before returning back to Dubai again last year.  Maren herself, was an Operations Manager setting up businesses herself in the Middle East and Asia Pacific before the call of family life.  Maren now works with her husband and his business partner, and in the afternoon manages her two kids, Marleni aged 3 years and Marnus 1 year, and her own online children shopping website, Marmarland, selling unique children’s items from Europe and Dubai that are not easily found in your run-of-the-mill shops.  My children love so many of the items from Marmarland, and as parent, I think these toys help them with imagination, and my daughter’s favourite loves the traditionally designed doll as it is so soft to cuddle made from Alpaca Wool.  If you love traditional toys, some organic materials, with a new design edge and toys that also help with your children’s imagination, Marmarland is that online portal.  Also a great place to search for gifts especially with Christmas around the corner.  Age group: 0 – 7 years old.

What inspired you to start this beautiful online website, Marmaland.com?

I was always interested in interior design. I love to have nice things around me. My style used to be very minimalistic but of course with little toddlers running around, I had to do a few changes to our interior but I refused to put ugly, plastic, “made in China” toys in my living room or teddy bear and princess bedding in my kid’s rooms. So I started to search for products, which are stylish, of high quality, preferably organic and fun for kids and adults. I found lots of amazing brands but they were not available in the UAE.

 What are the 3 most sold items from your website?

Difficult to say but the ferm LIVING grid and halfmoon laundry baskets and wire baskets, wondermade wall sticker and currently the POMME bookshelf are very popular.

What are your personal 3 favourite items from your website?

I like all items on MarMarLand. For example, the Jupiduu slides. They are made of wood; look extremely stylish but so much fun for little kids. I also love the Miniwilla posters and soon we will have a very cool adventure rug.

I love organic and anything that is made from natural material, can you recommend 3 things that you think I might like?

#I think you would like the Modern Burlap swaddles, they are made of 100% organic cotton and are available in many stylish prints and very versatile. They can be used as a blanket, stroller cover or changing mat.

#You would also like the Anne-Claire Petit toys and accessories. All their products are organic and hand made. Their music boxes and rattles make perfect baby shower or newborn gifts.

#Or the Luckyboysunday knitted toys; made of 100% baby alpaca wool, which makes them incredibly soft, combined with a super cool design.

What school did you choose for your child and why that particular curriculum?

My daughter is in FS1 at DBF. I like that DBF is a small school with only FS1 and FS2. Their facilities are great and made especially for young kids.

My son is at Willow nursery Dubai Marina. Again I like this nursery because it is a smaller one, the classrooms are lovely and they have a great outdoor area. But location was also a very important factor for me. The time I save because the school and the nursery are not to far from our home I can spend with my kids. We have decided to enroll our children in English language schools and not into the German school because we think that learning other languages at a very young age is one of the major advantages of living in Dubai.

How do you juggle working for your husband in the morning, working on Mamarland, and manage your two children?

I work for my husband’s company in the morning when the kids are at school and nursery. My MarMarLand work I do in the evenings and weekends and for at least 2 hours each afternoon but my kids and I do something together nearly every afternoon even if it is just going to the playground and we always have breakfast and dinner together. The good thing about my work is that I can do a lot from home and I have a great maid who is taking care of household and helps with the kids.

But I have to say it is either work or kids, I don’t have much time to read a book, watch TV, go shopping or meet friends at the moment.

What makes you feel guilt when it comes to your children?

Sometimes the day is just too short ;). I would love to have more time to prepare amazing lunch and snack boxes or to take part at all their school’s events. And sometimes it is not easy to go to work on the weekend when you normally would spend time with the family at the beach or park. And I wish they could visit their grandparents more often.

Your children’s top 3 favourite bedtime stories

My son still does not like any bedtime stories; he prefers his white noise app ;). My daughter’s current favourites are Cinderella, Room on the Broom and Connie, a German book series.

Your favourite restaurant for a date night?

My favourite restaurants are still Zuma and La Petite Maison.

To browse the large collection of items have a perusal around on www.marmarland.com 

Snapper Rock | Dubai | Our family’s choice for this summer’s swimwear.

Snapper Rock is available from Babysouk.com and until 1 July 2015, SOTP readers can get 15% off Snapper Rock swimwear. Code: #loveseashells

I can’t believe that summer is here on our doorsteps, and we are still scrambling to organise our holiday.  In the meantime, I have already started buying some holiday clothes for the children, and one of our new favourites has to be the bright and colourful range of UV50+ swimwear for children blocking 98% of all harmful rays designed in New Zealand .

Why we are choosing Snapper Rock?

As parents, you will be pleased to know that there are no chemicals or treatments added to the fabric to provide the rating.  What makes them UPF approved are the following:

1) Density of the weave or knit of the fabric – the denser the fabric the less UV it lets in.

2) Type of fibre – nylon and elastane which their swimwear is made of disrupts a lot of UV light, whilst fabrics such as cotton doesn’t block much UV light.

3) The darker the garment – with darker fabric more UV lights are blocked in general.

4) Stretch and wetness also affects the fabric so when fabric is stretched more UV light comes in.

This UV50+ has actually been approved by the Australian Government.

To purchase Snapper Rock go to www.babysouk.com and don’t forget to get your 15% off by quoting #loveseashells.  Valid until 1 July 2015.