Chinatown, Abu Dhabi

Another overcast day (although by the time we got the little ones packed up into rain coats and stuffed the umbrella in the truck, the sun came out!). Today we continued our quest to 'get things done' around here, and finally made the trek onto the island to find 'Chinatown'. Apparently it is hidden behind Madinat Zayed (a shopping centre), by the Beijing Restaurant. It is so small that we actually drove past it. After stopping at the Red Castle restaurant, the helpful (and very authentically Chinese workers), sent us in the right direction.

In case you're ever looking for it: it is by 7lands foods, across from the Beijing Restaurant--look for the Chinese lanterns outside. It is called "Chinese Foodstuffs". It is a tiny little store, stuffed in amongst a variety of clothing and textiles shops. As big as our kitchen, it manages to provide all the Chinese food that the (ummmmm....ten?) Chinese people and restaurants in Abu Dhabi need. Though it was incredibly small, we managed to find all the decorations that we needed for Chinese New Year. The salesman was very friendly and helpful--he was very impressed with how fluent I was in Mandarin--thank-you Kai Lan! Little A was a bit disappointed that he did not have any firecrackers (as we've been reading about how they are important to keep away the bad spirits). All-in-all, despite it's size (or lack thereof), Chinese Foodstuffs had everything we needed. Thank-goodness, as I have been promising little A that we will decorate for Chinese New Year now that the Christmas things have been packed away.

So, decorate we did. The house is thoroughly ready for a CNY celebration (which I am thinking about putting together...let's see if it actually happens). Now--we'll add some more red for Valentine's Day (they are close together this year) and we'll be all set.