Dubai Update: November v2

~ Paul McCartney Concert ~

On Sunday November 13^th, I had just returned from the gym when we got a phone call saying we were invited to the Paul McCartney concert at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi that night. It was 7:30 pm, it takes over an hour to drive there – we had to shower, get ready, and eat? We hurried ourselves up, and got there having only missed 4 songs !!! Not only did we have free admission, we were given VIP passes right at the front of the stage … incredible !

Paul certainly knew how to put on a show for the 20,000 plus in attendance… the following link provides the set-list for that night’s concert:

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/paul-mccartney/2011/yas-arena-abu-dhabi-united-arab-emirates-13d1fd8d.html

What can I say about Paul McCartney?
I was not familiar with his solo hits, but we wanted to see this living legend live. We were blown away with his showmanship and talent, and really enjoyed the concert. People didn’t really get too excited when he played his solo songs, but everyone was having a right good time when he played the Beatles songs.

Paul played song after song for 3 solid hours, including two encores. He continually made references to Abu Dhabi, spoke a bit of Arabic and told the crowd interesting stories along the way. Paul switched between a few guitars, a ukulele, and the piano… And then all of a sudden, the song Live and Let Die came on, and the pyrotechnics came out in full blast. Fireworks high above the stage, and shooting all over the stage – not something you would particularly expect from a man pushing his late 60’s. WOW!

I couldn’t review this concert without mentioning the band as well. Great energy and sheer talent!

All throughout the concert, I couldn’t help but think of my parents. Both of them had grown up listening to and idolizing the Beatles, and because of that – and Beatles RockBand, I had known that music as well. I had actually surprised Aaron with how many songs I knew and sang along too… My parents have not had the chance to see Mr. McCartney live, and so I was extra grateful to be standing there at this concert, only a few rows back, enjoying it in its entirety. I even got teary eyed during Eleanor Rigby and Let It Be …

For a short clip of Paul singing Let It Be at Yas Island click on the following link - you can even hear the crowd singing along, and I do apologize it's a bit shaky hehe:  

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2K6GDxYp_4o&feature=feedu

And another clip from Live & Let Die with the pyro follow this link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dg0jSBp9Mp4

I often wonder which artists in my generation will leave a lasting legacy over 5 decades such as the Beatles and Paul McCartney, or even the Rolling Stones whom I had the pleasure of seeing live in Shanghai. Obviously the scene has evolved due to technology, but it seems sex tapes and scandals sell music, whereas sheer talent is often overlooked… Oh well, the Paul McCartney show is definitely at the top of my list for best concerts, and I would suggest going if his tour stops in a city near you.

xox <3 xox



Dubai Update: November v1

These past few weeks have been really exciting over here in Dubai, never a dull moment, that’s for sure. Events, holidays, concerts, work… No rest for the wicked!

~ Halloween ~
Halloween – one of my favorite holidays! So we went all out, and made the most of it… Friday October 28^th, we went to Chi The Lodge with Heather, her husband Matt, their friend Andy for their annual Halloween party. I was extremely impressed by the costumes, and the effort people had made – wow! Some costumes actually truly scared me to the point I had to look away, and some were majorly impressive – like the Predator, or BumbleBee Transformer, who both won for best individual costumes. We were dressed as 80’s punk rockers for this party.

On Saturday night, our friend Sumit was hosting a Halloween party at his house. Not too many people were dressed up, but it was nice to gather with friends and meet new people. I dressed up as a cat.

Finally, on Monday October 31^st – Halloween night – we went to the Cavalli Club for their dinner package with Sumit, Rasha, Heather & Matt. While there weren’t many people for the actual dinner, the club quickly filled with dressed up partiers having a spooktacular time. The club did an impressive job at theming the party. For instance, upon arrival we were given blood injections to be drank from a syringe – it was really blood mary, the decorations were quite well done, the food was Halloween themed, and they had acrobatics from the ceiling…We danced the night away, enjoyed the costumes & had a great time.

 

We also found a few stores that sold pumpkins… The nicer bigger pumpkins were rather expensive & I certainly wasn’t going to enjoy carving a $30 pumpkin! We ended up getting one each at Carrefour for only $5, and while they were small, they were still fun to carve. I did mine as a cat to match my outfit.

xox <3 xox