International Writing Competition 2017

The Seplaa Young Leaders’ believe that the pen is mightier than the sword and in this digital age, the tap of the keyboard can connect worlds and people.

Seplaa therefore want to encourage young people all over the world to use their words to connect with each other and let us see inside their worlds, to be able to learn from one another.

Theme: “What I Call Beautiful”

Sharing stories is the best way to connect.

Share your stories by applying for the Seplaa Young Leaders’ Club International Writing Competition 2017.

For more information please write to Amal Malik at contact.sylc@gmail.com.

See International Writing Competition Rules & Details for 2017 here.

Download SYLC International Writing Competition Details 2017. 

Expat Blog Awards 2013

It’s December, and the Expat Blog Awards 2013 are upon us. Last year we were very proud to bag the top award for Jeddah (and Bronze Award for Saudi Arabia). This year the competition is a little different. Rather than a simple submission form, all entrants have been asked to write an original, top list for the city we live in.

Alina Bokhari from The Yellow Treehouse, draws upon her wealth of knowledge of all things food-related, and has put together a very sweet list especially for Jeddah Blog.

We would love to win the Gold Award for Saudi Arabia, and will need your valued support in this competition. Please take a minute to click here and leave a comment for our blog entry. As per competition rules, the comment must be over 10 words long.

If you can post a link to our entry on  your website, blog, page or Facebook timeline, it would help us tremendously. And please do encourage friends to visit and comment too.

I would like to add here that comments will need a one-time email verification, so please don’t be put off by this, and make sure you check for the email as soon as you post a comment. Only 1 comment will be allowed per person.

Thank you to all our lovely readers in advance – we know we can count on you! There are some other great blogs in the competition you might like to check out too.

We’ll keep you updated on how things are progressing 🙂

Mad Hatter’s Tea Party

A tea party on the 28th of February. Thank you to Debra at The Quilting Arts Studio for sending this to us:

Head Over Heels in Saudi Arabia – February 2013

Written, directed and performed by Dr. Maisah Sobaihi, Head Over Heels in Saudi Arabia is a fun, light-hearted play that touches on a variation of topics concerning Saudi Arabia. Jeddah Blog reviewed the show back in October 2012 and we are very pleased to know that it will be performed once again. It addresses many of the questions raised about Saudi Arabia with specific reference to Saudi women. Maisah is a Saudi playwright and this is her thrilling and humorous one-woman show in which the narrator begins by telling her story and moves on to tell the stories of other women, giving insight into the powerful and rich experiences of Saudi women. If you haven’t seen it already, it is not to be missed. It’s a great opportunity for you all to go and see Maisah Sobaihi in action.

We are delighted to announce that Jeddah Blog will receive one free ticket to the play for one of our lucky readers. If you would like to win the ticket, leave a comment at the bottom of this page telling us why you would like to go and see the play. Don’t forget to add your email address so that we can contact you. Special thanks to the promoters for this. Hurry, as the competition ends tomorrow (Sunday, the 17th) at midday.  The competition has ended. Thank you to everyone who entered. The winner is announced below.

Tickets are available at the door and at Munch Arafat from 5 – 10pm daily, but you can take advantage of discounts if you book online with Eventbrite. You can also contact them via the Head Over Heels Facebook page.

The event is open to ladies and gentlemen although seating will be separate. The English performance is on 18^th February and the Arabic performance is on 19^th February, 2013.

The winner of the free ticket is ERUM KHALID.

Congratulations Erum! Get in touch with us via email to claim your free ticket 🙂

Dinner in Honour of Shahid Afridi

Since our last blog post on Pakistani cricket icon Shahid Afridi’s visit to Jeddah, we have had numerous comments and emails from readers asking for more information. We can now share further details with you, thanks to our friend and SCC advisor Rohail Khan.

Le Meridien Hotel in Jeddah was the venue for a dinner in honour of former captain Shahid Afridi, and hosted by the Saudi Cricket Centre (SCC) on Thursday 17th January 2012. Shahid Afridi disclosed that he was impressed by the seniors’ trials and said that the SCC “is breaking new grounds for the development of cricket in the Kingdom”. He went on to add, “I am impressed by the senior players here. As for the under-19 group, it needs more attention, coaching and training”.

L to R: Tahseem Haqqi (Vice Consul (Welfare) Pakistan Consulate Jeddah), Rohail Khan, Shahid Afridi and Junaid Khan (Pakistan Consulate Jeddah).

Rohail Khan presented ajrak shawls, bouquets and souvenir gifts to Shahid Afridi, Iqbal Sikander, Tahseem Haqqi, Hasan Kabir, and Nadeem Nadwi in acknowledgement of their services to promote cricket in Saudi Arabia.

Rohail Khan presenting gifts to Shahid Afridi amidst the gathering of VIPs.

 

Shahid Afridi in Jeddah!

Sporting fans will be excited to learn that cricket star Shahid Afridi is currently on a visit to Saudi Arabia to spot talent for the Saudi Cricket Center (SCC). We can reveal that the talent selection will be held in four cities across Saudi Arabia from 15th – 21st January 2013 (Jeddah, Yanbu, Riyadh and Dammam) and the talent hunt in Jeddah will be held on the 16th and 17th of January.

Rohail standing next to cricket superstar Shahid Afridi on his current visit to the Kingdom.

Enthuses Shahid Afridi: “I am very glad I will be able to perform an instrumental role in finding out the best cricket talent from all over the Kingdom”.

Rohail Khan, a senior banker with a keen interest in culture and philanthropy, is supporting the cricket talent promotion in consultation with Shahid Afridi as SCC Advisor. Rohail discloses to Jeddah Blog that other cricketing heroes and socialites will be engaged in the future to promote and develop cricket in Saudi Arabia.

“Developing a strong well-trained “Saudi National Cricket Team” will enhance the Kingdom’s international image and would be beneficial for Saudi and expatriate cricket players and cricket lovers,” asserts Rohail.

How To Register

All cricket players (residents of Saudi Arabia), regardless of age or nationality, from all cricket clubs and leagues (whether affiliated with SCC or not) are equally entitled to participate and compete for the selection. If you are interested in participating in the try-outs then register on this dedicated site.

Jeddah Blog wishes all the best to Rohail and the SCC on this excellent initiative, and will continue to keep you all informed on the progress made by the SCC. Be sure to check back with us regularly for updates.

Massive Puma Competition – We Have a Winner!

Last Tuesday we ran our exclusive Massive Puma Competition where we promised to give away a coveted Puma Collector’s Item to one lucky reader. We had lots of responses – thank you to all who participated.

This is the question we asked:

EvoSpeed collection was inspired by the fastest man in the world.

Who is he? 

a.) Tyson Gay

b.) Usain Bolt

c.) Nesta Carter

The answer was b.) Usain Bolt

Now coming to the results of the contest,

We used Random.org to choose a winner for us out of all the entries and this is what it came up with:

Jeddah Blog Puma Competition winner as selected by Random.org

CONGRATULATIONS to Nabiha Khan !!

Nabiha, please get in touch with us so that we can arrange for your unique Puma Collector’s Item to be delivered to you.

To all the rest, stay tuned! – there will be more competitions and opportunities to win in the future.

Bronze Medal – Thank You !!!

We received the amazing news that Jeddah Blog was voted third in the Expat Blog Awards 2012 for Saudi Arabia. We are proudly displaying the bronze medal given to us (in the right-hand column) and want to say a big thank you to those of you who voted for us and left such amazing comments and reviews about our blog. We had a whopping 51 votes and comments, which is much, much more than most gold winners of other categories. We are also proud to say that we are the top blog from Jeddah; the first and second place were both bagged by Riyadh-based blogs. Also a big thank you to Expats Blog for hosting the awards.

Massive Puma Competition

A couple of weeks ago we announced that we’d be hosting a very exclusive competition at the Blog. There was much excitement and anticipation, and we are now finally able to give you the details. We are also thrilled that Jeddah Blog is the only blog in Jeddah to be given a chance to host this amazing contest!

We’re giving you, dear Reader, the chance to win a Puma Collector’s item! World’s leading sports retailer Puma is giving away a massive shoe from the Puma EvoSpeed collection. This was inspired by the fastest man in the world and is a groundbreaking collection that answers every athlete’s need for speed. This model (which is about 2 feet long) is 100% exclusive to the Middle East and not available for sale anywhere!

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The shoe on the right is an adult shoe. The HUGE one on the left is the collector’s item you can win!

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To get your hands on it, follow these simple steps:

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1. Follow this blog by clicking on the ‘Follow’ button to the right of this blog post.

2. Email your answer to the question below to team.jeddah.blog@gmail.com

3. Leave a comment at the end of this post.

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We mentioned that the EvoSpeed collection was inspired by the fastest man in the world. Who is he? 

 

a.) Tyson Gay

b.) Usain Bolt

c.) Nesta Carter

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Please note: Participants must be living in Saudi Arabia and must be able to either provide a delivery address, or arrange pickup of the prize in Jeddah. The last date to get your entries in is Monday, 10th December 2012 and the winner will be chosen at random from all correct entries. The model of the shoe the winner will receive will be extremely similar, but may not be identical to the one in the photo as there are four different models in the collection.

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Special thanks to Puma and to Razan Karim at Sticky Ginger.

The results are out. The winning name can be found here.

Expat Blog Awards 2012 – Please vote for us!

Expats Blog have announced their 2012 Expat Blog Awards and we at Jeddah Blog are very excited to be shortlisted as one of the contenders for the best Expats in Saudi Arabia Blog Award! The judging is based on public opinion, so YOU, dear reader, can leave a comment and give us a rating on our nomination page.

There are some other great blogs in the Saudi Arabia category like Under the Abaya, American Bedu, Blue Abaya, Imaged Event, Susie of Arabia and others – all worth checking out. Obviously, we would dearly love to win, and it is all down to you, so please do click on the badge above which will take you straight to our listing page. Write a line or two about us and give us a rating and we’ll be well on our way in this competition.

Thank you very much !!

Fun Quiz on Saudi Arabia!

On the occasion of Saudi National Day celebrated on 23 September every year, our Quizmaster has prepared a little gem of a quiz for Jeddah Blog. It was first tested on students at the Jeddah Prep and Grammar School on their National Day and was a great hit with everyone there.

We have special permission to reproduce the quiz here, and the first person to leave a comment with all correct answers will be the recipient of a FREE copy of The Entertainer KSA 2012, worth SR 250, containing tons of buy-one-get-one-free coupons!

Please leave answers in the form 1a, 2b, 3c, etc. Please note that the winner must arrange collection of the book.

The winner of the competition is Farha ! Congratulations! Please get in touch with us on team.jeddah.blog@gmail.com to arrange to collect your prize.

Photo courtesy of abeerharbi.wordpress.com

1. What percentage of Saudi Arabia’s budget is spent on education?

a. 25%                                                                   b)17%

c. 5%                                                                     d)1%

2. Saudi Arabia’s main export is _________and main import is_________.

a. oil, clothing                                                    b. natural gas, gold

c. natural gas, consumer electronics        d. oil, machinery/vehicles

3. The world’s largest desalination plant is located in Saudi Arabia. In which city is it?

a. Abha                                                                 b. Jubail

c. Tabuk                                                               d. Ta’if

4. How many miles long is the King Fahd Causeway?

a. 18                                                                       b. 50

c. 16                                                                      d. 25

5. Which of these Saudi-owned companies is ranked the most valuable company in the world?

a. Saudi Aramco                                                b. Saudi Telecom Company

c. Saudi Bin Laden Group                             d. SABIC

6. Which Saudi artist’s painting ‘X-ray 2003’ is one of only two Saudi paintings exhibited in the British Museum?

a. Saddek Wasil                                                  b. Abdulnasser Gharem

c. Ahmad Mater                                               d. Sara Abdu

7. In how many Summer Olympic Games has Saudi Arabia participated?

a. 1                                                                         b. 2

c. 5                                                                         d. 8

8. The Saudi Arabia national football team is known by what name to its fans?

a. Al-Nasoor                                                       b. Al-Saqoor

c. Al-Gherban                                                    d. Al-Dajaaj

9. The King Fahd fountain in Jeddah is the tallest in the world. How far does the fountain propel its water up into the air?

a. 759                                                                    b. 989

c. 1024                                                                  d. 1243

10. The world’s longest stretch of desert is in Saudi Arabia, what is it called?

a. Abandoned Half                                          b. Bare Eighth

c. Blank Third                                                     d. Empty Quarter

Light and Shade Photography Competition

Light and Shade Photography is inviting entrants to its ‘Light and Shade Kids on Eid Competition” on Facebook. The theme of the competition is ‘Eid’, and the photograph submitted must be of a child upto 10 years old.

To enter the competition, you need to submit each photo in a separate post on their Facebook page along with a caption, the name and age of the child, and the place taken. The last date for submission is the 30th of August 2012. Light and Shade will then open the competition to the public. The picture with the maximum ‘likes’ on Facebook will win.

Good luck to all participants!

The Entertainer KSA

A great deal is always irresistable, and we at Jeddah Blog are very excited to share our latest find with you. The Entertainer KSA has arrived. The amazing people there sent us a copy, and we can’t wait to share it with our readers!

What is The Entertainer?

The Entertainer is a coupon book which has just been launched in Saudi Arabia. They started out in Dubai in 2001 and now have 14 books in the GCC and Cyprus. The Entertainer provides buy one get one free vouchers at restaurants and other venues throughout Riyadh, Jeddah and the Eastern Province. The book aims to make eating out, family activities, beauty and travel more affordable.

The current book lasts until the end of 2012 and offers buy one get one free discounts at the most popular eateries and destinations in Saudi Arabia. In Jeddah, the book includes The Pizza Company, Vapiano, Maggiano’s, Burger King, Cinnabon, Helen’s Kitchen, Marble Slab, Fitness First, Gold’s Gym and a number of beauty salons as well as hostel accommodations across the Middle East and Asia. I even spied Paintball coupons at first glance. In total there are over 500 buy one get one free vouchers in the KSA book.

What does it cost?

The book costs SR 250, but with hundreds of buy one get one free coupons you can make the cost of the book back many times over! Furthermore, if you buy online you can get a 10% discount. How amazing is that?

Where can I get my hands on a copy?

The books are available at Jarir Bookstores and at the Virgin Megastore However, if you’d like an additional 10% discount, purchase your copy online here or visit their Facebook page for more information.

How can I get some coupons for free?

As deliciously tempting as these coupons are, as a token of our gratitude to you all for supporting our blog, we will be giving lots of them away. Our very first giveaway is a buy one get one free vouchers for Pasta Caldo in the Red Sea Mall, entitling the holder to one complimentary main course when a main course of equal or great value is purchased. We have 3 vouchers, and thus will pick 3 lucky winners! To win your coupon, simply leave a comment on this post describing our blog in 3 words. Don’t forget to leave your email address so we can get in touch.

Please note: if we can’t find a convenient way to get your free voucher to you, you may need to organize pick-up of your voucher at a fixed location in Jeddah.

Lastly, to avoid any disappointment we advise you to call the establishment before going in to claim your voucher.

Good luck !

Flavour Me !

A fun competition for children and adults too, from Lay’s Saudi Arabia brought to our attention by ardent Jeddah Blog reader, Haris Ali, a Year 8 student at Jeddah Prep and Grammar School.

Lay’s is on the hunt for a new flavour and are giving away SR 1,000 every week.

Simply visit their site and enter your chosen flavour up to 3 times a day for a chance to be a winner. Winners are announced every week.

Good Luck !!!

– Sabaa Ali

Saddle art competition for 12-16 year olds

Less than 3 weeks to go to enter this creative competition with a cultural twist. If you don’t have a child who is 12-16 years old, then please do pass on the info to someone who does. Art teachers take note – this is a great way to motivate and inspire your students.

An art competition with a cultural twist. Darat Safeya bin Zagar invites 12-16 year olds to participate in an art competition based on the theme of saddles. In the first stage of this competition, you go and collect your white chart paper saddle from Darat Safeya bin Zagar, and after drawing your own unique saddle design (look through our post for some inspiration, and read up on popular saddle designs on the web), return the paper saddle design to the Darat before 9^th March. The winners from this first stage will go on to participate in the next level involving the creation of a more intricate 3-D design. A great opportunity to educate yourself about the importance of the saddle in Arab culture, and show the world your unique take on it. We’re excited, are you?

 

   

The Saddle

    As we already know, the saddle is a structure used by the horse-rider (or any other animal-rider) to sit on when riding upon a horse. And because the early Arabs were fully dependent on using animals for their transportation, be it in times of peace or war, they were enchanted with making saddles and took a lot of care to maintain them and keep them in a good shape.

Saddles are designed for different kinds of uses, like horse-back riding, or horse-racing, etc.. There also come in different types and styles, where they can be made to serve as a mere garment to be fitted to the animal’s back, up to their use as professional saddles for serious horse-back riders.

     

 

Some saddle designs for your inspiration. The last one on the right is by Dorothy Boyer, a Jeddah-based artist.

Guidelines

• The competition is open for adolescents aged between 12 and 16 years
• The participant should draw his/her design on the white space on the back of the (printed) advertisement in the shape of a saddle which is to be collected from and returned upon completion to Darat Safeya bin Zagar. See address and contact details at bottom of post
• The participants are free to create designs that are inspired or based on geometric or botanical ornamentations
• Participants can use either Paint Markers or Permanent Markers in implementing their designs
• It is strictly forbidden to use additional external elements in the first stage of the competition.
• Designs that are created with the help of adults will be rejected
• The design works should be submitted to Darat Safeya Binzagr, attached with the Name, Telephone Number and Mobile Number of the applicant. Kindly attach a proof of birth date as well.
• The latest date to receive submissions is March 9, 2012 A.D. concurrent with 16 Raby` al-THaany 1433 A.H.
• The participating submissions will be considered as a property of Darat Safeya Binzagr
• There will be an initial classification for the best 60 design works, after which the participants will be called to visit Darat Safeya Binzagr to apply their artistic designs on a three-dimensional fiberglass model (second stage)
• An exhibition of the winning works and the distinguished ones will be held in Roshana Center in Tahlia, where the participants will be honored and prizes will be given to winners on the Opening Day, Thursday April 12, 2012 concurrent with 20 Jumaada al-awal 1433 A.H.

   

A canvas of your own: The white paper saddle you will receive from Darat Safeya bin Zagar.

Darat Safeya Binzagr

Wali Al Ahd street, Jeddah

Telephone: 6571030 (Details about calling and visiting times on website below)

Fax: 6510708

Website: http://www.daratsb.com

E-mail: daratsb@daratsb.com

– Text entitled The Saddle and Guidelines translated from Arabic by Maysoun Saadi Dimassi and reproduced from the original text on the paper saddle received from the Gallery.