Here are five books that have satisfied the hunger when I was unable to lift anchor and set sail. Emmanuel Samoglou is multimedia editor for The National
The Happy Isles of Oceania by Paul Theroux (1992)
I read Theroux’s account of paddling the remote, sparsely populated islands of the Western and Central Pacific Ocean while I was stranded on one myself. The vivid depictions of places such as the Trobriands, Tonga, Tahiti, and their people made me forget I was pinned down by a job and short on money. Theroux’s writing is honest and engaging.
Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick (2009)
As Demick points out, North Korea is often described with humour, but for those who’ve been forced to endure its brand of totalitarian rule, life there is nothing to envy – despite what dictators want them to believe. Still, even after describing the horrors of life since the Korean War, I found myself wanting to visit the city of Chongjin, where Demick’s characters lived before defecting.
Balkan Ghosts: A Journey Through History by Robert Kaplan (1993)
American writer Robert Kaplan travels through the often turbulent Balkans, examining the "ancient hatreds" and how they continue to shape events. As with many good books, Balkan Ghosts has its proponents and detractors, but as a student, it inspired me to hit the road for two months, travelling overland from Athens to Istanbul.
Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts (2003)
I'm only a third of the way through, but Mumbai has made its way onto my "must-visit places" list. This is the only fiction on my list, but is inspired by true events. Shantaram tells the tale of an Australian bank robber and drug addict who escapes from prison and flees to India. As with most great travel writing, Roberts details the warts with the same energy as the beauty.
Beyond the Sky and the Earth: A Journey into Bhutan by Jamie Zeppa (1999)
I was given a copy of this book when Google and Wikipedia were still in their infancy and information on this Himalayan nation was scarce. In this engaging memoir, Zeppa recounts the events that led her away from Canada, age 24. Teaching English over three years, she fights homesickness and then falls in love with a Bhutanese man.
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Saturday's schedule at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
GP3 race, 12:30pm
Formula 1 final practice, 2pm
Formula 1 qualifying, 5pm
Formula 2 race, 6:40pm
Performance: Sam Smith
ABU DHABI ORDER OF PLAY
Starting at 10am:
Daria Kasatkina v Qiang Wang
Veronika Kudermetova v Annet Kontaveit (10)
Maria Sakkari (9) v Anastasia Potapova
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova v Ons Jabeur (15)
Donna Vekic (16) v Bernarda Pera
Ekaterina Alexandrova v Zarina Diyas
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Dr Amal Khalid Alias revealed a recent case of a woman with daughters, who specifically wanted a boy.
A semen analysis of the father showed abnormal sperm so the couple required IVF.
Out of 21 eggs collected, six were unused leaving 15 suitable for IVF.
A specific procedure was used, called intracytoplasmic sperm injection where a single sperm cell is inserted into the egg.
On day three of the process, 14 embryos were biopsied for gender selection.
The next day, a pre-implantation genetic report revealed four normal male embryos, three female and seven abnormal samples.
Day five of the treatment saw two male embryos transferred to the patient.
The woman recorded a positive pregnancy test two weeks later.
'Laal Kaptaan'
Director: Navdeep Singh
Stars: Saif Ali Khan, Manav Vij, Deepak Dobriyal, Zoya Hussain
Rating: 2/5
Origin
Dan Brown
Doubleday
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
