Archive for May 29th, 2009

May 29, 2009: 5:40 pm: CraigHome & Garden

Next Day Blinds Columbia Maryland offers high-quality window treatments, utilizing only the highest-quality goods for their wide range of window treatment products. All of their products are custom made in their own state-of-the-art factory in Jessup, MD (in the Columbia, Maryland area).

They now have 35 stores throughout the Washington, DC and Baltimore MD metro areas, showcasing a wide variety of window blinds, shades, shutters, and cornices in styles that suit every taste. They’ve also dedicated themselves to top-notch customer service, including low-price guarantees on their products. Their Columbia MD store has garnered rave reviews on their impeccable customer service.

So, what are you waiting for? Have you got drab rooms in your home that are desperately in need of an upgrade? Looking to create that perfect atmosphere for rest and relaxation?
Next Day Blinds is your answer. They also feature a FREE in-home consultation designed to best pin-down exactly the right style and color scheme for you and your home.

And if you don’t feel like leaving the comfort of your own home, shop Next Day Blinds online and have your window coverings shipped right to your door.

Next Day Blinds – Stylish, classy window treatments and acclaimed customer service. A winning combination!

: 2:42 pm: CraigArts & Culture, Society, Travel

When it comes to five-star hotels, Dubai offers something for everyone’s taste. There is certainly a consistency in quality, offering accommodations that are second-to-none in terms of taste and design, and exceptional in hospitality. Guests will be given the royal treatment, and are surrounded by luxury in one of the most exciting cities in the region. There are ample beaches, and a wonderfully complex urban life, and tourist explorations in any area will reveal more hidden jewels in this complex desert.

In the past few years there has been an unexpected boom in terms of culture and cultural production. The art scene here is thriving, and there is an elegance and sophistication here that makes for an active artistic community and an involved and educated public. One of the welcome products of this favorable mix is the BAF Art School. Part of BAF 2009, which is held in the historic district of Al Bastakiya, BAF Art School is the brain-child of Sara Raza.

Sara Raza, curator of BAF 2009 , has impressive credentials as the former curator of public arts programs at the Tate Modern. Based in London, she is also the co-editor of ArtsAsiaPacific Magazine, and she brings her visionary approach to BAF 2009. BAF Art School is a series of public programs presented in conjunction with the art fair, and consists of a series of panel discussions designed to investigate some of the more pressing issues of contemporary art that are specific to the UAE. Focusing on topics such as surveillance, collaboration, and the nature of artistic practice in today’s economy, BAF Art School is not just a presentation of ideas from scholars and practitioners, but is in fact a dialogue with the public. The intention is to promote lively discussion in conjunction with the well-attended and widely acclaimed BAF. By all accounts, the first Art School was very successful, and sets an impressive precedent for the art fairs to come.

: 2:20 pm: CraigEntertainment, Society, Travel

Looking for a five-star hotel in Dubai? The selection is abundant, in this city where hospitality and comfort are tradition. Dubai is one of the most popular cities in the region, and it’s reputation is growing by leaps and bounds. Celebrities and business professionals alike recommend it with their preference for visiting this city over all others. It has a fantastic contrast of natural wonder and metropolitan stimulation, and there are plenty of things to fill your itinerary. If relaxation is on the menu, then there are spas and restaurants to fit the bill. If culture is desired, then there are dozens of galleries to quench your appetite.

One place to find a wonderful listing of the local galleries here is Art Dubai. This event, Art Dubai, is actually part of a larger vision that is significant in the cultural scene here. Sponsored by the DIFC, the Dubai International Finance Centre, Art Dubai is an annual event where the most lucrative art works are displayed in participating galleries around the city, and in some other strategic international locations. Art works and trends are discussed in round table forums, there are guest speakers, and a host of other related events dedicated to discussing the contemporary art scene. The focus, though, is the financial possibilities for the art works. While art and commerce may be forever at odds, the event does spark very lively conversation and debate.

Art Dubai is also a fantastic opportunity to get a feel for the contemporary directions in the local art scene. It’s a centralized event with multiple sponsors, and some of the more prominent galleries participate. So by simply following the gallery route for Art Dubai will lead to many unexpected finds. There are pockets of hidden treasures all around the city, and this is a splendid place to start looking. It is also a place to make inroads where there are already galleries that are well-connected to the international art marketplace.

: 2:09 pm: CraigEntertainment, Society, Travel

For the seasoned traveler looking for the best of the best in a five-star hotel, Dubai graciously offers a sumptuous feast for the senses. The hotels are a splendid combination of old-world hospitality and new-world extravagance, to make sure that the guest is pampered and rejuvenated, and made to feel like a movie star. With the boom in reputation as a truly international city, with rising stars not only in real estate and technology, but also in global culture, there are plenty of movie stars around. Although the beaches and the shopping malls are enough to keep one distracted in world-class comfort, there is a culture of celebrity here that will please the trained eye.

One place where the lives of the movie stars are published in a rich, glossy format is Ahlan! magazine. This is the premiere magazine for celebrity news and gossip, and it also covers glamour and fashion. The result is magnificent eye candy, where all the latest trends are covered with an eye toward global pop culture. Following the most current waves in glamour, international celebrities find their way here for their boldest fashion risks, and some succeed exceedingly, and some fail magnificently. There is no middle ground here, of course, and the magazine’s experts are incisive and curious, qualities that lead the way in today’s global marketplace. Although the stories cover some of the most visible superstars as they travel the globe, the focus is especially keen toward Dubai culture and nightlife. Local stars, international celebrities who are staying in town, and global superstars of Hollywood and Bollywood who have a strong presence in Dubai will find themselves well-represented in these pages. Ahlan! speaks to the pulse of the complex world of the UAE, in its pop guises.

There is also a strong local investment in Dubai. Ahlan! always covers the most recent news on the DWC, or Dubai World Cup. The DWC is not only the world’s richest horse race, it is also one of the pre-eminent places to see and be seen in the region. National and international figures attend, and their presence is photographed for the pleasure of the readership. In March, 2009, the magazine sponsored a Glamour Studio, where the celebrity attendees could have their images captured by photographers who specialize in glamour. The lines were reported to be up to an hour long, and well worth the wait, judging from the quality of the work displayed on the magazine’s pages.