With pigeons, a dog and a fish tank, we clearly didn’t have enough animals at our house… My brother-in-law kindly offered us button-quail chicks as a healthy addition.
The children are facinated as am I. I couldn’t believe how tiny they are. What’s amazing is they eat independently and behave exactly like mini hens… Look at the 50 fils coin for scale!
Not long ago, I was asked about Softmint – the first pigeon born at our house.
I have great pleasure in sharing this photograph of Softmint feeding his young… It’s hard to believe he was born here himself.
The one thing I still haven’t been able to get over is how incredibly UGLY baby pigeons are. It still baffles me how they transform in a couple of weeks.
I watched this line for a good half an hour yesterday. If someone had asked me to spend half this time doing it, I would ask for money for the “pain”… or more honestly – I would have said I’m too busy. Now that I’ve done it, and thoroughly enjoyed it, I would pay to have the same simple pleasure again. Different birds were landing and taking off, disappearing into the blue sky, or the tree nearby.
Life can be very simple… We just forget to keep it that way.
With the weather changing every day, our gardens don’t know what to do… The Zenias didn’t do well at all. They lost their colour within a month and are now unfortunately due to be removed when I get a free weekend. The Alyssum however seems to love the colder weather. Even those in pots have filled up and are beautifully overflowing. I’m still and will always be addicted to their wonderful scent.
She’s all we talk about.
We’ve named her Sandy and she’s officially the newest resident in Mangaf. She made me walk for an hour last night. Today is her first day out in our garden – and what a day for it.
This bird is an aerobatics genious. Whenever we see him, he’s up there showing off his flying skill, and what a skill. He flies as high as possible – my guess is around 20-25 metres high – and would turn on himself by rolling in the air – head first! The children would say the RolyPoly pigeon is up.
This was taken just before sunset. It doesn’t look particularily difficult, but this photograph was a challenge. I wanted to show the movement of the bird – illustrating this using an atypical flying position. The low light and his high altitude made it a little tricky.
That wonderful scent of honey filling the space around this plant is what makes it one of my favourites for this time of year. I’m not sure why, but I seem to do better with the white variety and not so well with the purple. Great clusters of little white flowers contrasting with the bright green foliage means they’re always a nice addition wherever you choose to place them.
If you have empty pots lying around, or if a neglected bed is looking at you every time you’re in the garden, this is the perfect friend for the next few months. It grows beautifully, smells like a breeze from paradise and is very easy to care for (water it when it doesn’t rain). You shouldn’t pay more than 1KD for 7 shrubs. I only have little space and above are my 7 which joined us last Saturday.
Enjoy.
Meet Mr Brown, Noor’s favorite pigeon. In this photograph he looks a little evil, but he’s actually a lovely and friendly bird. My camera lens is invading his space, hence the temper.
You see, today he is a proud father of a new chick (if you look carefully, you can just see a bit of baby Brown) and tomorrow the second egg will hatch.
Personally, I only want to keep a few homing pigeons. I don’t race but I am fascinated by their amazing navigation and flying skills. The children however have other ideas – and of course I have to listen 
On days like this, I’m glad I do.
With the weather conditions finally changing, I have made my biannual change to the front flower beds. Previous heroes have been marigolds and patunias. This year I’m trying these beautiful Zenias.
I love the mini flowers within.
Meet Master (or Miss?) Softmint, the first pigeon born at ours and survived the critical early stage. The heat has been unbelievable, so this little one is a fighter. I posted pictures when he/she hatched and of the parents back in May.
This photograph was taken this morning. I would like to thank my younger brother for half the name – and the many other suggestions (even the silly ones).
I did not expect homing pigeons to be so different from their fancy cousins. The way they look around, stand, fly and think is astounding. I’ve sold 6 birds and replaced them with homers. They’re getting used to their new home ready to fly in September.
With the unrelenting summer heat, I thought it’s time to cool down the pages. I found this photograph I took of the gardenia last spring in the rain.
This the front of our house. The view has completely changed in the past few weeks and it will continue to do so. They’re working on the third floor! I will post about their progress on my Mangaf blog.
It doesn’t matter how many times I’ve seen this on TV nor the fact that I’ve learned about it at such a young age - it is simply fascinating. The egg hatched at 14 days. Welcome to the new addition. We’re thinking of names. Suggestions please.
Meet Jaafer, Yousef’s favourite bird. I’m posting this photograph so that Yousef can see it during his time away.
 | Marzouq on Getting High |
| Marzouq on Al Hamra |
| Marzouq on Reclaimed Land |
| Marzouq on In the Right Place at the Flig… |
| Marzouq on iTelephone |
