Cooking on weekends has always been a thing with me. I usually get up for fajr, make a hot herbal drink for the family using 12 ingredients, then juice some fruit and vegetables. By 7am I head to my daily haunt, Shangri la Dubai for a 15 min gym session and an hour in the sauna, steam and shower area relaxing usually with magazines.

By 10am I am back in the kitchen cooking a variety of dishes as I am lazy so having a few dishes mean it lasts a couple of days.

Today is a vegetarian Friday. I am making pumpkin, green moringa leaves with grated coconut, fried marinated aubergines with puri (fried bread).

A bit of a sinful menu since its Christmas but my main course of course is Christmas cake with soda.

I can be dull when it comes to Christmas and threw the tree out years ago but my resourceful child has managed to get her dad to help her transform my jewellery tree into a make shift decorated tree to host presents. She did 2 versions of what she called a twig and a Bush. Now I feel bad but I reckon it’s all good given that for once the tree is small enough to come down faster.

Oh well…looks like I’m getting something too. New Year is in a few days and I have to say I like the idea of new beginnings more…now a new years present is more my thing. Ideally something that would make 2021 much better and hopefully healthier world.

Eat cake, drink pops … that’s how we did Christmas in Fiji and thankfully we never cared about a tree or presents because the best things in life are actually not the material ones but the genuine love and care amongst the families. Here’s to an awesome festive season.