48 Hours in Bahrain
There are many exciting moments in the life of an artist and a dancer – huge stages, emotional performances, taking part in wonderful celebrations and weddings but among the most amazing opportunities are the travels! We’ve been all around Bulgaria and we’ve seen many big cities, small villages, landmarks, and beautiful sights – all thanks to our performances. Travel around the Balkans has become something usual for us too. One of the most exciting travels yet tho has to be our visit to beautiful Bahrain.
We were to perform our light show – Moonlight, in the most popular part of the capital city of Bahrain, Manama. The stage for our show was located in the perfect center of Bahrain Bay, in front of the skyscraper hotel “Four Seasons”.
In order to reach Bahrain, we were in for a long trip – two flights with a transfer in Istanbul. A whole day of planes, airports, a charming restaurant in the city center of Istanbul, and a lot of excitement for our next (and only full day) in Bahrain! Around 10:30 PM the wheels of the plane finally touched Bahraini soil and our first breath of air in Manama was filled with… unexpected heat and humidity. Even at night, the humidity in the air is through the roof! It took us some time to adjust. The next day was going to be all ours to see, look around and explore the local world as much as we can before we head to the venue of our show.
During the few free hours we had, we managed to see the most popular sights that Manama has to offer – one of the biggest mosques in the world, Al Fatih Mosque or also called the Great Mosque, the National Museum of Bahrain, and the Manama Suq. We also took some time to enjoy the views of the sea, the spectacular skyscraper skyline, and try some local food. Then it was show time!
We always arrive early before a performance, usually at least an hour. In Manama, we had planned even more time because of the unpredictable traffic. With our luggage ready to go (we were flying back right after the light show) – we arrived at Bahrain Bay. The preparations for a UV light show start with body paint, using UV paint. Something we didn’t consider tho was how hard painting becomes in high humidity and heat. We had already fallen in love with Bahrain so we quickly forgave him for these climate differences and started doing our body paint, unpacking all of the equipment, and generally preparing to deliver our best. The light show included two types of LED wings and LED feather fans. It’s hard to find words befitting to describe the emotion I felt as I set foot on the stage – with the breathtaking view around me and the audience in Bahrain cheering. The lights of the stage go out, only our UV lights to guide us in the dark, cue the music – now it really is show time!
After many and different emotions, great memories, and an unforgettable performance in front of a lovely audience, it was time to hop on a taxi and quickly say our goodbyes to Bahrain. These two days seemed like a whole week worth of experiences. We will see each other again for sure, Manama, but next time it will be for much longer!
