The Splendor of Beautiful Abu Dhabi

Saturday. We were picked up in the lobby of our hotel at 8:30 a.m. by tour company for our day trip to Abu Dhabi. Three other ladies (mom and two daughters) were with us. They were from Sweden. It is a 1 hour, 40 minute drive. The drive out of the city this morning was eye-popping as we had not seen this part of the city before. Ralph was the only man on board so got the front seat and was able to do videotaping as we drove along. The highways are beautiful, the scenery so very different from what we see at home. We were surprised to see what a beautiful city Abu Dhabi is - much more picturesque than Dubai, lots of landscaping and beauty. Our driver was very informative, pointing out landmarks all the way. Upon arrival, our first stop was at the Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Mosque. It is breathtakingly beautiful! Many tour busses and tourists were there. All ladies are provided with the long black gown and black headscarf upon entry and everyone has to take their shoes off. Everything is white marble, each of the huge chandeleirs contains 1,000,000 crystals, lots of gold. It's really hard to describe. However, Ralph got lots of pictures which we will post when we get home and also, our tour guide took lots of pictures with both of us in them today. I guess we spent about an hour at this mosque which apparently is supposed to be the most beautiful mosque in the world. I can't imagine topping it. Our next stop was Heritage Village and we spent about an hour there as well. Then we went to Corniche. The Corniche is a long road that extends almost 6 km from the Sheraton Hotel to the Hilton Hotel along the shore of the Arabian Gulf. There are several gardens lined all along the Corniche around the coastal boulevard that borders the city. The ruler of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, loves greenery, and gardens and fountains are the result of that love. The other important feature of the city is the fountains that can be seen on every intersection of the Corniche. With the modern buildings facing the sea for the background, it is one of the most picturesque sites in Abu Dhabi. Some of the sensational sandy beaches of Abu Dhabi are located along the seafront Corniche. After that, our driver dropped us off at Marina Mall (biggest mall in Abu Dhabi) so that we could have lunch in the food court. He gave us one hour and that was plenty of time for lunch and a pee break. After lunch, and last but not least, he took us to Emirates Palace. WOW! In fact, it used to be a palace, but was then handed over to a hotel chain and it is now a hotel. It took about another good hour to tour this place and it was wow, wow, wow! Again, pictures to follow. We then drove by the President's palace. You're not allowed to even take pictures out of the car window; there's an armed guard at the gate. We arrived back in Dubai and to our hotel about 3:30 p.m.

Rested/relaxed for a few hours and went out again about 6:30. We stopped at Union Square to take a picture when a man offered to take it for us (with both of us in it). We talked to this man for one whole hour, he was very interesting. He was born and raised in Montana; however hates the States and hasn't been home for 20 years. He lives in India, that is his home. He sure had a host of interesting stories to tell. He is a professor but is retired now (taught 1500's English literature and poetry, yuk!). He sure has led an interesting life, we really enjoyed visiting with him and hearing his stories. Went out for supper to one of the outdoor cafes. Lots of people out because it is the weekend. Also, the annual Dubai Shopping Festival started this weekend and will be on for a month, with many bargains to be had, except I haven't had time to do any shopping yet. Tonight where we were eating, a parade came by with all kinds of stuff and a stage was set up nearby with entertainment and there was fireworks, etc.

It's now 11:00 p.m. and we just got back to the hotel and are off to bed as we have to get up at 5:30 in the morning for our trip to the country of Oman.