November 23: 🚢
Post Cruise Land Excursion: Abu Dhabi
No trouble finding Kitchen6 this morning and no trouble being confused as "Mr and Mrs Chang." Can't say it was "leisurely", but it was enjoyable (we only looked at the Donut Wall) and we were actually early for the 8.15 meet up with @Achmed for our day in the adjoining Emirate of Abu Dhabi.
And reality is setting in because we received a reminder to "check in" for our flight which departs at 2.50 am tomorrow morning. It was definitely going to be another big day as the finale for our Divine Destinations adventure.
Today was another two-hour transit and @Achmed had the microphone warmed up and kept our heads reeling with information as we navigated the predictable traffic of Dubai and then high tailed it towards the collection of islands that is Abu Dhabi via an open freeway. So many details were shared about the history and development of this Emirate and the royal family and their contribution to its growth and importance in the region. We were constantly on the lookout for the hints that we had made the "crossing" to the other side: changed road colour to red, flower shape on the overhead light fittings, the continuous wall and a change in speed limit from 120 max to 140 max in Abu Dhabi. Not that it mattered, the buses were limited to a maximum of 80 kms per hour in both Emirates - so we were plodding along in the right-hand lane with plenty of time to spot the differences.
Dubai is all lights and towers, glitter and gold, fast cars and traffic jams and shopping, shopping and shopping. It is busy, busy, busy. Abu Dhabi appears to be much "calmer" - we drove past beaches and circled huge round-abouts dripping with colour and flowers, saw loads of minarets dotting the skyline rather than the wall-to-wall high rise of Dubai.
Having said that, the grand gesture to tourism was no less grand. In fact, the sites we visited today were breath-taking.
The only busy, busy, busy, was our schedule. @Achmed had us all hopping - including the driver. He had to have us back in Dubai by 6.30 because some guests were checking out for the airport at 8 pm. So there was very little wriggle room. And an hour at each of these destinations was definitely not enough.
Covering up for the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
The visit to the Grand Mosque presented the first challenge of the day. Have no idea how or why I wasn't prepared but there you go. Ladies needed to be covered head to toe - and that included long pants to cover the legs, a scarf to cover the hair and SLEEVES to cover the arms to the wrist. I was caught a little short and had to be creative. Lucky, I had a pair of 3/4 pants in the backpack and with a little bit of creative and collaborative dressing - and very demanding encouragement from the female staff at the entrance gate - the legs of my trousers became my sleeves. And in the hustle and bustle of the visit - who would even know!
The organisation here was incredible. The bus pulled up in the carpark and then a large glass dome was the entrance way - it covered the escalators which takes everyone underground to the "mall" which has loads of shops including those selling appropriate dress if you wanted to buy something head to toe. Crowded with people and everyone heading in the same direction to the people mover which then shuffled the crowds to the entrance of the Grand Mosque.
It is hard to put into words how beautiful this place was - it was definitely a statement!
The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is one of the world's largest mosques and it features 82 marble white domes, more than 1 000 columns and four soaring minarets, the world's largest hand knotted carpet and gold gilded chandeliers featuring Swarovski crystals. There wasn't a surface here that wasn't a work of art in its own right - walls, floors, carpets, doors, lights, tiles, domes, gardens, fountains, archways, door, handles .... just the sheer scale of everything - incredible. We took hundreds of photos - I am not sure why now - certainly the professional photos online are better than anything we can capture - but it was so compelling, so incredibly over the top, glorious.
The late Sheikh, the founding father of the UAE was laid to rest here and in his honour, the Quran is read inside his mausoleum 24 hours a day. The mosque accommodates 10 000 in the internal prayer room and a further 31000 in the external areas. We saw it in the day - but spectacularly, the night lighting of the external walls of the Mosque is designed to emulate the phases of moon. There are twenty-two light spires casting different colours on the building in tune with the changing 28-day cycle of the moon.
I am so grateful I had my pants legs for sleeves - would have been very sad to miss this one. Certainly takes your breath away.
Qasar Al Watan - The Presidential Palace
Just when you thought it couldn't get any bigger - it did! This working palace is the home to the UAE Supreme Council and the Federal Cabinet. It hosts state visits and official events.
Like the Grand Mosque, the exterior here is a pure white - this time granite and limestone rather than marble and again, the white was chosen to symbolize peace and purity.
The bus pulled up at the Visitor Centre and then a fleet of smaller minibuses transport you through the grounds and gardens and delivers you to the main concourse. You enter through HUGE doors (@Mac was dwarfed) and head straight into the Great Hall. It is 100 m x 100 m and its main dome is one of the largest in the world with a diameter of 37 meters.
OMG .....
Again, every surface here is a work of art. Gold everywhere, wide expansive open spaces - everything was a shout to "impress." We were able to see the Al Barja Mailis meeting room (seating capacity of 300 in neat blue rows), the House of Knowledge, the Presidential Gifts Gallery, the Banquet Hall and the Library. And in one of the arms just beside the Great Hall was a beautiful gold structure called "The Power of Words." It was an open circular formation that was created by interlacing words from an Arabic quote by Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nayan that says "Wealth is not money or oil, wealth lies in the people and it is worthless if not dedicated to serve the people."
(As an aside - this would be a perfect time (without ears in the walls) to talk about the wealth and lifestyle of the 1 million Emirates compared with the 9 million non-citizens of the UAE. Two totally different sets of circumstances and choices. There is a definite divide in terms of entitlement and government support.)
We roamed the halls, head tilted back, in absolute awe of the wealth and decadence on display here. This building has no "history" .... yet ... but the thought is that in 1000 years it will still be standing and will be a legacy of the impact of "oil" on the wealth and modernisation of this Emirate.
Another venue. Another place that simply takes your breath away.
Afternoon: lunch and the Louvre
Moved onto lunch in the Conrad Hotel in the Etihad Towers. Again, can't believe the food we are offered at every venue. Row upon row of choices and the grand finale was a chocolate fountain and we enjoyed choices from all 8 aisles and had the pleasure of a glass fronted dining room that overlooked an infinity pool - complete with lifesavers!
Last tourist stop was a sprint around the Louvre Abu Dhabi. The UAE and France created a partnership for cultural exchange. It is surrounded by water and features an impressive flat dome - billed as a floating dome of light and shade. It is a complex structure of some 7850 stars that are repeated in various sizes and at different angles. The idea was to create the effect of sitting under a palm tree - as light filters through the perforations in the dome, the "stars" filter the light and create a constant changing dappled pattern on the ground.
There were actually 12 galleries to explore across 4 wings - we had no chance in our allocated hour. Found ourselves in two main galleries including a special display "Impressionism: Pathways to Modernity" featuring the works of Manet. Degas, Renoir and Cezanne. There were 150 masterpieces displayed alongside etchings, costumes, film and photography.
Found a few favs before venturing out into Wing 4 to look at some modern installations. Admitting that we were so rushed, we were more concerned with making sure we could find our way out and get back to the meeting point in time rather than taking in the detail of the exhibits. Way too much real estate to cover in 60 minutes.
Run down to getting home
Once we were on that bus and making our 2-hour way back to Dubai our attention was geared towards the airport and home.
Did arrive back at the JW Marriott at 7 pm through predictable crawling traffic and worked on a shared schedule with @LoRi. They don't leave until tomorrow night - but for us - it is all over red rover. We had an 11.20 pm hotel transport pickup ready for our 2.50 am flight departure. All the plans were geared towards "staying awake" so that we can enjoy some zzzs on the flight home.
Headed back to our room to pack the bags - involved a fair bit of shuffling to get the weight distribution between bags "just right" and then met downstairs in the cafe for a light dinner at 8.15.
Think the dinner we had of toasted sandwiches, flat bread and a bagel ranks as one of the most expensive meals we have had in a long time - a toasted ham and cheese sanga was just shy of $40 AUD. Don't even think about a wine - it was $46 AUD a glass! Collectively voted that "we didn't care" and just enjoyed our last shared dinner of this trip.
Rounded out the evening with "a last deep bath" and showers and we reported right on the dot of 11 pm to the foyer - as instructed in our documentation from Regent. There were hundreds of people swinging in and out of those revolving doors - this town literally does not sleep. We saw plenty of drivers collecting all sorts of airline personnel but it got to the stage that we were the only ones with luggage left 11.20 pm in the foyer so @Mac thought it was time to start asking questions. He checked at the Transport Desk, with the Concierge and finally at the Bell Hop Desk. No-one had any answers and we were thinking of jumping a cab and going solo.
At last, a driver did locate us - he had looked at the Regent Seven Seas Desk and called our room without luck. We were fortunate that the staff of the Marriott were on the ball and had pointed him to the only two people with luggage in the foyer.
All aboard and smooth sailing to the airport where again we were surprised by the volume of people. Think this airport must operate 24/7.
All went well until we reached the Passport check queue and we encountered a stern-faced employee who directed us to a separate area because there was an anomaly with our passports. Apparently, because we had entered through Fujairah we needed an "exit" stamp from that Emirate before we could be given an exit authority from Dubai. We were the fourth couple in the "waiting" lounge and it took about 15 minutes for the anomaly to be sorted and we were then through and looking for our gate to settle in and pass away the 90 minutes till boarding. Guess everyone on Regent will get the same re-direction as they try to depart - so we gave @LoRi the heads up on what to expect.
Only 13 hours and 50 minutes until our direct flight delivers us to Brisbane. We have the window and the middle seat - hope the person on the aisle loves frequent toilet stops!
Weather: 31 and hot under 4 layers, head to toe, at the Grand Mosque
Steps: 17 832
#RegentSevenSeasExplorer #RegentSevenSeas #RegentCruise
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