Mikee and we wanted to visit Mikee’s birth-mother, Amor, who works in Abu Dhabi. But it was really difficult to arrange a visa until she became our daughter and got a British citizenship and also a Swedish passport. Now we decided to go to meet Amor during Mikee’s second week of half term. The previous week we had been to Piedmont in Italy to pick and eat white truffle. Mikee and Amor met up on their own for a couple of days and we had a dinner together, all of us.
Meanwhile Jennifer, Eric and I explored Abu Dhabi. I have to admit it wasn’t our favourite place. Everything was new and felt to us a little bit vulgar with old the ostentatious display of money and gold. But we found a couple of gems too. My photos illustrate our visits to Emirates Palace, the most opulent hotel I think we had ever visited. But among all the gold (see photos) we also visited twice a Lebanese restaurant that performed extremely well both visits (it was so good we had to go back with Mikee for a second meal).
And opposite our hotel (Shangri-La) Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque was standing with four minarets rising more than 100 metres above ground. the courtyard of 17,000 square metres has the largest marble mosaic in the world. We went there one evening to see it lit up against the dark sky.
And the last day all of us went on desert tour. As touristic as it was, the kids enjoyed it. We went racing over the sand dunes and said hello to the camels (actually dromedars, as I learned on my desert trips a few years ago) and finished the days off with a BBQ in the desert. But all of us found the heat (35 degrees and humid) a little bit too much to handle after the previous week in Piedmont with 20 degrees and a dry climate.
Emirates Palace viewed from the beach
The central hall of the palace with the enormous dome at the top
Opulence has got a new dimension
One of the courtyards of Emireates Palace
A fountain playing in the garden
The garden
Mikee and Eric on the beach with the yacht harbour behind
The staircase hall
Eric and Mama waiting for Papa to finish his photography in the Libanese restaurant
The first lunch we had in the Libanese restaurant. Mikee was with Amor doing their own things, but the second day we had to bring Mikee along. The restaurant was really first class.
Outside the palace the skyscrapers competed with each other who was the tallest and grandest
The Grand Mosque, new ly built seen from across the water
Inside the central courtyard of the mosque. We visited in the evening, when the light was magnificent.
The Central courtyard of the grand mosque, One of the largest mosques in the world
Mikee, Eric and Jennifer walking around the mosque
Jennifer, Eric and Mikee dressed appropriately for the moque
The Central Prayer Hall in the mosque
The last day we did an excursion into the desert and said hello to the camels (dromedars)
With the dromedars
Mikee and Eric venturing out into the desert.
Posing at sunset
Mama and Eric
Sand boarding in the desert
Belly dancing must be obligatory in a program entertaining the tourists
The dancer was very skilled
And so was the gentleman who could turn around at high speed in the same direction continuously for what felt like half an hour.