Friday 12 April 2024

We had a great direct flight from Sydney to Abu Dhabi on Etihad. Leaving at 9pm with a 5am arrival meant that we ate a bowl of pasta each en route to the airport and then went straight to sleep on board. No food, (almost) no drinks (well, none for her) and a good long sleep. We had enough Etihad points to grab a hotel room to cover the 40 hours we were in town. And not just any hotel either, but the Hyatt no less. On an island no less. One of the natural islands, not one of the many man made ones. Actually, it’s a rather large sand dune, but the Emirati imported lots of greenery to make it look natural. And, of course, the grounds of the hotel are spectacular

With its own beach. With lots of umbrellas

We are waiting at the breakfast room when they open at 6.30am. Please remember that it’s been nearly 24 hours since we ate, and we’ve worked up some steps since then. And, after breakfast, we are lucky enough to have a room allocated to us, so we can change into lighter clothing to accommodate the 30 degree heat.

Our room is a 4km walk from reception. Well, maybe not that far (don’t accuse me of exaggeration) but it’s a bloody long walk. After the return trek we took a cab into town and boarded the Big Bus for a 2 hour round trip. It’s still only 9am and the streets are deserted.

Clearly not much action at the Presidential Palace

Abu Dhabi is pretty much like the other UAE cities we have been to (Dubai and Doha) – that is clean (almost sterile), with lavish buildings and masses of construction work.

Most of the power is solar generated these days

And they have one nuclear power plant and are hoping that nuclear which will deliver 25% of power, However, meanwhile there are still plenty of old fashioned air conditioners around

There are two 7 star hotels in the city. Our minds boggled so much that we actually did not absorb the decadence, except this one fact…..if you order a cappuccino it will be dusted with gold rather than chocolate. Mohammed help those with amalgam fillings.

An ingenious way to mask the phone tower. Hard to identify reality from props

The only place that we were inclined to visit was The Louvre Abu Dhabi. Of course, the bus stop is a long walk from the entrance, which is at the end of a long walkway. Spectacular building though and worth the trek

The exhibition we enjoyed the most was From Kabila to La Fontaine a travel through fables. No photos though

Because The Louvre (and Ferrari Land, and Sea World, and Harry Potter World) the Abu Dhabi is building The Guggenheim right next door. They tell us it is to open soon

Seems to us there is a way to go yet

We got a taxi back to the hotel. The taxi rank is a good distance from the museum entrance of course. Once back at the Hyatt, we trekked to our room and then took a long walk to that beach. The life guard might have been forgiven for assuming a disabled whale had beached itself as I defied all odds by walking over the sand to have a swim in the Arabian Gulf. Glorious it was too, and again well worth the trek. Lots of people on the beach and not a budgie smuggler in sight. All board shorts on the blokes. Back to the 40m swimming pool for a dip and a laze. So far, this holiday is going well.

Saturday 13 April 2024

We couldn’t visit the Grand Mosque yesterday as it does not open to visitors on Friday morning and by 3pm we were well and truly frightening the natives on the beach. So today we went. It is an amazing piece of architecture

Of course, the taxi rank is a very long way from the entrance. So we trekked up to the Mosque, only to be directed back to the underground Souq. What a pair of souqs we are. Of course, to enter the Mosque we have to walk (and walk and walk) through the underground supermarket. Anything you might want is available here. And an awful lot of stuff you are unlikely to want. I suspect that the entrance to the Grand Mosque was the inspiration for the Ikea stores.

Having resisted all temptation, we eventually we see daylight again. It’s a sweltering day.

And windy

The Mosque is enormous. A long walk. Of course.

Oh my goodness, the interior

And in the spirit of goodwill, they even throw Christmas light on

It’s clearly a Mecca for selfies

Who knew the grim reaper had triplets?

Big brother is everywhere

For a moment I got excited, thinking I could quench my thirst

As we left we saw a snap of a pair of familiar faces, one in fabulous dress

So, having curtseyed, we walk all the way to the taxi rank. And, trust me (why wouldn’t you?) it’s a long walk.

Back at the hotel, we walk (a long way) to our room and then to the pool, where we swim and lay about reading. We reflect that all the people in Abu Dhabi have we have crossed paths with have been friendly and helpful and we’ve enjoyed our short time here very much.

Abu Dhabi rocks

Tonight we leave the hotel for our 1.30am flight to Berlin, via Istanbul. I have booked a car for 10pm and we are dutifully in the foyer at 9.45. But the car is not there by 10.10pm. The Concierge calls the 24/7 customer service number. Does anyone answer? Nup. It rings out. So we take a taxi to the airport. It’s a rather long queue for the Business Class check in. Can you even begin to imagine the queue for Economy Class? Anyway, we eventually get checked in and and retire to the lounge.

And it’s then evident that our flight is delayed. It’s also evident that I booked that no-turn-up car for 10pm the next night, confusing 1.30am as tonight. Silly me. We’ve read about the horrible stabbing at Bondi Junction, a Westfield with which we are so familiar. We are upset, of course, and can only imagine the dreadful grief of those involved.

After several hours delay we board our plane, along with the sweetest little dog. Hope he saw this sign before boarding

Before take off the delay is explained. Our pilot makes an announcement that due to the drones over Iran, our flight path has changed and we will not go anywhere near Iran air space but Saudi Arabia instead. This adds several hours to the flight time, and of course means we miss our connecting flight. Rather than arriving in Berlin at 9am we land at 3pm.

We have one of those taxi drivers who tries to squeeze two modest size suitcases into the boot, which is already filled with a baby seat and his supermarket shopping. I fear for his tomatoes. His drivers seat is back as far as it will go, and then he’s tilted it to 180 degrees. Cherrie is well and truly crushed, much like his tomatoes.

We arrive at our Berlin hotel, to a very friendly reception and lovely room. We are in the Western district of this large city, with lots of restaurants nearby. So, early meal and indeed we are so tired that we don’t even order wine with dinner. Not to be taken as a precedent. So, off to sleep in the most comfortable of beds. Berlin, here we are.