Ships of the Desert -- Tues, 10/31/17

Camel riding day!  The four of us were picked up promptly at 8 by our guide (this one from Pakistan!), and rode in an air-conditioned jeep to the Desert Conservation Reserve.  On the way, we passed more spectacular Dubai skyscrapers, and when we left the city, we truly left the city.

Our view became sand and occasional native grass or trees.  The drive was about an hour, half of it being stuck in traffic. Our guide was full of information.  We remarked about all the construction we saw, and he replied that Dubai has 22% of the world’s cranes in use. The greenery we saw roadside and beyond has been planted and is watered, for beauty’s sake, mile upon mile upon mile.

This protected environment reserve is the UAE's first national park!  It was developed to protect endangered species, specifically the Arabian Oryx, Arabian Gazelle and Sand Gazelle.

Arabian Oryx.  We saw several.

Yup, it's desert, all right!

Two teams of three tethered camels each led by a white-clad camelteer (we picked the pretty one!) Two people to a muzzled camel, me in front, Jimmy behind, was rocking good fun.

You see an antelope in the background.
The desert was beautiful.

More antelope.

We rode these ships of the desert (aptly named) to a man-made oasis, created for the animals, the Oryx and antelopes, birds and other critters, and us humans.

Time to get off the camel for Bernice and Ibby!

Seated on low cushions, we were served a light refreshing breakfast. I watched the birds (of course), especially the White Cheeked Bulbuls, and another unidentified wren-like bird scamper across the sand.

White-cheeked Bulbul.

Time for us to get off the camel and it's an art. Luckily, no one was hurt! Much fun, lots of laughter. All the camels exercised bodily functions the entire way! 

We didn’t get back to our hotel till around noon, then pack and stow our luggage after checkout. We’d depart for the airport at 5 for our 10pm flight to Delhi. Figuring we wouldn’t get fed dinner, we returned to the camel burger place to eat (but not camel burgers!). At the airport, we met up with many of our fellow Road Scholar travelers. In Delhi, we officially start our three-week India tour.

So, we sad goodbye to the muezzin from the minaret in front of our hotel calling at dawn (though it's no longer a live person ... the prayers are recorded and broadcast). We really enjoyed Dubai, but not its smog.  Next up -- India!

Souks and Delicious Dubai -- Monday, 10/30/17

We had no tour scheduled until 4pm, so we were free to explore Dubai on our own. We made our way toward the old city and its souks, with the intention of walking to Dubai Creek (river). The day dawned hot and smoggy, so we tried to keep to the shade as much as possible. A visit to the coffee museum took about three minutes as there wasn’t much to it. We wandered through alleys, passing sights we’d never see in America -- shadowy, silent women on missions unknown to us, turbaned men hugging walls as they moved along. We got turned around several times in the narrow alleys, not able to tell north from south, east or west, but it was high morning and the alleys weren't dark or scary. Instead, we saw flowers and murals. As we approached the souk (market place), the scene changed, became crowded with vendors, huts and hawkers. Crowded with shopping saris and curious tourists.

First we stopped at the Dubai Museum, but the inside was ill-lit, making the exhibits difficult to view, so we didn't hang around very long.  I did find the info on Dubai Creek interesting.

Jimmy's real.  The camel ain't!

The creek (now a river) wasn’t a long distance from our hotel, though it took us half the morning to get there! We were to meet our tour guide on the opposite side of the river, so we located the ferry and made the crossing. It was hot. We felt overheated. We stopped at a marginal-appearing spot on earth for a fruit “smoothie” drink, its coolness a relief. Outside we ate our granola bars and began looking around. 

I can't remember if I mentioned that Dubai, with all its super-mode construction, also seems to be the "crane" capital of the world!  22% of the world's cranes are operating here.

The gold souk alley was on the way to our meet-up spot at the subway. Making our way through, hawker hands reached out to us at each shop, beckoning us in. “Come mama," was one I heard ... "come see." ... something we heard repeated many times. Staring straight ahead let them know we weren’t interested and they drifted back to await the next potential mark. It wasn’t really bothersome as we knew to expect it. Besides, none of us could afford the gold we saw!  (see below)

Mickey and Jimmy -- in Dubai!

We arrived early at the subway, so Bernice and I waited inside in blessed air conditioning. The guys didn't mind waiting in the outdoor heat.  Dean arrived promptly at 4pm for the Delicious Dubai (walking) tour.  A young guy, Dean hailed from the Philippines. Yesterday our guide to Abu Dhabi was from India.  Seems that only ten percent of the people in Dubai are Emirati's.  The other 90% "ex-pats" they call themselves, come from India, Pakistan, and the Philippines.  (who knew?)  

We’d already put miles on our feet, but we’d be fed in unusual and cool establishments. I can’t tell you what we ate, because I didn’t know or understand much of it when I heard it. 

Into the spice souk ....

Recrossing the river, where we'd make our last stop.

Everyone’s favorite was the hummus and tabbouleh at our first stop, Turkish coffee at the second, chocolate covered dates at the third, rose tea and appetizers following, and we stared in disbelief at the camel cheeseburger with fries plates that were set in front of us at the last stop. We could do no more than taste, already stuffed. We agreed -- the last should’ve been the first. 

Gotta love the salt n pepper shakers!

Luckily our hotel was nearby, we bid Dean goodbye, went to our rooms and collapsed on our beds! We knew we had an 8am tour the following morning! It's been a blast.  Goodnight.

Burj Khalifa -- Sunday 10/29/17

I wasn't sure if I wanted to ride an elevator to the 125th floor of the world's tallest skyscraper, the Burj Khalifa, but decided to go with the flow. Or as the British say, in for a penny, in for a pound. The Burj is most impressive from a distance ... a long way from it's base. In a sea of tall and architecturally superior structures, Burj Khalifa is heads and shoulders above the rest, so to speak. Up close, it's just a tall building.

We bought tickets and joined the queue, but the wait wasn't excessive.  Like waiting for a Disney ride on a slow day.  Only this elevator ride would whisk us up 125 feet in 60 seconds.  We were packed in, but not claustrophobic.  Our booking was for 4:30pm, so we could watch the sunset over Dubai.  We didn't know the air would be so smoggy that we'd see no sunset. 

From our aerie, it was quite amazing to look down on towering buildings.  Most of these pictures are shot from inside Floor 125, looking through glass.  We had to worm our way to the front at times to get close.

Yes, the water really was this color.  These two pics (above and below) were taken on the outside observation deck.  Nope, it wasn't scary to be out there ... although I'm always glad to feel the earth under my feet after descending from any building or plane!

Much of what we saw and what you see in these photos is new; i.e., built within the past few years.  Modern Dubai dates roughly ten years or less.  Come back in a few years, and Dubai will have reinvented itself again.

These skyscrapers are themselves quite tall.

I didn't lean on the glass!

We felt no building "sway."

Sometimes it's good to be small, as it made squeezing in to shoot the last of the sun's rays easier.  As I mentioned, we'd hoped for beauty, but the sunset was unimpressive.  Hey! now we can say, "been there, done that."

Seeing Dubai's nighttime lights wink on made our Burj Khalifa trip worthwhile.  The 360°  sight was beautiful.

At the bottom, looking up ...

the eyes can only see so far as the structure narrows as it rises.

As we walked away toward a taxi stand, Ibby took our photo.  At least I think he took OUR photo.  Who do you see? 😁

Lit like a giant candle, we left the Burj.  Can you see Jimmy waving?  A last note:  Saudi Arabia is fashioning their own "world's tallest structure."  Because everything in Dubai is tallest, biggest, longest, strongest, most modern, they did not take becoming second-best kindly.  They are now planning yet another skyscraper ... to be the tallest in the world.  Some of you are saying, "big whoop," but I tell you true, the architects have done wonders in this area and have created spectacles of beauty.  Come and see for yourself!

Abu Dhabi -- Sunday, 10/29/17

A few months ago when Bernice booked an all-day Saturday tour of Dubai, she didn't factor in the day we'd lose traveling ... so, we'd be up in the air somewhere between Newark and Dubai on Saturday.  Needless to say, that tour was canceled.  Instead we changed it to a Sunday tour of Abu Dhabi, specifically to see the glorious grand mosque.  Our tour guide, Vibha, from With Locals, would be our lead.  As I mentioned in my previous post, the drive from Dubai to Abu Dhabi took much longer than I anticipated ... maps can be so deceiving!  Toe-to-toe traffic was also an issue.

Sheikh Zayed Mosque!  This amazing building, located in Abu Dhabi (the capital city of the UAE), is considered the key site for worship in the country.  Believe it or not, the mosque is large enough to accommodate over 40,000 worshippers!  The main prayer hall can hold over 7,000, with two smaller prayer halls, each with a capacity of 1,500, and one of which is the women's prayer hall.

When we met Vibha at our hotel (8am), I wore a light-weight cotton shirt, perfect for the hot day ahead.  No, she said, it was "too see-through."  I returned to my room on the eighth floor and changed into a heavier shirt (great for cool days), as you see above.  Bernice and I both had our scarves.

Well, my shirt sleeves didn't reach to my wrists, so if I wanted admittance to the mosque, I had to don this long garment (abaya) over my shirt.  Don't even bother to ask me if I was plenty warm!  Jimmy and Ibby both wore long pants and short-sleeved shirts, no problem.  Seems a little unfair, but that's the way it is here.  I'm not sure what I look like in this frock.

Any discomfort I felt was worth touring the beautiful, almost palace-like mosque.  The mosque is open to the public, and we were five among many.  Tourists, like us, some in the same abaya because their dress was too immodest, as well as many of the faithful; again, dressed as they would every day.

Bernice, Ibby, Jimmy, and yours truly, barely recognizable.

I cannot begin to describe the grandeur, the sweeping size, and all the intimate details we saw. Really, you have to see it in person.

One of the seven chandeliers.  I loved this one.

The carpet (I forget the details, but see below) has "lines" every so often where the men kneel to pray.  You've seen rows of men in photos?  They put their feet where Vibha has her toes and kneel from that point.  Some distance away is the next line, and so on.

From Wikipedia:  The carpet in the main prayer hall (above) is considered to be the world's largest carpet made by Iran's Carpet Company.  It measures 60,570 sq ft, and was made by around 1,200-1,300 carpet knotters. The weight of the carpet is 35 tons and is predominantly made from wool (originating in New Zealand and Iran). There are 2,268,000,000 knots within the carpet and it took approximately two years to complete.  For us it was simply breathtaking.  I believe it is seamed together in only three places!

These small representatives of the intricate detail work don't show size.  Some are very large, others are almost dainty.

More extravagance:  Seven imported chandeliers from Munich, Germany, incorporate millions of Swarovski crystals ... the largest of which (above) is the second largest known chandelier inside a mosque, the third largest in the world at 33 ft in diameter and 49 ft high.  And it is stunning!

Inside the main prayer hall.

Sorry the lighting doesn't show off the carpet.

The prayer clock ... calling the faithful to prayer five times a day.  The time changes each day, adjusting to sunrise and sunsets throughout the year.

The 96 columns in the main prayer hall are clad with marble and inlaid with mother of pearl, one of the few places to see this craftsmanship.  Golf leaf is used at the top.

The tour lasted an hour or more.  So many facts, not retained in the memory bank, but the pictures are a fine reminder (and I have lots more pics!).  Some areas were off limits and strict officials made sure no one offended.  But, you could stay and gawk as long as you wanted.  The outside was as beautiful as the inside.  For two years running, the mosque was voted the world's second favorite landmark by Trip Advisor.  I wonder what was the first.

A few more bits of info you may find interesting:  Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque's design and construction "unites the world", using artisans and materials from many countries including India, Italy, Germany, Egypt, Turkey, Morocco, Pakistan, Malaysia, Iran, China, UK, New Zealand, Republic of Macedonia and the UAE.  More than 3,000 workers and 38 renowned contracting companies took part in the construction of the mosque. Natural materials were chosen for much of its design and construction due to their long-lasting qualities, including marble, stone, gold, semi-precious stones, crystals and ceramics.   It was built by the Italian company Impregilo.

When we departed, we visited the Ferrari museum and saw the world-famous Formula One race track, something I know nothing about, but it excited Jimmy.  We had lunch and then returned to Dubai, where Vibha dropped us off at The Mall.  No, we did NOT go skiing!

Next up?  Where we went afterward!