![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
beelikejWell, hello! Checking in with a picspam, because I've been on another amazing businesstrip! I went to Abu Dhabi for work and was fortunate enough to start with a weekend to explore this capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Here's day 1: I took the local bus into town, quickly figured out the place isn't made for walking outside, so I got on a Hop On/Hop Off bustour to see ALL the things :-)
Abu Dhabi Saturday 12 April 2025
Had a night flight, so at the end of the (Fri)day I took the train to the airport. Perk of the job: on public transport I get to travel first class and I had a traincompartment all to myself even! Met up with my co-worker at the airporst and saw a beautiful sunset. Boarding went smoothly, I had a middle seat, which I thought wouldn't matter during the night, but -omg- not ever doing that again if I can avoid it. Had some sleep, had some food. Arrived around 6:30 a.m.
A colleague from Germany arrived around the same time and had offered us a ride to the hotel in his rental car, very convenient! The temperature outside was 28 degrees Celsius, even early in the morning, pfff. (In the Netherlands it had been around 14 degrees)
Saw impressive structures along the way: the circular disk building of Aldar HQ is 121 meters tall, has 23 stories in a diagrid structural design. (MZ Architects, 2010)
Driving across Maqta Bridge, with a view of the 842m long Sheikh Zayed Bridge (Zaha Hadid) which is featured on the 100 dirham Emirati bill. In the water you see the Al Maqta’a Watchtower (early 19th century)
Arrived at the hotel and to my surprise the room was already available! I had prepared to just leave my backpack, but now I could properly freshen up before heading out! I got an amazingly huge room with a cornercouch.
I have never seen a bed this BIG! (and it was comfy too!). Lovely simple design with an archway in the hallway.
Not shown, but the bathroom had a massive rain shower and loads of fluffy towels. I learned later that housekeeping came around twice (2 times!) a day, it's a very fancy hotel. The building resembles a stingray; the photo is the big garden (looking at the back of the stingray).
I had breakfast (will do a separate post on all the luxurious buffets) and enjoyed the cool of the hotel, before asking for directions to the nearest busstop into town. (I had purchased a public transport Halifat card at the airport).
At reception they said I shouldn't walk to the busstop and offered me a ride on a golfcard to the hotel's gate (a fifteen minute walk away). How fancy! The busstop was just outside the gate.
Buses are very much like at home with a convenient location screen and announcements of busstops. Different was that the front section was reserved for woman traveling alone or families if needed. Men on their own then had to move to the back of the bus. The trip to town takes about an hour.
I get off near the mall and even though I only have to walk 300 meters I realize quickly I should avoid any walking if possible. It simply is too hot to move in the sun; that's why there is hardly anyone out in the streets. I'm glad I had already made an online booking for the Hop On Hop Off Bus, so I can start my exploring sitting down right away :-)
The full circle around town with an audio tour would take 1 hour and 50 minutes, but as the name says: you can hop on/hop off the bus as often as you like. I get on around 12:20.
First part of the tour was Saadiyat Island; here you see another bridge being built.
Great views over the water from the Sheikh Khalifa Bridge.
The three grey cube like buildings with the different designs together form the Abrahamic Family House, consisting of a mosque, a church and a synagoge. In the distance you can see the white wings of the Zayed National Museum which will open in 2026 (Foster + Partners).
The intricate dome design is the Abu Dhabi Louvre museum. Nearby the local version of the Guggenheim is being build. There's a lot of construction going on in Abu Dhabi.
This is the start of the Corniche area; a large boulevard along the water. Across the water at Mina Island a whole new neighbourhood arises. In the distance you can see the marina with some very tall buildings, we'll get to those later;-)
I hop off the bus at the Heritage Village stop, I will spend more time here tomorrow, so for now my focus is on the huge flagpole nearby, next to the Abu Dhabi theatre.
This peninsula is also the place where you have the best view of the Abu Dhabi Skyline!
I only walk into Heritage Village to buy souvenirs, this means I can focus on the cultural sights tomorrow;)
The marina with on the right the massive pink arched Rixos Marina Hotel and on the left the Sky Tower of the Marina Mall.
From the mall you can see how massive that flagpole next to Heritage Village really is!
I get off the bus again for a shop and lunch stop in the mall.
In front of the mall stands a shiny swordfish sculpture (unknown artist).
Only western food at the foodcourt, I opted for Popeye's, specialized in fried chicken en spicy fries. My menu included a (dry) biscuit bun and i had a Mountain Dew, which I don't remember having since the late eighties on my first visit to the U.S.A.!
Fun street art from the Hop on/Hop off bus and the Pearl & Ship sculpture in front of the breakwater.
Skyscrapers.
The Founder's Memorial is a garden, visitor centre and monument in honour of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan (first president of UAE from 1971-2004). In the Sanctuary Garden stands The Constellation, a collection of 1,327 geometric shapes suspended on 1,110 cables, which combine to form a three dimensional portrait of Zayed. (Designed by Ralph Helmick)
The falcon is the national bird of the UAE. IN the background of this roundabout you see buildings from the Qasr Al Watan, the presidential palace.
The brown busstops have air conditioning!
In the middle of town still stands the Qasr Al Hosn, a fort built in 1761 (Mohammed Al Bastaki) It was painted white during a restauration in 1976.
In the middle of Al Ittihad Square stand several sculptures symbolizing Emirati hospitality, from left to right: the dallah is a coffee pot with a long spout, the gülabdan is a sprinkler containing rosewater (a few drops of which are poured over the hands of those who have just finished their meal), the mabakhir is used to burn incense (offered to each visitor on departure).
I quite like the architecture of Abu Dhabi, there are a lot of different styles.
After a last round of bridges to and from Maryah Island, I'm back at the first stop of the Hop On/Hop Off bus main tour at 16:20 (4:20 p.m.). I just have enough time for a quick visit before I head back to the hotel.
This is my reflection and feet on the very shiny floor of the mall. It's massive, with again mostly western shops; the whole city is catering to expats, which is the majority of the people living here.
Wahey, a manhole cover with Abu Dhabi and Arabic on it! Showing off my new sparkly sandals :-)
I get back on another BigBusline for the Hop On/Hop Off bus straight from the citycentre to the big mosque. Instead of an hour on the citybus, this will take only half an hour.
One final view of Fountain Circle.
The name Abu Dhabi means 'Land of the Gazelle' in Arabic, hence the mural in the tunnel!
Often nicknamed “the pineapple buildings”, the Al Bahr Towers feature the Mashrabiya shading system, an unusual covering of 2,000 umbrella-like elements that open and close based on the direction of the sun. The screens' dynamic movement reduces solar gain by over 50 per cent, decreasing reliance on energy-intensive air conditioning and artificial lighting and significantly decreases operational carbon. (Design by AHR, formerly Aedas UK)
I'm on top of an open-air bus on the highway, weeeeeeh!
Another reason for me to take this busroute back is that is goes by the Mangrove Marine National Park.
Such green views!
Final stop of the HOHO bus: the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
As the bus enters the gate I realize I'm not ending up near the local busstop as I hoped.
Google tells me to walk around to the east side of the mosque for my busstop. I have splendid views along the way.
It's only a fifteen minute walk, but pretty hard in the heat, I try to enjoy the sights and shadows.
But when I find out Google sent me to the wrong busstop and I have to walk all the way back, it's not fun anymore. Instead of walking all around the massive mosque to find the right busstop, I decide it's easier to walk all the way back to the hotel across the big highway. Fortunately the sun is already going down, so it's not as blistering hot anymore (still bloody hot though).
It's not really suitable for pedestrians, but most of the way there is a sort of sidewalk; I do have to be careful crossing the intersections and highway exits. From the viaduct I can see the hotel in the distance.
Upon arrival at the gate of the hotel, an employee is nice enough to arrange a ride to the lobby for me, I'm very grateful.
At reception I ask if there is a pool and if it's still open and upon confirmation I rush to my room, put on my bathingsuit and get into the water: BLISS.
Unfortunately I only get half an hour in the pool before it closes, but at least I cooled down a bit from the hot walk! In my room I discover a bowl of fresh pears and treats! THIS IS THE LIFE OF LUXURY!
My souvenirs from today: tile magnets, a camel and redband gummibears with arabic text on the box :-)
I go to dinner (more on that in my food post to come) and meet up with the delegation from the UK who have just arrived.
We have one more free day before work starts; on Sunday we'll take a tour to the big mosque (by car, I'm not walking anymore!!). I'll share pictures in my next post.
To be continued!
J.
X-posted to https://beelikej.livejournal.com/586306.html
Lurk or comment wherever you like:)
Abu Dhabi Saturday 12 April 2025
Had a night flight, so at the end of the (Fri)day I took the train to the airport. Perk of the job: on public transport I get to travel first class and I had a traincompartment all to myself even! Met up with my co-worker at the airporst and saw a beautiful sunset. Boarding went smoothly, I had a middle seat, which I thought wouldn't matter during the night, but -omg- not ever doing that again if I can avoid it. Had some sleep, had some food. Arrived around 6:30 a.m.
A colleague from Germany arrived around the same time and had offered us a ride to the hotel in his rental car, very convenient! The temperature outside was 28 degrees Celsius, even early in the morning, pfff. (In the Netherlands it had been around 14 degrees)
Saw impressive structures along the way: the circular disk building of Aldar HQ is 121 meters tall, has 23 stories in a diagrid structural design. (MZ Architects, 2010)
Driving across Maqta Bridge, with a view of the 842m long Sheikh Zayed Bridge (Zaha Hadid) which is featured on the 100 dirham Emirati bill. In the water you see the Al Maqta’a Watchtower (early 19th century)
Arrived at the hotel and to my surprise the room was already available! I had prepared to just leave my backpack, but now I could properly freshen up before heading out! I got an amazingly huge room with a cornercouch.
I have never seen a bed this BIG! (and it was comfy too!). Lovely simple design with an archway in the hallway.
Not shown, but the bathroom had a massive rain shower and loads of fluffy towels. I learned later that housekeeping came around twice (2 times!) a day, it's a very fancy hotel. The building resembles a stingray; the photo is the big garden (looking at the back of the stingray).
I had breakfast (will do a separate post on all the luxurious buffets) and enjoyed the cool of the hotel, before asking for directions to the nearest busstop into town. (I had purchased a public transport Halifat card at the airport).
At reception they said I shouldn't walk to the busstop and offered me a ride on a golfcard to the hotel's gate (a fifteen minute walk away). How fancy! The busstop was just outside the gate.
Buses are very much like at home with a convenient location screen and announcements of busstops. Different was that the front section was reserved for woman traveling alone or families if needed. Men on their own then had to move to the back of the bus. The trip to town takes about an hour.
I get off near the mall and even though I only have to walk 300 meters I realize quickly I should avoid any walking if possible. It simply is too hot to move in the sun; that's why there is hardly anyone out in the streets. I'm glad I had already made an online booking for the Hop On Hop Off Bus, so I can start my exploring sitting down right away :-)
The full circle around town with an audio tour would take 1 hour and 50 minutes, but as the name says: you can hop on/hop off the bus as often as you like. I get on around 12:20.
First part of the tour was Saadiyat Island; here you see another bridge being built.
Great views over the water from the Sheikh Khalifa Bridge.
The three grey cube like buildings with the different designs together form the Abrahamic Family House, consisting of a mosque, a church and a synagoge. In the distance you can see the white wings of the Zayed National Museum which will open in 2026 (Foster + Partners).
The intricate dome design is the Abu Dhabi Louvre museum. Nearby the local version of the Guggenheim is being build. There's a lot of construction going on in Abu Dhabi.
This is the start of the Corniche area; a large boulevard along the water. Across the water at Mina Island a whole new neighbourhood arises. In the distance you can see the marina with some very tall buildings, we'll get to those later;-)
I hop off the bus at the Heritage Village stop, I will spend more time here tomorrow, so for now my focus is on the huge flagpole nearby, next to the Abu Dhabi theatre.
This peninsula is also the place where you have the best view of the Abu Dhabi Skyline!
I only walk into Heritage Village to buy souvenirs, this means I can focus on the cultural sights tomorrow;)
The marina with on the right the massive pink arched Rixos Marina Hotel and on the left the Sky Tower of the Marina Mall.
From the mall you can see how massive that flagpole next to Heritage Village really is!
I get off the bus again for a shop and lunch stop in the mall.
In front of the mall stands a shiny swordfish sculpture (unknown artist).
Only western food at the foodcourt, I opted for Popeye's, specialized in fried chicken en spicy fries. My menu included a (dry) biscuit bun and i had a Mountain Dew, which I don't remember having since the late eighties on my first visit to the U.S.A.!
Fun street art from the Hop on/Hop off bus and the Pearl & Ship sculpture in front of the breakwater.
Skyscrapers.
The Founder's Memorial is a garden, visitor centre and monument in honour of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan (first president of UAE from 1971-2004). In the Sanctuary Garden stands The Constellation, a collection of 1,327 geometric shapes suspended on 1,110 cables, which combine to form a three dimensional portrait of Zayed. (Designed by Ralph Helmick)
The falcon is the national bird of the UAE. IN the background of this roundabout you see buildings from the Qasr Al Watan, the presidential palace.
The brown busstops have air conditioning!
In the middle of town still stands the Qasr Al Hosn, a fort built in 1761 (Mohammed Al Bastaki) It was painted white during a restauration in 1976.
In the middle of Al Ittihad Square stand several sculptures symbolizing Emirati hospitality, from left to right: the dallah is a coffee pot with a long spout, the gülabdan is a sprinkler containing rosewater (a few drops of which are poured over the hands of those who have just finished their meal), the mabakhir is used to burn incense (offered to each visitor on departure).
I quite like the architecture of Abu Dhabi, there are a lot of different styles.
After a last round of bridges to and from Maryah Island, I'm back at the first stop of the Hop On/Hop Off bus main tour at 16:20 (4:20 p.m.). I just have enough time for a quick visit before I head back to the hotel.
This is my reflection and feet on the very shiny floor of the mall. It's massive, with again mostly western shops; the whole city is catering to expats, which is the majority of the people living here.
Wahey, a manhole cover with Abu Dhabi and Arabic on it! Showing off my new sparkly sandals :-)
I get back on another BigBusline for the Hop On/Hop Off bus straight from the citycentre to the big mosque. Instead of an hour on the citybus, this will take only half an hour.
One final view of Fountain Circle.
The name Abu Dhabi means 'Land of the Gazelle' in Arabic, hence the mural in the tunnel!
Often nicknamed “the pineapple buildings”, the Al Bahr Towers feature the Mashrabiya shading system, an unusual covering of 2,000 umbrella-like elements that open and close based on the direction of the sun. The screens' dynamic movement reduces solar gain by over 50 per cent, decreasing reliance on energy-intensive air conditioning and artificial lighting and significantly decreases operational carbon. (Design by AHR, formerly Aedas UK)
I'm on top of an open-air bus on the highway, weeeeeeh!
Another reason for me to take this busroute back is that is goes by the Mangrove Marine National Park.
Such green views!
Final stop of the HOHO bus: the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
As the bus enters the gate I realize I'm not ending up near the local busstop as I hoped.
Google tells me to walk around to the east side of the mosque for my busstop. I have splendid views along the way.
It's only a fifteen minute walk, but pretty hard in the heat, I try to enjoy the sights and shadows.
But when I find out Google sent me to the wrong busstop and I have to walk all the way back, it's not fun anymore. Instead of walking all around the massive mosque to find the right busstop, I decide it's easier to walk all the way back to the hotel across the big highway. Fortunately the sun is already going down, so it's not as blistering hot anymore (still bloody hot though).
It's not really suitable for pedestrians, but most of the way there is a sort of sidewalk; I do have to be careful crossing the intersections and highway exits. From the viaduct I can see the hotel in the distance.
Upon arrival at the gate of the hotel, an employee is nice enough to arrange a ride to the lobby for me, I'm very grateful.
At reception I ask if there is a pool and if it's still open and upon confirmation I rush to my room, put on my bathingsuit and get into the water: BLISS.
Unfortunately I only get half an hour in the pool before it closes, but at least I cooled down a bit from the hot walk! In my room I discover a bowl of fresh pears and treats! THIS IS THE LIFE OF LUXURY!
My souvenirs from today: tile magnets, a camel and redband gummibears with arabic text on the box :-)
I go to dinner (more on that in my food post to come) and meet up with the delegation from the UK who have just arrived.
We have one more free day before work starts; on Sunday we'll take a tour to the big mosque (by car, I'm not walking anymore!!). I'll share pictures in my next post.
To be continued!
J.
X-posted to https://beelikej.livejournal.com/586306.html
Lurk or comment wherever you like:)