We made the obligatory visit to the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, completed in 2007. It was gigantic, but it was beautiful. There were many visitors, maybe because we were there on a Ramadan Friday with shorter visiting hours. There was an army of workers to manage the crowd. Most of them don't look to be volunteers. The visit is completely free, except they have built an underground shopping center with a food court for visitors to file through.
Abu Dhabi may derive one third of its GDP from oil and Dubai less than one percent. We could feel the difference acutely on this brief visit.
We rode the bus from Dubai to Abu Dhabi, about one hour and thirty minutes. Took some cool pics thanks to the tinted windows of the bus. At the green, modern, Abu Dhabi Main Bus Station, we bought a transit card and then took a local bus to our downtown hotel.
After settling in, we headed to the promenade along the Persian Gulf for a sunset walk.
Then we headed inland back to our hotel enjoying the city lights.
The next day we rode the free tourist bus from our hotel to the Emirates Palace Hotel area. There several monumental hotels and resorts, and beautiful views over the Persian Gulf.
Finally, another two buses to the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque which on Ramadan Fridays was open only from 3pm to 6pm, and 9pm to 11pm. Crowded. Entry is free but controlled with ticketed entry times. The floral inlays are amazing, not to mention the luxurious carpet in the inner halls.
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