Abu Dhabi

On our last day in the UAE we took an hour taxi ride to Abu Dhabi to visit the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque which is the largest Mosque in the country.  Even from the highway you could see that it was pretty spectacular.  

Outside the front entrance

All white with gold detailing we arrived shortly after it opened and there were already quite a few people and tour groups there.  This is the only Mosque in Abu Dhabi that non-Muslims can enter and they have a couple tours set up to give you more information on Islam and their customs.  

Once inside the first entrance it opens to this courtyard

Women had to cover their heads and the rest of their bodies with only your feet, hands and faces being shown.  Men had a dress code as well, but it was not as strict and nothing was said about children. 

The Mosque was stunning in architecture and colors.  We were required to take our shoes off once inside the main entrance.  

There were hundreds of cubbies for shoes. 

There were security guards throughout and men walking around making sure no one broke the rules.  Adalyn brought along her Barbie with her and half way through our visit she took Barbie’s clothes off.  

One man saw the naked Barbie and advised that we had to put it away.  I was a bit surprised but understood that a naked Barbie was not quite in line with their views.  

The attention to detail was impeccable with gorgeous chandeliers plus the marble floors and walls were inlaid with flowers and vines.  There was so much more of the Mosque that we were not allowed to see.  

The walls were detailed all throughout 

After an hour and a half of taking as many pictures as I could, still not being able to fit the entire Mosque into the screen of my camera we exited and I was relieved to take my long sleeves and head scarf off to cool down. 

After the Mosque we stopped by the Emperors Palace which had originally been built for one of the Kings but he decided to turn it into a luxury hotel.  

Open to day visitors we stopped by for a picnic lunch and to take in the hotel and grounds.  We had to go through metal detectors and sadly there were quite a few places that day visitors were restricted from entering so I did not feel like we got to see much. 

We spent the final afternoon playing at the beach.  Adalyn loves the waves and building in the sand.  We watched the sky divers as there is a popular sky diving school right next to the beach.  About 12 people would jump at a time and this went on every half hour.  I was able to capture some great photos of the skyline and Grant enjoyed his feet in the sand and did not eat any this time.

The city lights were beautiful to see each night and out on the balcony you could hear music from the resorts in the area.  There was a nice view from our apartment and being on the 42^nd floor and it gave Adalyn plenty of elevator rides which she loved.  We were sad to leave Dubai as we found it to be a great city with beaches, city life, culture, attractions, great food and friendly people.  We hope to go back again and highly recommend it as a vacation destination for everyone.