It’s not every day that we find ourselves walking around the capital of the UAE. So what was I doing in Abu Dhabi again? Well, it was our stopover city on our way to Egypt, and were there for a little over a day. One day is not nearly long enough to get to know a city, but c’est la vie.
The first thing that i spotted was Cinnabon, my favourite-est cinnamon roll shop. Now, if only it would come to Singapore… (Edit: they are coming!)
Browsing a foreign country’s grocery store is one of my favourite things to do, and Carrefour in Yas Mall did not disappoint. There was a date booth, stocked with every possible variety of dates and subdivided by their country of origin. We got to try a bunch of different dates while the guy was telling us all about the characteristic of different countries and species (it might have been a slow Thursday afternoon but I’m more inclined to think that it was the famed middle eastern hospitality). I like the Medjool dates, which are the softest and sweetest. There was also a confectionery booth selling confectionery made from camel’s milk, and the people behind the counter were just as quick to hand out samples. Which I took, of course, because I simply had to try. The ice cream is a tad thicker and stickier than ice cream made from cow milk, but I’m surprised to find that taste-wise, came milk is about just as mild as cow milk. The chocolates made with camel milk is just ever so slightly gamier, but still mild. They make great gifts for guys and gals back home, and between the few of us, we depleted their stock.
17% of the city’s population are citizens; everybody else holds a foreign passport and are here for the job opportunities. The low taxes sweeten the deal: VAT, at 5%, is one of the lowest in the world. And working adults may want to sit down for this next part: there is no income tax in Abu Dhabi. It’s a wonderland indeed.
Today, Abu Dhabi is quite the engineered city. Guinness-record breaking skyscrapers line the distant horizon. Their Andaz Capital Gate Tower leans at 18 degree, or as we were proudly told, five times steeper than the leaning tower of Pisa. The Louvre has a presence in this city, as does NYU. In Yas Mall, the first thing we spotted was the eye-catching Rainforest Cafe from the US, and an ongoing Ferrari exhibition. But for all that, away from the latest skyscrapers and closer to the streets, Brutalist-style residential buildings are far more common. Traveling around Abu Dhabi, the roads were pretty empty.
We wanted to visit a few attractions: the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, the Heritage Village and the Andaz Capital Gate Tower. We couldn’t make time to go to the Qasr Al Watan Palace, but we had our fill of the majestic from the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, this splendid white and gold building. It’s a rather long walk from the connected mall to get to the grounds of the mosque, and the walk over was packed with other tourists. But we persevered. Within the mosque, guide ropes and strict guards tell you where you can or cannot stand. But we got there in the end. The mosque was pretty spectacular, especially the prayer hall with the hundreds of lit glass bulbs spiralling around the chandelier.
It’s not going to be a great secret that a place called the Heritage Village is going to be catered to tourists. But still, it’s fun to explore how the olden-days Emiratis lived in the desert. There’s camel rides for those who are interested, and just look at the wee face mask on this responsible camel!
We did find a spot of oasis in the middle of the city. There was white sand and water, and complete with a view of the city skyline. And see how far the land has come.
