If yesterday was a slow day, today was anything but. After trying to get tickets online for visiting the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque and finding nothing available until 6:30pm we made the decision to do a city tour using one of the companies in the cruise terminal. After negotiating a tour and price we set off for the mosque, surprised to learn you can actually turn up and register there. The dress code is very strict for ladies and I never thought I would say this but 5″ of Nicole’s ankles became a problem.
Fortunately for us, entry to the mosque is via an underground system with plenty of places to purchase the required attire. There is even a Costa, Starbucks and a McDonald’s down there. Once you have satisfied the dress code and cleared security there is an airport-style walkway with travellators that take you to the front of the mosque.
It is an absolutely stunning place, the route around the mosque is cordoned off restricting you to wander freely but there are photo opportunities a plenty if you are patient. I was initially disappointed that I might miss this and so happy to have discovered that it was still possible.
From there our driver took us for a 30-minute photo stop at the Emirates Palace hotel where we had a quick look around the inside at the ground floor level and at the front of the hotel. We thought it was far too opulent for our taste but nice to experience all the same. What was impressive was the Christmas tree in one of the foyers, completely OTT but magnificent all the same.
Our third stop was a brief drive to the Etihad Towers which are a complex of five towers, full of hotels, offices, apartments, restaurants, and bars. The tallest tower, Tower 2, has an observation deck on its 74th floor called Observation At 300. From here there are some amazing views of Abu Dhabi and giving you a great feel for the area.
As we only wanted to be out for the morning, this was our last stop so drove back to the ship via the Corniche arriving back just in time for lunch. Our afternoon was then spent out on deck 18 in the glorious sunshine.
After another amazing dinner, we went to the theatre to watch a production by Quantum XXL called Virtual or Reality. Once again the entertainment has been exceptionally good on this cruise and quite possibly the best we have ever experienced on a cruise ship. We finished the evening off in the Colosseo watching another excellent production called Fantazia. Tomorrow we will tick off a bucket list venue…..
The Grand Mosque is simply stunning. So glad you managed to get to see it Mike. What did Nicole have to wear to cover her ankles? Loving all your amazing photos.
She bought some full length leggings for about £12.