We left Dubai at 7 a.m. and the drive to Abu Dhabi takes about an hour and a half. We arrived at the mosque at just after 9 and after several circles around the place finding the correct entrance for visitors (the gate manned by the guard with the machine gun was definitely not it!) we found our way in. It is technically not open until 10 but we were allowed in immediately anyway. It is also not actually finished even though it has been under construction for several years.
Out of respect for the religion (and because we would not be allowed in otherwise), we removed our shoes and put on a head scarf and gown which they provide. Men do not get off easy either: the men who arrived in shorts were generously provided with an ankle length “gunny sack“ skirt (punishment for showing up in apporpriate attire???)
The mosque itself is an amazing building! Enormous. Ornate. RK: when you come, you could spend the entire day photographing it I think … if you are into photographing buildings and art. My colleague has been in Dubai for 3 years and also lived in Baghdad (before the war) so she was able to explain a fair bit about Islam, the people, the architecture, symbolism, ideology, etc. The construction of a mosque must be overseen by Muslim professionals (Architects, Engineers, contractors) and one can see why, there are may subtleties that we non-Muslims don't understand.
I was inspired to attempt an "artistic" picture :-)
This is the smaller of the two worship halls ... everything's relative!
This is the big worship hall ... and it is BIG! Seeing how things get built here in the Middle East, I would not be walking below that chandelier!
We stayed at the mosque for about an hour, it started to get busier and the temperature was heating up so it was off for something more air-conditioned.
Next we went to the Emirates Hotel, an elaborate, very posh hotel. A LOT of gold (real gold? Gold leaf? Not sure) Where Dubai is striving to be the commercial capital of the region, Abu Dhabi is making their mark on the cultural scene. The comparison that comes to mind is this: if Dubai is like Calgary, then Abu Dhabi is like Edmonton (except Wayne Gretzky Drive would be Sheikh Rasheed bin Saeed al Maktoum Street).
Within the hotel was an exhibit of the four new cultural buildings going up in Abu Dhabi, one of which is a Guggenheim network museum (FYI there is a network of Guggenheims! Who woulda thunk it) All four buildings are designed by famous Architects and each is definitely unique. I was overrun by a tour of Spaniards so I did not get any photos but even the models boggled the mind.
After lunch, we headed to the (old?) Cultural Centre where there was an exhibit of archaeological artefacts from Sudan and a documentary film there. The documentary was really well done and the exhibits were especially interesting after watching the show.
Natasa is a very interesting lady, lots of good stories, very articulate, very eager to impart her experience in Dubai which is great! It was refreshing to tour with someone who understands my quirky habit of always looking at the obscure details of how things are built. She is a bit more of a “designer” than I whereas I still have my “Engineering tendencies” but her passion for architecture was infectious.
My new friend had one sage piece of advice for those of you thinking of coming to visit: don’t come during Ramadan (which, this year will be basically the month of September.) There are a whole myriad of special rules and restrictions (no eating or drinking during day light hours, ultra-conservative dress, no alcohol anytime). I hear it is a real drag for non-Muslims during that time so plan your hard-earned vacation time accordingly.
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