Monday – February 12, 2018
Our stay in the Middle Eastern city of Abu Dhabi was drawing to an end and these were our last couple of days in the United Arab Emirates. We had a wonderful time in four amazing cities which far exceeded all our expectations. By the way, abu dhabi means “father of the gazelle” named after a native species.
Today was a ‘Free Day’ so Linda, Kathleen, and I took a shuttle from the Fairmont Hotel to the center of Abu Dhabi. It’s a large contemporary city with more than a million people and countless modern skyscrapers. There’s not a lot to see downtown since the UAE is mainly an oil business country. We went to the Madinat Zayed Shopping Center for last minute gifts.
The spotlessly clean mall was clearly off tourist maps and obviously catered to locals and “expats.” We found a large supermarket called LuLu with many shoppers.
There were several shops selling housewares decorated with gold, silver, and lots of bling:
Linda inside a Valentine greeting:
We even found a large department store which sold everything one could imagine for everyone in the family. Now we know where to buy a “dishdasha” off the rack.
Later in the evening, we all gathered at the St. Regis for our farewell dinner and to celebrate a wonderful tour. We had coffee and dessert out on the patio overlooking the water.
We said our “goodbyes” to our new-found friends and returned to the Fairmont. Half the group was flying home early tomorrow morning and the other half will be leaving tomorrow night.
I really enjoyed my stay at the Fairmont:
