Abu Dhabi/UAE

8.5.2024 Abu Dhabi

We arrived in Abu Dhabi at around 2 p.m. In the modern cruise terminal, I first had to stand in line at the ATM because I didn't want to travel without local currency.

On the way to the exit I saw an Arab dressed in traditional clothing with a falcon. You could get this falcon for photo purposes by slipping into a kind of glove on which the bird of prey was sitting. Surprisingly, the Arab didn't charge a fee for this. Of course I took the opportunity and had the animal given to me. At this point of all times, no fellow traveler was there to take a photo of me with the falcon. So I took selfies that didn't turn out quite as well as I would have liked.

Then I used the "Careem" app for the first time, which I had just downloaded onto my smartphone. It's a kind of Arabic "Uber" in which I only have to enter my desired destination and a driver will pick me up.

I gave "Louvre" as my destination and Careem told me that I would be picked up in a Toyota Outlander. A few minutes later my "captain", as Careem calls its drivers, arrived. The car looked new and was spotlessly clean, the air conditioning worked perfectly. So I arrived at my destination in comfort.

The Louvre in Abu Dhabi displays works of art from various eras and regions. To protect these treasures, every visitor is carefully checked at the entrance. Liquids are not permitted; even my water bottle was confiscated. I spent about two hours admiring the objects, including an Egyptian sarcophagus and German, French and American paintings. I had downloaded the museum app and was able to access more detailed information about each object in the form of videos in German. The Louvre also offers free internet access. Great thing!

The architecture of the museum, incorporating water, was very interesting and probably unique. I left the building and called for the next captain. This time it was a comfortable Toyita Highlander, who picked me up and drove me to my next destination, the Etihad Towers.

The "Observation Deck at 300", which I had to search for, is not accessible simply by buying a ticket. Instead, with your entrance you also get a voucher for the café on the observation deck. When I got to the top, I ordered a non-alcoholic cocktail and a sandwich. Then I enjoyed the great view.

After this experience, another Toyota Highlander picked me up. This time, strangely, my credit card payment to Careem was declined and I was glad I had enough Emirati Dirhams.

That evening, four Arab musicians performed "Folkloric Showtime: Harmony in the Sands" in our theater, which I wanted to listen to with Craig and his wife. After the second monotonous, soporific piece, we fled. Horrible!