Hello everyone!
Well, another month has come to a close in 2013, and I hope
that your May was as enjoyable and eventful as mine! It’s quite startling to
think that I’ll be going back to the U.S. at the end of this month, but I’m not
quite ready to throw in the towel here. Actually, far from it. This last month
will be packed full of trips, exploring, and schoolwork. On Friday and Saturday
our little band of merry Clinton scholars journeyed to the capital of the
U.A.E., Abu Dhabi, and this post will be strictly devoted to that trip.
Situated a little over an hour away from Dubai, Abu Dhabi is
built on a series of islands along the Persian Gulf. Renowned for its ancient
pearling tradition, it has since turned into an important governmental and
economic hub for the region. Abu Dhabi is akin to Dubai’s older but less
popular brother, and though it is more visited that it once was, it is still
often overlooked despite being the capital of the country. The founding father
of the U.A.E., Sheikh Zayed, was the Sheikh the ruled the emirate of Abu Dhabi
before the emirates came together as a country. In sum, this city’s importance
to the country and region is paramount.
Now that the history lesson is over, I’ll hopefully
recapture your interest through our little sojourn. On Friday morning, we
hopped on a bus for the trip and were treated to great views of the desert and
little towns in between the two metropolises. Fortunately, the bus service that
runs here is pretty inexpensive and one leaves for the other destination every
hour, which allowed us flexibility as to our time of departure (in other words,
we could sleep in a bit). Entering the city gave us a chance to see how Abu
Dhabi was sprawled out like a sleeping giant over the expanse of a few large
islands, with crystal clear water separating the landmasses. After getting dropped
off at the city center, we found our hotel and threw our stuff in our rooms and
decided to get lunch. We ate a quick meal at a small Lebanese place across the
street, which was delicious. Their motto was, “We have good bite”. Indeed.
After some deliberation, we decided to head to the Heritage
Village, a recreated village that represents traditional coastal life. Since
the place was on a long, thin island that was across the water, once we got
there we walked to the point of the island, which over looked Abu Dhabi on one
side and the mouth that lead to the ocean on the other. Couple the beautiful
clear water with the groves of plumeria trees, you could have told me that this
was Hawaii and I would have readily believed you. We spent a good deal of time
walking around the island and looking both the city and the water from
different vantage points. By this time, we all were melting under the
relentless Gulf sun and so we decided to go back to the hotel to regroup.
We spent the evening walking about and exploring the streets
of Abu Dhabi. Devoid of the monstrous and modern skyscrapers of Dubai, Abu
Dhabi has a much more Middle Eastern feel to it, as evidenced by less tourists,
more local shops, and an abundance of cultural sites and architecture. As we were
setting out, we decided we wanted to eat some Indian food. After wandering
about and getting directions from numerous locals, some erroneous and some
accurate, we finally found this little joint on a nondescript road not far from
the city center. The place was so small that to accommodate our group of six,
we had to head upstairs to a little room with a ceiling so small that a few of
us had to duck our heads as we went to our tables. We quickly discovered that
the place had no menus, but we happened upon a stroke of luck when we found a
worker there that spoke Urdu, which is a native language to one of our group
members. In the end, our decision of
restaurant was validated when the food came, and we had some fantastic and
authentic food. Everything had a nice kick to it, and by the end of the meal
our sinuses were clear and our eyes were watery. After exiting the restaurant,
we stumbled upon an Egyptian bakery about a block over. Searching for a perfect
end to a meal (and for some, relief from the spice), we went in to see what
they had to offer. Inside, rows upon rows of baked goods lined the glass
display cases, filled with baklava, sweet balls of sugary dough, and a type of
corn bread drenched in honey and topped with almonds. Unsure of what to get, I went
with the “one of each” approach. It was the right decision, and everything was sticky,
sweet, and delectable.
Our bellies full and taste buds happy, we plowed on through
the city, wandering about the little shops and taking in the city. After a while,
we retired to our hotel for the night and happily surrendered ourselves to
sleep.
The following morning, after checking out and grabbing a
makeshift breakfast at a nearby convenience store (I had something called
“happy mix”, I can tell you it’s false advertising), we made the trek to the
Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. I saw a glimpse of it as we entered the city the
previous day, but it wasn’t until we pulled up that I fully realized the
magnificence of the building. It is one of the largest mosques in the world,
and can hold over forty thousand worshipers. Unlike some of the other big mosques,
this one is all white which creates a dazzling effect in the hot Middle Eastern
sun. Home to hundreds of gold leafed porticoes, over eighty domes, and four
minarets of over three hundred feet in height, this was one of the most
impressive things I’ve ever seen. In my eyes, it was right up there with the
Great Wall.
Upon entering, we gathered and gawked under the hushed
arches in the hallway, admiring the exquisite and colorful inlay in both the
floors and the pillars. The insides of the domes were transcribed with
beautiful Arabic calligraphy, and little pools of tranquil water dotted the
outer side of the hallways. During our visit, the call to prayer sounded over
the speakers, and a reverent silence was spontaneously undertaken by the
tourists. We lingered for a while, finding it difficult to tear ourselves away
from the serenity that the mosque offered, but in the end we plodded outside to
find a cab that would take us back to Dubai.
As I stated earlier, Abu Dhabi was quite different from
Dubai, and is in an even more interesting transition. Despite keeping much of
its Middle Eastern and local feel, there are still modern buildings popping up
with regularity, more Western businesses setting up shop, and more migrant
workers are streaming into the city every day. This isn’t to say that this is
bad, though it will have cultural effects on the city that cannot be reversed.
Instead, I’ve taken the frame of mind that I’m glad that I could visit the city
now, when it still has some of its original flavor and voice left. I can’t say
that it will still be present fifteen years from now. However, I can say that I
know what it is like today, and that I enjoyed it immensely.
Adieu,
Andrew
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