Abu Dhabi

Modern, sleek and shiny, it's hard to believe that the sprawling city of Abu Dhabi was just a bleak fishing and pearling village 40 years ago. Abu Dhabi may not be the most exciting city in the Gulf but it's not as soulless as its detractors claim. Founded in 1761, Abu Dhabi became the home of the ruling Al-Nahyan family when they moved from Liwa in 1793. It became a moderately successful pearling centre in the 19th century, but the collapse of the pearling industry decimated the town and it sunk into squalor. Oil concessions were granted in the 1930s in a desperate bid to salvage the emirate. When oil revenue started pouring in thirty years later, the reed and mud-brick huts were rapidly replaced by banks and boutiques, and the settlement has now spread to occupy virtually all of the T-shaped Abu Dhabi island in the centre of the UAE's northern coast. Abu Dhabi is by far the richest and most politically important of the UAE's seven emirates.

View of Abu Dhabi from new development area

View from my room from Khalifa's apt

My good old friend from college

Trying to blend in :-)

My old college friend

Could not tell, can not see them :-(

View from the Souk

Perfect beach, hot water.. but some just like the view of the Gulf...

Al Ain

The oasis is probably the longest inhabited part of what is now the UAE, with settlement dating back to the 4th millenium BC. In more recent times, Al-Ain was the birthplace of Shaikh Zayed, the current ruler of Abu Dhabi, and he has lavished funds on it. Buraimi has not received the same largesse and remains a comfortable provincial town. The resulting contrast between the two communities makes this an interesting spot to visit. The other drawcard in summer is the dry heat of the oasis, a welcome relief from the humidity on the coast.

Dubai

Dubai's is one of the last bastions of anything-goes capitalism - a city whose wealth is based on trade, not oil - and there's no place quite like it in the Gulf. There isn't a lot to see in Dubai but it's the most easygoing city in the region, has the best nightlife and boasts copious opportunities for duty-free shopping. It's well worth spending a few days wandering through the souks (markets) and along the waterfront to take in the city's atmosphere, but don't expect to find anything 'old' in Dubai. Fortunately it's the one place in the Gulf where that hardly seems to matter.