Zekrayaat (ذكرايات / Memories)

The day was full of work, food, and ended with an architectural marvel.. That's how I felt as the day unfolded Food time... Now comes the wow part of my trip, the Grand Mosque at Abu Dhabi: More videos to follow ...

Well, Day 2 was equally packed... Visited a friend of Mary and I, Maya, at her Art Studio (set up at a popup gallery), then I went to see Kat our Brit friend, her sister Marg, her Indian Hubby, and their adorable baby Hazel...Had tons of fun, but had to rush after that to Fujairah to visit my brother Moaty and his family. Here are some of the moments captured in photos (any photo that looks remotely good is taken by Mohamed)... Finally downloaded some of the Day 2 photos... The Courtyard in Dubai. This is where our friend, Maya, has her Gallery The Starbucks at Uptown Mirdiff, Dubai, round the corner from Kat's building Uptown Mirdiff again... one of the few outdoor style plazas Thanks to my brother Moaty for taking some pictures of our visit... My sister-in-law Hanan my nephew Ahmad hooked on the xbox...Thanks to uncle Majdi Don't worry I am not eating it all My niece Haneen eating away Hanan never eats Ahmad = trouble ...

Day 3 was quite business, business, and a bit of a coffee break. Jumeirah Erihad Towers, random chandelier One of the hangout areas at the Etihad Towers The view from where we were having coffee The lobby cafe The Fairways Restaurant, at the Westin in Abu Dhabi. That's were we had Dinner The ice cream trimmings Parking Time... We thought paying the meter was enough...well, we were wrong :) its fine time ($ 130)

Well, my first day at Abu Dhabi and already experienced: 3.5 meals, a modern art museum exhibit by local UAE artists, a walk through the Abu Dhabi Louvre ( http://louvreabudhabi.ae/ ),  visit to 3 luxury  5 star hotels, completely new set of stories about my family, visiting my brother's own company office, 4 types of coffee (including the Arabic/Gulf  style of coffee, which is very different than Turkish), and finally what is a UAE old ages tradition; a visit to a mega mall. Here are few of the highlights...

Great start of the trip…Peet’s coffee

Staying Hydrated…one bottle down, 2 more to go

No matter how far I travel, or how old I get…it is where I feel like “myself” is what I call “home”

  On my way to JFK to start my Gulf tour… Very excited, but already missing Mary

My last lunch in New Jersey before embarking on my Gulf tour