I am pretty sure during childhood all of us had a piggy bank. We used to start doing small chores to get those few coins from parents, grannies , sometimes just stealthily take out the coins on the cabin just to see the piggy getting full. And shake shake shake just to hear the tinkling of those coins. Who knew that we were making memories.I feel childhood memories are like piggy banks , small fun things become beautiful lifetime memories . And when looking back through these memories when we are all grown up, it brings back the innocent smile .
And thats what i want to give my Mr.Big boy (he claims he is), lots and lots of good childhood memories.That he never will need to find solace in anything else, when he grows up all he has to do is just close his eyes and think about his childhood ( like his dad- he can recall even the minute deatils of his childhood which even his parents dont remember) or maybe takeout an album and look through the pictures (like his mom).
What more better than travelling with his grandparents.( But think about us , its like travelling with 3 kids {hope i could insert some emoticons here}). ya ya and this was his first long distance outing with his grandparents.
AbuDhabi- the capital of UAE is about 140 kms from Dubai.Though we are residing in Dubai since a year this was our first visit to the capital. Ofcourse we had been postponing so that we can plan a day trip when rest of the family joins us during the vacation.
Though i have tried to include few things about each place. Please do visit their websites for confirmation before planning your trip.I have provided the links at the end of each section.
We had prebooked a taxi from Dubai.
1.Emirates park Zoo and resort
Our first stop and we spent about 3 hours.It is a medium sized zoo with quite variety of animals.The basic ticket at present is priced at 30dhs for children more than 2 years and adults.There were elephants, giraffe,zebra, white tigers, lions, oryx ( national animal of UAE) .They also have a small aquarium and reptile house with display of fishes and turtles.The most exciting activity for the toddler was feeding the goats. Yes they do sell food for the animals which costs about 10 dhs for a bundle of grass.There are specific time schedules for feeding few e animals like the giraffe and zebra.
They do also have elephant shows and animal rides for which u need to upgrade the ticket.
Though they are not much options for lunch, there are a few cafes inside and eateries attached.We had our lunch in Pizzeria attached to the zoo as they had few good vegetarian options.They also have resort facility if u want to stay back and give your family an experience to cherish.
The link to the website is here
2. Marina eye
Next we had a stop at marina eye. It is the worlds largest moving wheel with height of about 196ft (60 mts). It is located just opposite the famous Marina mall.The ticket at present costs 50dhs for adults and 30dhs for children below 12. The wheel takes u three circles. The view was of abudhabi along with the nearby islands. It was beautiful though i wouldn’t put it as breathtaking. Guess who enjoyed the ride the most… The little one.. no his grandparents.U should have seen their faces ,like they were on top of the world.
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The link to website is here
3.Emirates Palace hotel.
The next was emirates palace hotel. They have a guided tour of the hotel , however with charges . It is not all year round and depends on the hotels bookings etc. So please enquire the previous day of your trip whether they have a schedule on next day.. We were unlucky as they didn’t have a tour on that day. But still its still good to stop by as u can click photos outside and also just opposite to this is the Etihad towers ( picture below) which made an appearance in the movie fast and furious 7 -.so u can just pose up ,say cheese and click click, click.
4. Heritage village
This is a small village like setting of ancient UAE. There is a small museum showcasing their ancient tools, utensils, weapons, attire and so on. It opens behind into a beach where u can again click scenic pictures. We spent around half an hour in this place.
The link to website is here
5. Sheik Zayed grand Mosque
This is the main motive behind the AbuDhabi trip. Marvellous architecture,spell bounding pillars, chandeliers, walls. It is built in white marble with colored marble artwork on its pillars and walls.They have the largest chandelier made of crystals, largest handwoven carpet .The mosque is open for public visits only during evenings on Fridays. Rest of the days it is open both in mornings and evenings except during the prayer timings. They have a very strict dress code to be followed. So carry a scarf/ duppatta to cover your head. U need to wear full sleeves,so ladies carry a coat if u are not wearing a full sleeve.However they do have option where ladies can borrow the traditional dress from the premises to enter the mosque. .And no half pants for both men and women. Please go through their website to know the dress code to be followed. They even have illustrations on the website for appropriate dressing. They also provide free walk in guided tours of the mosque at scheduled timings.We spent around 90 mins looking around the mosque.
The link to website is here
Other important attractions we didn’t put on our list was Ferrari world , Yas waterland as we had our parents and little boy on board with us. But if u are looking out for some adventure then this is a must and on the top of your list.
All of us were exhausted and put me into bed mode by the end of this trip but ofcourse with a beautiful day, happy memories.
PS: I know the pictures are not good enough for a blog but they were taken randomly on phone before i started blogging.
