Bigger, hotter, faster Abu Dhabi

While sightseeing in the UAE, take the words ‘small,’ ‘modest’ and ‘cheap’ off your vocabulary. [PHOTOS: FERDINAND MWONGELA/STANDARD]

By Ferdinand Mwongela

From the air, the city below us looked like a carefully decorated Christmas tree; lights arranged in symmetrical patterns, the taillights of cars on the highways appearing to blink in rhythm.

As the Kenya Airways plane descended into Abu Dhabi International Airport, the air inside the plane could not be more different from the sweltering heat below.

As the plane taxied to a stop and the crew intoned their singsong welcome words in Swahili and English, my mind was focused on the massive jets parked alongside us, but then the Abu Dhabi International Airport is the hub of Etihad Airlines, KQ’s strategic partner on this route.

Going through customs, this could be any airport in the world; they all look alike, or at least I think they do. It is as if someone came up with a generic blueprint for airport operations: Unsmiling immigration officials, stuttering passengers, harassed mothers with children, and poker-faced security personnel.

But over the next few days, I learned there are quite a few things that make the rest of Abu Dhabi unique:

Take a short walk

No, this is not for the sightseeing, as I was to learn the moment I stepped out of the air-conditioned airport terminal. It is to experience the heat.

The burning heat must be what it would feel like to be stuck in an oven — enveloping, almost suffocating — at least for the first few minutes, until you get used to it.

However, to be fair, someone from the Kenyan Embassy in the UAE intimated that it is not this sweltering all around the year. And, luckily everything is air-conditioned, right up to the bus shelters!

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is probably one of the must-sees, as is Ferrari World, but I am coming to that shortly.

This mosque is touted as one of the largest and most expensive, although the tour guide is hard-pressed to put a finger on the exact cost.

The glittering white monument was a vision of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan.

It has 82 domes, more than 1,000 columns, 24-carat gold-gilded chandeliers, and the world’s largest hand-knotted carpet gracing its floors.

The main prayer hall holds what the guide quietly said was the world’s largest chandelier.

As he pointed out at the start of the tour, in the UAE, they talk in terms of the largest, the most expensive, and above all in billions, of US dollars, that is.

FERRARI WORLD

Yas Island is probably the dream tourist destination, and it would not do to leave a city that hosts a Formula One track without a taste of speed.

Ferrari World features a range of F1-themed events. The ultimate thrill is the Formula Rossa, the world’s fastest rollercoaster, accelerating up to 240kph in 4.9 seconds, and from zero to 100kph in two seconds!

The contraption looks harmless enough as you are strapped in, and then it shoots off! ‘Shoot’ is the correct word, because it seems to be launched from a giant weapon. With the wind tearing at your goggled face, you cruise at breakneck speeds and stomach churning angles before you can even catch your breath to start screaming.

Other attractions here include the G-force, shooting you 62 metres into the sky to experience the rocket force that goes with an F1 car.

Other slower coasters and children-themed events provide a quieter family paced thrill, or you could just walk around admiring the racecars on display. Like the F10, the 56th single-seat Ferrari to compete in the Formula 1 World Championship.

Visit the cultural centre

The cultural centre offers a glimpse into the life of the inhabitants of the region today, and in decades and centuries past. Unlike the towering structures that could be in any major modern city, back in the day the norm around Abu Dhabi was a nomadic life, with simple, but well thought out, structures to promote survival in the harsh climate.

The cultural centre provides a refreshing break from the towering concrete monstrosity that is Abu Dhabi today.

Drive around town

This might seem cliché, but a drive around Abu Dhabi is as eye-opening as it is eye-popping, from the massive palaces built for the royal family to the municipality’s quest to be the best. And, oh yes, the world’s farthest leaning building is also in this city; move over, Leaning Tower of Pisa.

Also, do not forget to look out for police patrols. If you think policemen in 4WD pickups on Nairobi streets look tough, you are in for a surprise.

From Prado-like cruisers to VW Touaregs, the cops here clearly mean business.

And it does not stop there; they plan to roll out meaner, faster supercars, the likes of Ferraris and Aston Martins, for officers on the beat. That is one way to redefine a high-speed chase.