Images of a modern Gulf city - Abu Dhabi

Rather than give you a synopsis of my 10 days in Abu Dhabi, I decided that I would post some of the images of the city and what they mean to me. I had my first encounter with the capital of the United Arab Emirates in 1991 when we lived in Al Ain (a small oasis 200 km east. It has changed much in the past 18 years - one major change is the sheer volume of people


The 'modern' skyline - I wish I hd the same view from 1989...


The breakwater during the day with the massive Marina shopping mall. The entire area is reclaimed land using sand from the desert


The only small buildings which survive are the traditional mosque, dwarfed by the modern buildings


The seven star Emirates palace


The constant construction


The 'old' and the new building stand side by side. But many of the 'old' building - which are only about 15 years old - are being knocked down and replaced at a rapid rate.


Strange buildings appear - this one a venetian style. But people who live in this building - which is 2 years old - complain of dampness, smells and bad workmanship


My favourite small cheap and cheery Indian restaurant.


The thali - the food never ends and it costs a mere 2 euro


Mr. Anand who loves to feed me


A sneaky picture of a local family in their 'traditional' dress. This way of dresses is adapted from the traditional Bedouin dress, but only became common in the late 1980s when locals felt they needed to differentiate themselves from expats


Enjoying a shisha (hubbly bubbly pipe) on the breakwater. This was a regular hangout spot when I lived in Abu Dhabi