All things fine

T he aerial view of Abu Dhabi’s surroundings doesn’t inspire the confidence that this could be a thriving city, a travel destination even. A military airbase is all one’s imagination allows for in the starkness of the desert, as we embark from a comfortable journey aboard the Etihad Airways, to descend onto an airfield, that has been linked for miles and miles of astonishingly steep and bare mountains. The view off the city from the aircraft nonetheless impresses on you the Herculean effort that has led to this oasis of plenty, amidst absolute nothingness, a dream of the founding father of this city state.

What can you possibly do on a short trip to Abu Dhabi, except take a desert safari, do you ask? Well, lots actually, in environments created to best suit your needs.

We get off, and are immediately whisked away by the waiting chauffeur to the grandeur of the city that makes up this tiny yet richest emirate. The streets are spotless, a tropical paradise, lined with flowers imported every three months, palm trees blowing in the breeze from the sea — it is easy to forget the desert beyond. Sheikh Zayed, Abu Dhabi’s founding father, had imagined Abu Dhabi to be the paradise in the desert mentioned in the Koran. In recent times, the emirate has been consciously investing in becoming an arts-and-culture hub.

And now, Abu Dhabi has a new tourist attraction in the form of the Louvre Museum, the high point of our trip here. Located on the Saadiyat island cultural district, this museum and the accompanying Guggenheim and Zayed National Museum cost the government a grand total of US$ 27 million. Shaped like a gentle dome that rises above the blue water, it gradually affects you visually, as you step inside, to find the perforated dome playing with and cutting the harsh sunlight to create an iridescent ambience. Recently, the Louvre Abu Dhabi opened as part of a 30-year agreement between the city of Abu Dhabi and the French government. On loan at the Louvre are pieces covering the gamut of art history, organised on the basis of age and time.

The arts-and-history museum, in the Sadiyat cultural centre, is a massive building designed by the architect Jean Nouvel, who has also designed Institut the Monde Arabe in Paris. Minimalist in its build, the museum aspires to bring in a new perspective to art history. The works are arranged in a narrative, each gallery a progression onto the next, in this grand narrative about the history of evolution.

Conceptualised as an anthropological query into the history of civilisation, the museum attempts to narrate the story of links between the different civilisations across the world, and the forgotten (often surprising) connections they may have had. An ambitious project, the Louvre Abu Dhabi does not disappoint in terms of scale.

A meal of plenty High tea at the St Regis, Abu Dhabi includes authentic scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream

I saw ‘ Whistler’s Mother ’ by James Mc Neill Whistler, ‘ Girl with a Pearl Earring ’ by Johannes Vermeer, Ai Weiwei’s installation ‘ A Fountain of Light ’ , among other works. All the culture informed introspection is sure to make you hungry, and then you must head straight for the cafe in the building to try some excellent coffee, or even a juicy camel meat slider if you’re feeling adventurous. I tried a bocconcini, tomato and pomelo salad for lunch, one of the many memorable meals of the trip. It’s got all the good bits about a tomato-and-cheese sandwich, without the carbs to make you feel worse-for-wear at the end of the meal. There are many places I would return to from my short stay at Abu Dhabi, for a taste of something or the other. The high tea at the St Regis, for instance, makes the cut, with its three-tiered cake stand full of one-bite desserts, and a moving tea bar on a trolley where the polite lady will whip you up a concoction of your choice (mine was wild berries with black tea). A time well spent when you have clotted cream at hand, scones and strawberry jam at your disposal, Billy Joel played by the lovely person at the piano in the foyer. The Regis also has a private tunnel that leads you to their beach club — an outdoor heated pool or their private beach at your disposal. The horizon has the new part of Abu Dhabi in the distance, and a stretch of sunbathing chairs where you can take your book and while the day away if you’re flying solo, or go with all your kids for a family picnic.

The Sheikh Zayed mosque is similarly stunning in its scale, envisioned and inspired by the Taj Mahal. The Etihad innovation centre was a surprise on many accounts. The centre houses facilities where there pilots and crew are trained on the company’s latest purchases and innovations. On display were mock-ups of their ultra luxury first and business class cabins. The double decker new Airbus 380 was fitted in with a cabin that is your own suite in the air, with a bedroom, closet and bathroom, with a butler et all. The business class section also has a lounge with a table that ascends from the floor post takeoff, to have a quick round table conference if you need to, or just watch a match while sipping a drink. A perfect getaway for the Oscar Wildes of the world.

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