Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

When you are in Abu Dhabi, it's hard to miss this mosque. It is absolutely stunning and almost looks like a vision or a painting, not quite real, from far away. It's open for everyone and they even have free guided tours a couple of times per day. The tour lasts about an hour and is so worth doing. The guide talks you through the history of it, how everything was constructed and you can ask all the questions you want. I wanted to go in the afternoon as thats when it looks the most beautiful, just as the sun starts to set and the light illuminates the huge white surfaces.

You need to wear a hijab and cover your hair, men can go without if they are in trousers and a long sleeved shirt. You can collect these free of charge before you go in.

The Mosque is even bigger and more beautiful than I was expecting. The courtyard is made up of tiny mosaics with different kinds of flowers and surrounded by corridors with gorgeous beams.

Every where you look you see tiny details that must have taken ages to finish. It's almost like a huge work of art. 

As you go in the guide tells you you are looking at the smallest of the mosque's 7 chandeliers. You laugh and think it's a joke. It's not. 

This is the first one.

This is the second one.

You just can't stop looking up! It really is incredible.

Even the soft thick carpet is hand woven with incredible detailing, and it's huge.

After the tour, we wondered around the courtyard for some more pictures and although beautiful, I believe the place has to be seen to understand how truly grand and exquisite it really is.

I can't recommend this place enough and if you want to read more about it you can click here and visit the website.

Brunch at the Fairmont

The boyfriend got a new job so we decided to get a bit of winter sun before he started. We packed our bags, booked our flights (in that order) and headed to Abu Dhabi where his parents live. We are so lucky to have my parents in Finland and his in Abu Dhabi for snow or sun while getting to spend time with our families!

In the UAE Friday is like our Saturday and brunches are huge in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. They are held at hotels normally and often restaurants join up to put together a huge feast. You can choose a non alcoholic package, a wine and cocktails or a champagne package and your drinks are unlimited and constantly topped up.

We headed to the Fairmont for the Brunch hoping that we could sit outside by the pool. Unfortunately there was a slight sandstorm so for health and safety reasons the outdoor seating area was closed and we sat inside but got a lovely table by the window. Brunch is a seriously fancy affair and I felt slightly underdressed in my maxi and flat shoes. Girls wear sky high heels and glamorous mini dresses and men are all very smartly dressed.

We ordered cocktails and headed to get some food. There is so much to choose from its a good thing you have 4 hours to eat!

I am a huge lover of sushi and could live on it. The sushi was absolutely delicious and I went up several times for it!

The set up is buffet style but you also have a selection of beautifully presented individual dishes such as this foie gras.

Before dessert we had to go for a bit of a walk to make some space. The hotel grounds were lovely and you get amazing views of the Grand Mosque on the other side of the creek. It was a very hot day but you can see the fog like sand in the air.

 Then for dessert, a huge selection of goodies that I only attempted to finish as well as some gorgeous cheeses.

Sunglasses: Chanel

Dress: Asos

Sandals: Charles and Keith

Super full, we did some more walking and popped into some shops in the Souk before going home for a well earned nap before heading into the night again. Safe to say we skipped dinner!

Zanzibar: Mnemba Island

This little day trip deserved its own post, mainly because of the number of photos I took. We wanted to do a bit of snorkelling, have a day out on the boat and possibly even see some dolphins. Mnemba island snorkelling tour seemed the best match and the boat picked you up from right in front of your hotel which was very convenient. The plan was to take a traditional dhow up to the reefs around Mnemba, then have lunch and a chill on on a beach on mainland and then maybe our way back for sunset.

Mnemba is a private island so you cant actually set foot on it unless you are staying in the very exclusive resort (think Bill Gates and Beyonce..), however the protected reef Mnemba Atoll around it is a divers favorite and thats where we were headed for a spot of snorkelling.

We headed off around 8am with 10 other people and it wasn't long until we bumped into some dolphins, my boyfriend is a huge fan and we were both quite excited about seeing this many! An incredible start to the day.

The water was just an unbelievable shade of blue, or more like a whole range of shades! I love the little fishing boats that are everywhere, the make the scenery even more beautiful and are of course responsible for all the lovely sea food I stuffed myself with.

I was a little bit disappointed by the snorkelling itself. There were lots of fish around but the reef wasn't very colourful. Maybe it's better for diving but both of agreed that we had seen better.

We got back on the boat and headed for lunch back to a stunning beach on the mainland. Lunch was a simple affair of tuna, rice and a cold beer.

We enjoyed a swim and taking some pictures, the water was very warm and the scenery breath taking.

Bikini Top: Calzedonia

Bikini Bottoms: New Look

Sunglasses: Rayban

We headed back happy and slightly sun burned napping on the dhow. We arrived just on time for sundown and sipped on frozen cocktails (me) and ice cold beers (him). What a perfect day!