Day 1
13th Nov 2023
LHR to Abu Dhabi
Our outbound flight was booked in 2 parts, as doing long flights without a break is now beyond the limits of our patience. This meant a stopover in Abu Dhabi. Making it worthwhile, we booked 2 nights in the Ramada Abu Dhabi Corniche hotel.
Firstly, we had to get to the airport 3 hours before the flight, meaning a 4.30 alarm at Simon and Claire’s near Reading. We arrived at Terminal 4 at about 6am and checked into the Etihad lounge. It was the poshest one I’ve been in. They had a dining room so you can sit at a table properly to eat your breakfast. There was a buffet on offer as well as a menu for fresh cooked food! Once we’d finished eating we relocated to the lounging area and straight away were offered drinks from the bar 
, not to disappoint I accepted a glass of sparkling wine, but was given 2 as they thought Gareth would like one too 
, I made sure it didnt go to waste 
.
There was no queueing for this departure as we had priority everything and took the upper airbridge to board the A380 (double decker aeroplane).
Well, I had never flown business class before so I was smiling like a Cheshire cat all the way to my seat . Gareth and I were like kids in a sweetshop, looking in all the cupboards and pressing all the buttons . We were in for a good time.
Just as you get settled you are offered refreshments, so, not wanting to mix the grapes I stayed with fizzy . We were given complimentary headphones for the entertainment, blankets, a pillow, a memory foam liner for when we wanted to go to sleep , and a toiletry bag containing eye mask, socks and miniature essentials for the flight ( in a lovely retro bag commemorating 20 years of Etihad Airlines).
How sweet 
Before we took off, our hostess took our order for drinks to go with our meal and then we settled down for the 6.5hr flight.
As soon as the seatbelt sign was off our drinks (champagne for me and Merlot for Gareth) arrived with a dish of nuts. In business class you decide when you want to eat! For dinner we both chose the Arabian meze starter, for main I had Stone Bass and Gareth had Biryani. It was so filling I sadly had to leave some and couldn’t fit a pudding in 
, Gareth managed the cheese course and some fruit .
The TV had a station where you could watch the cameras on the outside of the plane – front, tail and underneath . How cool is that? We watched the plane take off .
For the first time ever, I slept on a plane. I laid the seat flat and snuggled in under the blanket. Having the headphones on seemed to help with any noise in the cabin. Gareth didn’t sleep as well as me, which is very unusual for him.
The views out of the window as night fell were amazing. Flying over Bahrain and Doha looked like a Christmas party in full flow, so many twinkling lights . We were also very impressed that the windows had electronic double blinds, see, kids in a sweetshop .
We arrived in Abu Dhabi at about 8.30pm local time and got to the hotel at about 10pm. Our hotel is the Ramada by Wyndham Abu Dhabi Corniche and came free as part of us booking Business Class with Ethiad, a good deal.
It was very odd at the airport, as after passing passport control we then had to put our hand luggage through security scanners 
.
It was approximately a 30 min drive to the hotel, on 4 & 5 laned highways!. Turning up in the dark always seems to confuse us for a bit, especially when it’s a new place and you can’t get your bearings.
Day 2
14th Nov 2023
Abu Dhabi
This morning I woke with a start and announced loudly that we had missed breakfast! (Finished at 10am). We hadn’t, my watch had updated overnight so I didn’t need to add the 4 hours on .
Breakfast was delicious, I had a chickpea curry and a boiled egg, Gareth had a fresh cooked omelette.
The Aircon in the room is freezing so you are quite happy to go outside to warm up….for a minute or two at least!
We ventured out in a taxi to the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, about 20 minutes drive away. There is a very strict dress and behaviour code, which is closely watched by the numerous security staff. I took a long sleeved top to cover my wrists but was told it was too short and had to wear Gareth’s jumper instead.
They do have outfits for you to hire if you happen to arrive unprepared.
A very pleasant surprise was that entrance to the Grand Mosque is free as are the official tour guides, which includes a headset to hear your guide (so they don’t raise their voices).
The mosque is definitely Grand, as well as beautiful, pristine and bright!. It took 11 years to build and finished in 2007. You wouldn’t think it though, it looks brand new. There is an army of cleaners going silently about their work to keep it spick and span.
The marble was sourced from many corners of the world. Gemstones and mother of pearl form the inlaid flowers. A humongous amount of crystals make up the spectacular chandeliers, one of which has a ladder inside for cleaning! And the fabulous carpet was handmade by over 1,000 people (a Guinness world record). Wow!
A must see if you come this way .
Before I started to wilt in Gareth’s jumper, we headed outside and back to the taxi rank.
Our next stop was the World Trade Centre Abu Dhabi for an air-conditioned muse around the Souk (shops).
It wasn’t the old traditional souk we were hoping for but the cool temperature was very welcome.
We found the Irish pub on the 6th floor which has a garden terrace. As most of the surrounding buildings are skyscrapers there’s not much to look across at from the terrace, but it was nice to sit and have a cold beer in the shade.
Walking back through the Mall we stopped for a very tasty gyros in the food court before heading back to the hotel….in a taxi of course. We now know why there are hardly any people walking the streets, it’s just too hot 
.
At the hotel we ventured to the rooftop pool, just a little one with a great view over the Corniche district and docks. I did pop into the pool to cool myself down, didn’t stay in too long..of course 
. The best part was, there was lots of shade and a welcome breeze.
We are now resting before dinner (4hours ahead of GMT) 
Day 3
15th Nov
Abu Dhabi
For dinner last night we ventured out of the hotel and walked around looking for a restaurant.
There are lots with bright lights all around us but as you get close you realise they are in fact takeaways!
Our walk took us past lots of shops and laundries surprisingly, also there were quite a few local men sitting out on pavements socialising. Had we been in a different country we might have felt a bit intimidated but not here, there is not a lot of crime as the punishment is harsh.
Eventually we happened upon a great little Lebanese restaurant and just ordered a main meal each. This was accompanied by a selection of hummus, olives and 3 different breads! 
Bang goes the carb diet .
The waiter asked Gareth if he wanted ‘the juice of the day’? Looking puzzled, he then said ‘a beer sir’. Ooh ok, lovely, we ordered two and soon we had two bottles of Corona 0%. There was us thinking it was code for alcohol 
. Better than nothing .
The meal was delicious, you can’t go wrong with Lebanese food, it’s always so tasty . They gave us a complimentary pudding too, reminded us of Panna cotta, yum yum. When we said how delicious it was, the waiter beamed and said you can only get it here , sweet.
Day 4
16 Nov
Abu Dhabi to Kuala Lumpur
This morning we had a small breakfast as we were still full from last night’s dinner, then packed up and waited for our friends Aniket and Kim to arrive. They lived in Dubai for many years and are back here before relocating to Australia.
After a mishap with directions to our hotel (mentioning no names but it begins with a G!) They picked us up and took us out…..to lunch can you see a trend forming?
The chosen spot was along the Corniche, a lovely beach area further down the road from our hotel. We had some amazing food that Kim chose, it’s so easy to be a vegan/vegetarian here .
After a great catch-up we then went to visit the Louvre, a domed museum and exhibition centre built around the water.
Arriving just as the sun was setting we got some great pictures of the roof and the skyline. The roof is amazing. Looking through the camera I likened it to The Starship Enterprise or similar. And we spotted a turtle trying to escape the rehabilitation tank 
.
There was a mysterious light show in the sky when we came back out. We think it was drones but don’t know for sure .
Aniket and Kim kindly dropped us to the new terminal at the airport. It’s only just opened (days) and is spanking 
. There is a separate driveway and parking for business class, which then leads you straight into the dedicated check-in desks and security. They must have the new 3d scanners as we didn’t have to take out our liquids and electronics, how flipping refreshing.
Gareth caused a stir though as his belt got caught in the scanner , luckily, it was retrieved so he doesn’t have to walk around holding his shorts up .
Into the brand new lounge we went.
I’ve had a glass of fizz, Gareth had a Bloody Mary and we both had a few picky bits while we wait to board our next flight to Kuala Lumpur, at about 11pm. Hope it’s a comfy as the previous flight.
Night all, catch up with you all in Malaysia 
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