Back home, we are remembering some of the wonderful experiences we enjoyed in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Muscat.   Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi was beautiful.

And we, as non Muslims, were able to go inside to see the largest carpet, largest chandelier and the grandeur of this mosque.   The fish market was fun and I, Zeb the Duck, got a fish.

An evening boat ride, dinner included, showed us old and new on the Abu Dhabi sky line.

A common sight, and sound, throughout our Middle East adventure, the minaret of a mosque with a speaker for the call to worship.

We gave up a free day in Abu Dhabi to experience a little of Muscat, Oman.   Here we saw some old and some new.   Muscat is a few thousand years old.   We loved wandering through the souk.

Driving through Muscat, we appreciated the absence of too many cars and the accompanying car noises.

Here, our guide shows some of the new:  The Royal Opera House of Muscat, Oman.

Back to the United Arab Emirates, in Dubai we rode a traditional boat, or dhow, to cross Dubai Creek.

We admired Dubai Fountain with Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, all connected with Dubai Mall.

Dubai Marina was bustling, but still relaxing for our lunch stop.

Mall of the Emirates provided indoor snow skiing and tubing on snow, in additional to fabulous dining and shopping.

Souk Madinat Jumeirah was a modern souk.

The narrow alley of Bastakia Heritage Area showed life before oil and oil money forever changed Dubai.

Aromas from the spice souk will be with us always.

Of course we loved the animals.   The unexpected flock of flamingos were wonderful to see.

And riding the desert native, a camel, made our trip even more memorable.

Of course we will never the gold souk with those huge gold necklaces and gold hats.   But our fondest memories are of the kind, welcoming people we met.   Our trip was a tour through http://www.SmarTours.com.   We have taken tours from them previously.   This was Deluxe Dubai and Abu Dhabi.   The day trip to Muscat, Oman, was not connected to SmarTours.   Chanel’s mom made separate reservations for us and we loved our day in Oman.   We hope you visit Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Oman soon.   We loved it.