United Arab Emirates

Suppose that, in a trivia questions, you were asked to name the emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates. The nation by that name, known as the UAE, is actually composed of seven separate monarchies. The two that everyone is familiar with, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, are the ones with the tall buildings. Very few people are familiar with the other five. But the two largest of the emirates do hold the vast majority of the populations. Native Emiratis are actually far outnumbered by the foreign workers and expats in the country.

The UAE, like neighbors Qatar and Bahrain, became independent in 1971. The UAE used to be known as the Trucial States.

Before the days of oil, the traditional industry was pearling. Abu Dhabi is considered as the capital of the United Arab Emirates. The first president, and founder of the country, was Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan. His son, and successor, is Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The United Arab Emirates are known for having laws that some westerners may not agree with.

Six of the seven emirates that make up the country face toward the Persian Gulf. The other faces the Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean. Let's begin our visit with the northernmost emirate on the coast of the Persian Gulf, and proceed southward.

The northernmost of the United Arab Emirates, along the coast of the Persian Gulf, is Ras Al-Khaimah, and the following scenes are a look at it.

There are multiple scenes following. To see the scenes, after the first one, you must first click the up arrow, ^, before you can move on to the next scene by clicking the right or forward arrow, >. After clicking the up arrow, you can then hide the previews of successive scenes, if you wish.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.7978101,55.9490122,3a,75y,281h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s3vCKeaMUZhSUO4r8MeEo3w!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D3vCKeaMUZhSUO4r8MeEo3w%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D281.54858%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Next, we come to the Emirate of Umm Al-Quwain. The Indian restaurants that you see in the Emirates indicate the foreign workers and expats who live there. There are plenty of westerners who live here, but they tend to stick to Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.5858293,55.5754841,3a,75y,188h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sSLbvjiBGIuIpWmy-1TDEKg!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DSLbvjiBGIuIpWmy-1TDEKg%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D188.4002%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

The next emirate is Ajman.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.4174744,55.5015119,3a,75y,214h,88t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipPD0DHkxKynNDyShw0nuqQobffeIG5wgEme48RT!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipPD0DHkxKynNDyShw0nuqQobffeIG5wgEme48RT%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi-2.9338646-ya41.350227-ro-0-fo100!7i13312!8i6656

Proceeding southward, the next emirate is Sharjah. At this point, the emirates start to become big cities.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.3430456,55.3921267,3a,75y,0.43h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s2UDPqeW5OgSfNbhXzWL66Q!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D2UDPqeW5OgSfNbhXzWL66Q%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D0.3848672%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

To serve all of the Indian and Pakistani expats, there is a cricket stadium in Sharjah. This is the area around there. The UAE is a major force in the world of cricket.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.3309196,55.4209211,3a,75y,120.55h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipP2hi8ckq9YwU7H4n93pyV1D97tjW2huCCICHyo!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipP2hi8ckq9YwU7H4n93pyV1D97tjW2huCCICHyo%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya261.14307-ro0-fo100!7i10240!8i5120

Next, we come to Dubai. Maybe you have never hear of Ajman, but the whole world knows Dubai. It is not only one of the great cities of the world, it has the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa. But the oldest building in Dubai is the Al Fahidi Fort, so let's visit there first.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.2641825,55.3002071,2a,75y,30.37h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sDeaECWWSpI7AQ4zCJztRgQ!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DDeaECWWSpI7AQ4zCJztRgQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D27.921133%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Here is the view from one of the observation decks on the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building that the world has ever seen.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.1971353,55.2745134,3a,75y,171.29h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipNf9kQlRmsaCJprjCwxc7hFv4eR1R1hlwfRXM4L!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipNf9kQlRmsaCJprjCwxc7hFv4eR1R1hlwfRXM4L%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi0-ya67.11013-ro-0-fo100!7i8704!8i4352

Deira, just across the river from downtown Dubai, is completely different. This is the older part of Dubai, and is a residential and small business area. Again, you can see the many Indian and Pakistani restaurants for all the expats in Dubai.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.2759109,55.3303626,3a,75y,169h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sPu98YgNIzZE6J5C6LQEY0Q!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DPu98YgNIzZE6J5C6LQEY0Q%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D169.6199%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

We know that the United Arab Emirates is a Moslem country. But the foreign workers and expats in the country outnumber the native Emiratis themselves. Non-Moslems can have places to practice their religions. There is a large Hindu temple complex in Dubai. The following scenes are of a place in Dubai where there are several Christian churches next to a Sikh gurdwara. We do not usually expect the United Arab Emirates to be a place where we would find crowded churches. The following scenes begin inside a Coptic church. The building that is built in the form of a sail is the Burj Al Arab, a luxury hotel built on an artificial island.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.026852,55.1138184,3a,75y,106.8h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipPv_Z-9Se6GwgYb-SNAB1U-5PYfgjlr0kdkbPWB!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipPv_Z-9Se6GwgYb-SNAB1U-5PYfgjlr0kdkbPWB%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi-0-ya116.84622-ro0-fo100!7i8704!8i4352

Can you believe what Dubai has done with artificial islands? One creation is an archipelago, in the form of a palm tree, with houses, hotels, and amusement parks. This is known as the Palm Jumeirah, and here is a satellite image of it.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.1213789,55.1402494,10992m/data=!3m1!1e3

There is also The World Islands, which are islands arranged as a map of the world.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.2195674,55.1735517,10983m/data=!3m1!1e3

Here are a look at the buildings and homes, built on the artificial islands of the Palm Jumeirah, which are all in the form of a palm tree.

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.119123,55.1318258,2a,75y,214h,88t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sd0X90dXloNloS9tAO3emFg!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo1.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3Dd0X90dXloNloS9tAO3emFg%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D214.5%26pitch%3D-2.9338646%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

About 100 km from Dubai is Abu Dhabi. It is the capital of the United Arab Emirates, even though it is not as large as Dubai. People who have lived in the Emirates have commented on the difference between Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Dubai is more cosmopolitan, there are people from around the world, and also more expensive. Abu Dhabi is quieter and more conservative. The following scenes are around The Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi.

https://www.google.com/maps/@24.4642506,54.3194586,3a,75y,136.61h,90t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1sAF1QipP1PJ0_f1GMiik0nSTIgaAOPDxwepRRtVnvHIJW!2e10!3e11!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipP1PJ0_f1GMiik0nSTIgaAOPDxwepRRtVnvHIJW%3Dw203-h100-k-no-pi0-ya139.28708-ro0-fo100!7i11000!8i5500

Here are some more scenes of Abu Dhabi, beginning in the Khalidiyah Mall.

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The last of the Emirates, on the opposite side of the country facing the Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean, is Fujairah. It is not a big city like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, or Sharjah. 

https://www.google.com/maps/@25.1442471,56.3430595,3a,75y,89.29h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s3So6n9hONBoh6qAmzKKeoQ!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D3So6n9hONBoh6qAmzKKeoQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D89.29457%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656