Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque - Abu Dhabi

On June 7th, Ben, Sharon and I traveled to Abu Dhabi to check out the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque.  In case you were wondering, it is pretty friggin' grand. . . 

82 domes. Marble columns, flooring and exterior. A hand-knotted carpet that took 1,200 artisans two years to complete. Multiple chandeliers made from gilded stainless steel and gilded brass (approximately 40 kg of 24 carat galvanized gold was used), with each chandelier weighing between 2-12 tons each.

The Menbar (pulpit) 'features floral and shell designs which are made of carved cedar wood inlaid with mother of pearl, glass mosaic and white gold.  It has a small dome shaped 'roof' and crescent finial at the top of the stairs.' (You can read more here.)

Love Sharon :)

We really enjoyed getting to see a bit of Abu Dhabi and to see the exquisite mosque.  Construction on the mosque began in the late nineties and was finished and open to worshippers in 2007.  It can fit up to 40,000 worshippers - 10,000 inside and 30,000 outside. 

Proper dress is necessary.  As you can see from the photo below, I was provided an abaya to wear and Sharon was given the ok.  Skinny jeans and short sleeves are a no-no.

Sharon - good.  Lyndsey - not good.

Once we were given the ok to go inside, we had to separate from Ben to go down the ladies side during prayer.  We were able to get some pretty awesome pictures in!

No shoe-zys allowed.

Pretty sweet photo I captured.

I love this picture of Sharon!

AMAZING photo of the hallway leading to the ladies prayer room.  This is an outdoor hallway with marble pillars, marble floor, and I wouldn't doubt that there is some gold in there.  Absolutely stunning!

Purdy marble flower and purdy lady feet.

The Menbar (pulpit) I mentioned earlier. 

One of the huge chandeliers.
This one weighs about 8 tons, I believe.

An excellent shot of the chandeliers by Ben

This is where/how we found Ben.

He was so pleased to have his picture taken.
Quote while typing caption, 'I actually was enjoying myself there.  It was very pretty and fun to people watch.  Except the effin' kids running around playing tag.' 

Leaving the mosque.

If you're ever in the area, this is a must see! Completely lovely.  The pictures do not do it justice!