Author Topic: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)  (Read 69780 times)

Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #20 on: August 24, 2012, 11:36:33 AM »
Gotcha, hope you finish your TR :)
I often find that looking at pictures is a great way to jog your memory about an old trip.
absolutely, i just plugged in my external hd

Offline daganster

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #21 on: August 24, 2012, 12:34:10 PM »
moish great job that's very brave of you to travel like that with your kids. I travel often with my kids, but I've never done anything remotely as far and long of a trip. I give your wife more credit than you as my wife would never agree to it ( She'll come on a long trip if I leave the kids home with my mom). Btw how many miles did you use in total for the trip, just curious.

Offline AJK

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #22 on: August 24, 2012, 12:35:55 PM »
moish great job that's very brave of you to travel like that with your kids. I travel often with my kids, but I've never done anything remotely as far and long of a trip. I give your wife more credit than you as my wife would never agree to it ( She'll come on a long trip if I leave the kids home with my mom). Btw how many miles did you use in total for the trip, just curious.

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Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #23 on: August 30, 2012, 07:11:48 PM »
Part 3: Abu Dhabi
I’ve discussed my travels on Royal Jordanian in the past so I’ll skip TLV-AMM-AUH. A funny story, though, when we boarded the AMM-AUH flight, my 4 year old wanted to visit the cockpit, so we asked the flight attendant if we could. She returned with permission from the captain. As soon as I approached the cockpit door, I was tackled, ok, roughly grabbed, by a seriously scary looking Arab male. After a long commotion in many different languages, it appeared as though he was the flight marshal, and I needed his permission as well which I didn’t get. (The stewardess, who didn’t speak Arabic, apologized to me for the debacle). The good thing is that I finally could cross “get apprehended by a flight marshal” off my bucket list. :)
The KSML meal on RJ, as last time, was not up to par from a kashrus perspective (I believe it was Rabbanut of the Gaza Strip, if I recall correctly), so don’t rely on it.
Upon arrival in AUH, I hired a porter for 20 Emirati Dirhams ($5.44). As with Dubai, no mention was made of the numerous Israeli stamps and student visas at passport control. Went outside and found a taxi big enough for all our suitcases and we were off. As our stay in Abu Dhabi was short, I had a hard time choosing where to spend the night (http://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=14096.0) but ended up choosing the aloft to get the SPG stay credit. As a platinum with SPG, we were upgraded to a “suite”, which must’ve been the smallest suite I’ve ever stayed in. They also gave me 2 vouchers for any drink at the hotel. (We ended up using them for a couple of beers at the rooftop lounge). The hotel has absolutely no local character, but it did the job. It’s located across the street from the Capital Gate, and the rooftop bar affords a great view.
In the morning, I took a taxi to the Sheikh Zayed mosque, the largest mosque in the UAE, and third largest in the world. Built at a cost of over a half a billion dollars it contains materials and workmanship from all over the world. It is extremely beautiful and it holds the world’s largest chandelier as well as the world’s largest carpet. I took the free English guided tour at 10am, and it was quite informative. It’s definitely a ‘must see’ in AD.
We then visited one of the many malls there, but made a quick exit when realizing it was nothing like the ones in Dubai. Afterwards, we went to the Emirates Palace hotel. Definitely one of the more over the top, ostentatious buildings I’ve been in. Pretty much everything in there is dripping in gold. You can even take some home with you, as the world’s first gold vending machine sits in the lobby for an expensive souvenir.
We then went to the Corniche. It’s basically a walking path along the water. I had read that there were street performers etc. and was expecting something like the South Street Seaport, but it was completely empty. I guess it’s only ‘happening’ on the weekends. Either way, we had an enjoyable walk along the sandy beaches before making our way back to our hotel to get back to the airport.

Offline SuperFlyer

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #24 on: August 30, 2012, 07:14:27 PM »
Nice !

post pix please !

Offline AJK

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #25 on: August 30, 2012, 07:31:36 PM »
2015: 116K bkd | 1.6M brnd | F: OZ,NH,AA,EK | J: UA,CA,TK,DL,TN,AF,VA | LIH,NRT,ROR,PEK,CNS,BOB,MEL,TLV & Pacific Hopper

Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #26 on: August 30, 2012, 07:38:05 PM »
ok

Offline SuperFlyer

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #27 on: August 30, 2012, 07:40:22 PM »
Nice, in QR they only had pointing to Mekak, and I have a similar pic taken in the AUH (without the people, closer by)

Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #28 on: August 30, 2012, 07:42:23 PM »
more

Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #29 on: August 30, 2012, 07:43:17 PM »
I have a similar pic taken in the AUH (without the people, closer by)
i dont believe it

Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #30 on: August 30, 2012, 07:45:25 PM »
and more

Offline SuperFlyer

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #31 on: August 30, 2012, 07:48:09 PM »

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #32 on: August 30, 2012, 07:48:35 PM »
taken from BB, the nicer ones have me on it.

Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #33 on: August 30, 2012, 07:49:30 PM »
last one

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #34 on: August 30, 2012, 07:51:19 PM »
Was there too, they tayne that in the rooms all above touching level is real gold.

Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #35 on: August 30, 2012, 07:55:48 PM »
« Last Edit: August 30, 2012, 08:12:12 PM by moish »

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #36 on: August 30, 2012, 08:10:33 PM »
i dont think so

Got a free limo for the day

i dont believe you did

which the valet parked for us, driving in front of the hotel on the marble floor (cream color with marron drawings.

i still  dont believe you

Who cares...

Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #37 on: September 06, 2012, 08:29:01 PM »
Part 4: AUH-MEL in EY F & Exploring Melbourne

Upon arrival at the airport, we drove to the Etihad business and first entrance, where we were greeted by what looked like hotel porters complete with hotel luggage carts. It was definitely a relaxing way to start the journey. Inside the premium terminal, we encountered more of the same. Check in was an extremely unrushed, relaxing experience with couches and chairs. We then made our way through passport control and security to the first class lounge. The lounge was a quiet, serene place and we were escorted to a private room and presented with menus. Pretty much the only thing we were able to order was some fruit and 100% fruit juice.
 
 
 
 
 


There were only 2 other passengers in first, so we were able to get a seat for my infant. The configuration was 1-2-1. With the doors closed, the middle section effectively became a room, and with the seat reclined in the fully flat position, it was a perfect (and safe) situation for my baby to sleep. They use an international crew, and the ones attending to first class were an American and an Italian.
 


 
 
 
 
« Last Edit: September 06, 2012, 08:32:15 PM by moish »

Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #38 on: September 06, 2012, 08:51:22 PM »


mood lighting


is this air force one?!


bathroom sink


bathroom windows


anyone have a clue what this is???



Apparently they get a lot of frum passengers, as they knew exactly how to prepare the KSML and they told me they deal with it all the time. The kosher meals were from Stogel, but unlike what I’ve gotten from Stogel on European flights (barely edible) these meals were actually pretty good. The cold cut sandwich ‘snack’ was especially delicious.








Offline moish

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Re: Oz Trip Report (w/ a splash of Abu Dhabi)
« Reply #39 on: September 06, 2012, 08:52:17 PM »
As we flew on my birthday, in middle of the flight the captain came on with a ‘special announcement’ wishing me a happy birthday. I was presented with a homemade card with birthday wishes from the entire crew in their native languages. I thought that was a nice touch. (HT: Mrs. Moish)


 
 
 


We all pretty much slept the entire flight (kids included!, to the delight of the other first class passengers) and was the best (and most comfortable) flying experience I’ve ever had to date. If the opportunity ever presents itself, I highly recommend splurging for this wonderful experience.





As a first class passenger, Etihad arranged a complimentary chauffeur who met us at the airport and drove us to our hotel, the Park Hyatt Melbourne. I had tried to arrange one in Abu Dhabi to bring us to the airport, but since technically our stay in Abu Dhabi was a connection, they refused my request.
The Park Hyatt Melbourne is located a few blocks away from the Chabad house, so if one was to be eating at Chabad on Shabbos, the PH would be an excellent choice.






Since I was in Melbourne during the Grand Prix, the hotel was pretty booked so they didn’t give me a suite, even though I’m diamond, but I did get a nice sized room.









However, the hotel was able to get me kosher breakfast, although the offering was small. I think they must’ve ordered breakfast for one.





On Friday morning, we made our way to the main street to pick up a local prepaid SIM card for my unlocked Blackberry. Optus was the only company that offered prepaid Blackberry service so that’s what I got ($50). I also bought a prepaid wireless modem from Telstra for $80. After that we continued on to Federation Square, which is a nice place to hang out.  There is a wonderful tourist info center there, where we picked up some maps of the Great Ocean Road as well as had all our questions answered by the knowledgeable staff.
We then continued on to the Eureka Skydeck 88 for some wonderful views of the city. From the observation deck’s telescopes, we were able to get a real good view of the Grand Prix that was taking place. They also have a “ride” called the ‘Edge Experience’, which is a room you go into that protrudes out of the building and then all of a sudden the floor becomes clear and you realize that the only thing between you and the sidewalk 300 meters below, is a measly piece of glass. All the while a cracking glass soundtrack is played. Some of the people with us were scared, but it didn’t really do anything for me. Still a cool experience though. There’s usually a line for the Edge Experience, so as soon as you get off the elevator, you should first buy the tickets and be placed on the queue before you start going to the observation deck. They give you a small black device that buzzes when it’s your turn.





Afterwards, we went back to the main street where we bought souvenirs from the many souvenir shops, for our family back home. Although I didn’t know it at the time, the prices there were the best that we saw in Australia. We then headed back to the Park Hyatt to get ready for Shabbos…
« Last Edit: September 06, 2012, 09:36:02 PM by moish »