Leaving Dubai for Abu Dhabi. This skyline will be changing due to all the new buildings being constructed right now and all the new buildings that will be constructed for the 2020 Expo which Dubai just recently was awarded.

On the road. No "Welcome to Abu Dhabi" sign that I saw letting you know you have crossed the border into another Emirate.

I was sitting on the wrong side of the bus going to Abu Dhabi and in a bad seat to take good photos of the camel racing stadium and the huge area devoted to camel racing in Abu Dhabi.

Exercising the camels. The camel racing season will soon be starting.

Roadside businesses including a garage.

We stopped at a gas station that had a convenience store. Ali Baba treats sold here.

Camel peanuts.

Camel green peas and broad beans.

Raja potato crunchies.

Pizza flavor and corn torilla crisps. As well as American candy bars.

For the kiddies.

Abu Dhabi actually has a mountain--the Hebel Hafitat 4068 feet or 1240 meters, part of the Hajar Mountains.

Our first stop, near the city of Al Ain in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, the Hili Archeological Park for Familes.

Park Rules: No barbecue, fire, or shisha, no football, not vehicles, bikes, or skis. Skis? Plus visitors compiance to customs and traditions.

Entering the park.

Pretty fountain.

A mosque on the grounds.

Also, an Arabic-style building.

If Mounir wasn't carrying a plastic water bottle, you could picture him dressed just like this many centuries ago. He changed his headscarf.

Mounir's full name is Mounir Ali Al Shami, quite a name!

An archelogical excavation started here in the late 1960s. A settlement and tombs dating back to 2700-2000 BC were unearthed. This a restored tomb, named the Great Stone Tomb..

The tomb opening. People were buried in collective graves--there were six chambers in this one. Many artifacts were found in the tombs along with bones, which indicated that child mortality was high and people rarely lived over age 40.

More of the excavation.

Pretty designs along a surrounding park wall.

Wall of one of the many sheikh palaces that we passed.

This was another one.

The city of Al Ain has a three-story height limit, so no skyscrapers here.

More of the three-story buildings. I thought some of them looked like buildings in Southern California in new shopping areas.

Another three-story building.

And two more. I thought they were interesting.

Next stop, at the Al Ain Oasis. The sign warns about falling dates and spraying, which probably means that these dates aren't organic.

The oasis covers over 3,000 acres with over 147,000 date palms of up to 100 different species.

Beautiful shade.

A new date palm.

Looking skyward.

A palm grove. Men climb up the palms both to retrieve the dates and to cut off dead fronds. See movie in the Day 4 album of a man climbing up a palm tree.

Dates anyone? I didn't try one as I don't eat dates except in date shakes but other people said they were good.

Our next stop, the Al Ain National Museum in the Sultan Bin Zayed Fort.

More of the fort, but we didn't go around it. Note the two men in disdashas in the photo.

I could see these three-story buildings from the fort. I asked who I thought was Mounir what architectural style they represented, but it was the man in the above photo with the red and white checkered head scarf. I forgot that Mounir now had on a white one. The cultural rule here as I understand it is not to talk to men in Muslim dress. But the man did talk to me but one of my male tourmates, Gus, was standing next to me, so maybe it was okay. He said that there is a Muslim style to the buildings and they are in certain colors. I could see some of this after he mentioned it.

This falcon was perched on a pedestal in front of the museum. Hoods like this one has been used for centuries to limit what the falcon is seeing and to keep it calm. See album for a movie of this falcon.

Inside the museum: from the left, head of Abu Dhabi and president of the Emirates, Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan; head of Dubai, Shiekh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, vice president of the Emirates; and the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahgan.

Photos of past sheikhs.

Royal family tree.

The Danish Archeological Expedition was heavily involved in the excavations.

Why we have museums of the past. This museum includes many artifacts from the Hili excavation, gifts that Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan have been given, and ethnographic exhibits.

Excavated jars.

Excavated stone plaques.

Excavated spearheads.

More excavated spearheads.

Stone vessels, pottery, sword blades, and arrowheads from the 3rd, 2nd, and 1st mllennia BC.

Old rifles.

From the 18th century,

Carved daggers called Kharjar, worn in many parts of the Arabian Peninsula.

Early tools.

More early tools.

Showing traditional Bedouin life.

Bedouin jewelry.

Bedouin dress.

I guess this is a painting of a Bedouin woman having her eyes made up.

And with an interesting hairdo.

Abu Dhabi in 1962 at the time when its oil was first exported.

Women and children in 1962 when its oil was first exported.

UAE flag that was taken to the moon in 1972--see next photo.

On the plaque: This flag of your national was carried to the Moon aboard Spacecraft American during the Apollo XVII mission, December 7-19, 1972. Presented to the people of the United Arab Emirates from the people of the United States of America, Richard Nixon 1973.

A photo of the Challenger astronauts with no explanation attached. I assume it is hung in memorium.

This is the man who gave Gud and me information about the three-story architecture. The falcon was his.

Man and his falcon.

And another man-falcon photo.