Ok, sometimes that includes me.
Today we're going to look at some maps. Maps are our friends, unless you are a taxi driver in Abu Dhabi, in which case looking at a two-dimensional rendering of any geographical area is slightly more daunting than looking at a Rubik's Cube for the first time. (Free advice: Don't give your driver a map, as it will only make things worse. Take my word for it. Multiple experiments have demonstrated that there is not a single professional driver in Abu Dhabi who is familiar with the concept of a map.)
I mentioned a couple of days ago that Abu Dhabi is not Dubai. That still holds true. Here's a partial UAE map showing that they are, in fact, two different places:
Since we're concerned here with Abu Dhabi, not Dubai, let's zoom in on just the Abu Dhabi portion (the city and its surroundings, not the entire Emirate of Abu Dhabi):
Although it's difficult to see, the city of Abu Dhabi is an island, the crucial dividing point between "mainland" and "Abu Dhabi island" being that bit of water in the middle of the map running twixt Bain Al Jessrain and Officers City. While significant development is occurring in off-island areas around Khalifa City A (shown as Madinat Khalifa A on the map), the heart of the city, including government offices, businesses, shopping, restaurants, etc. are still on Abu Dhabi island. Eventually, lots of this stuff will move over to Khalifa City A. Eventually.
Finally, we'll take a quick look at Abu Dhabi Island and its neighbourhoods:
The key area on this map is the Corniche -- the stretch of seafront running between the Tourist Club Area and Al Khubeirah on the northwest side of the island. The closer you are to the Corniche, the closer you are (generally) to the central business district, shops, eateries, etc. Neighbourhoods like Al Bateen, Al Karama, Al Mushrif, and Al Nahyan tend to be more residential, and farther away from the action (and noise) of the city.
The National Newspaper has published some excellent articles in its "Why Live In..." series. Here are a few samples for your reading pleasure:
That should be enough to make you (and me) slightly less geographically challenged. Providing you can read a map.
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