Abu Dhabi

The capital of the United Arab Emirates, a city that began at a single fort beside a well of sweet water on a low desert island and now spreads its towers and its Corniche along the Arabian Gulf. Qasr Al Hosn, the white fort, still stands at the historic heart, the oldest stone building in the city and the seat from which the ruling Al Nahyan governed for two centuries. Along the reclaimed waterfront the modern capital faces the sea, from the Founder's Memorial and its portrait of Sheikh Zayed to the great sweep of the Corniche. And to the east rises the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, one of the largest in the world and open to visitors, a vision in white marble. Read the founding city on its island, from the fort to the mosque, at your own pace.