The foyer before entering the mosque proper was simply stunning, and everybody was taking pictures, including Tim, who managed to get me in the shot. In any case, this is a better view of the beautiful light in the foyer than in the previous picture, which is a wider view of the room. I must say, with living in Saudi Arabia and having to wear an abaya and headscarf in public, I certainly had the right clothing to visit this mosque!

The Sheik Zayed Grand Mosque can accommodate up to 40,000 worshippers, has four minarets, more than 80 domes and 1,000 pillars holding it all up. The interior has elements from Turkey, Morocco and the Taj Mahal exhibited in marble, gold, semi-precious stones, crystals and ceramics. It hosts the world’s largest Persian carpet, which took 2.000 artisans two years to complete and seven gold-plated crystal chandeliers. (Summary from Lonely Planet’s “Oman, UAE & Arabian Peninsula”)

The main picture is the scene one sees upon going through this door: