Ador Imbibe Spirit of the Emirate with Tour of Landmark Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

United Arab Emirates. 17 February 2014. The crew of Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, the round-the-world Volvo Ocean Race sailing team backed by Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi), experienced  Emirati culture at its most awe-inspiring recently with a visit to the UAE capital’s iconic Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque.

The mosque – one of the city’s most visited landmarks – was brought to life for the crew through a guided tour with TCA Abu Dhabi’s Assistant Training and Accreditation Executive, Nabeel Faris.

Luke ‘Parko’ Parkinson, ADOR’s newly recruited Australian Bowman and Helmsman, said the tour – part of his first visit to the emirate – was an unforgettable experience.       

“I’ve never experienced a faith structure of this scale,” said the Perth-born crewman. “It’s an amazing building, with all its handmade features – from the gold, to the ornate marble pillars.”

Boat Captain and Trimmer, New Zealand’s Andrew ‘Animal’ McLean was also visiting the iconic building for the first time:

“It’s really amazing, and I was surprised about how much New Zealand wool went into making the carpet inside, which I learned is the world’s biggest hand-knotted carpet. It felt quite good under foot and gave me a taste of home all the way over here in Abu Dhabi,” he said. “It was also very interesting learning from Nabeel how Emiratis practice their faith.”

Despite having visited Abu Dhabi before, most notably when winning the in-port race during the last edition of the Volvo Ocean Race in 2011/12, returning ADOR Navigator Simon ‘Si-Fi’ Fisher was also visiting the mosque for the first time.

“I absolutely learned something new about Abu Dhabi today. Every day is a school day, and it’s always good to find out more about different cultures and faiths.” said Si-Fi.

“Nabeel was a really good guide and it was interesting learning more about the religious aspects of the local culture, and why they built the mosque here in the first place.”

The ADOR team members were on a three-day familiarisation trip of the emirate ahead of their return, next December, when the Volvo Ocean Race arrives in Abu Dhabi for a two-week stopover. Next stop for the crew is the UK where their yacht for the 2014/15 race – Azzam – is nearing completion and will be undertaking its first water trials in early March.

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