{"id":33069,"date":"2018-01-26T11:00:25","date_gmt":"2018-01-26T16:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/?p=33069"},"modified":"2018-01-25T15:37:24","modified_gmt":"2018-01-25T20:37:24","slug":"layover-mission-searching-cheese-abu-dhabi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/layover-mission-searching-cheese-abu-dhabi\/","title":{"rendered":"Layover Mission: Searching for Cheese in Abu Dhabi"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last summer, writer Heather Richie spent a 24-hour layover in Abu Dhabi while traveling from Johannesburg to New York, and went on a mission to find local cheese.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Y<\/span>ou have 24 hours. Your objective: Find cheese in Abu Dhabi. Go!
\n<\/span>At the airport, convert 60 US$ to UAE Dirham for cab rides to and from the city. Use your bank card, the one that doesn\u2019t charge international fees, for restaurants, shops, and the hotel. <\/span>Don\u2019t haggle with the slew of cab drivers waiting outside. Share a cab on the way in. The hotel will have one ready for you on the way out. Your cab driver will speak English. <\/span><\/p>\n

23 hours to go<\/b><\/h3>\n

Don\u2019t go in August. In Abu Dhabi, August is the hottest month of the year. Your body is melting, and you don\u2019t know why you would want cheese, but here you are. This is where Garfield mailed Nermal again and again. That is the extent of your cultural reference. <\/span><\/p>\n

Stay at the Hilton. Wear the right shoes. Walk to Marina Mall. Be disappointed: It is a pristine shopping mall, yes, but you sweat buckets walking and there is no cheese in sight. <\/span><\/p>\n

21 hours to go<\/b><\/h3>\n

See signs for a place called Bill\u2019s Farm, which does not exactly meet the standard for exoticism, but which will do because you are melting. It is too quiet. Where is everyone? Spot three men. Follow them through a breezeway. <\/span><\/p>\n

Find Bill\u2019s Farm. Skip Bill\u2019s Farm. Go next door to Casper & Gambini\u2019s. Later, learn they have 38 locations throughout the Arabian Peninsula. <\/span><\/p>\n

Spot halloumi on the menu. You see halloumi on menus everywhere in the US, but you are not here to spread the halloumi gospel. You are on a quest to learn a new cheese.<\/span><\/p>\n

Order the Fig & Chavignol Crostini. Your Crottin de Chavignol<\/em> with fig and caramelized apple will be a perfect specimen, the most famous of the Loire Valley, but you did not come to Abu Dhabi to eat French cheese.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>19 hours to go<\/b><\/h3>\n

Befriend a feral cat. Walk to the heritage village to learn everything is closed. Walk back to your hotel. See a few tourists snapping photos. Marvel at Emirates Palace<\/span>. Recall <\/span>Sex & The City II<\/span><\/i> was set in Abu Dhabi. Later, learn that it was filmed in Morocco. <\/span><\/p>\n

In your room, p<\/span>eel off the sopping mess that was your clothing. Nap. Awake to a knock at the door. You\u2019ve been named guest of the day. Abu Dhabi is funny like that. Accept your complimentary snack\u2014three little dishes. Wait\u2026 is that cheese? No, it\u2019s more of a yogurt. But it\u2019s tasty. Nosh, and again, nap. <\/span><\/p>\n

15 hours to go<\/b><\/h3>\n

You have worn the wrong shoes, but you must find a cheese of Abu Dhabi. You must have a genuine Middle Eastern cheese experience. Convince yourself to walk to the other end of the city, where the market and action must be. Wait until it is nearer to dark, and falls below 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Walk halfway, taking a photo of Marina Mall through a wall, and noticing apropos quotes in the sidewalk. <\/span><\/p>\n

13 hours to go<\/b><\/h3>\n

Don\u2019t freak out because it is getting dark. At least people are finally coming outside. They walk together. They bicycle. Families eat snacks at franchises along the waterfront. You wish you\u2019d gone to the market when you went to the mall. Tell yourself you will come back. The Crottin de Chavignol was a good consolation prize.<\/span><\/p>\n

It is night, but you are sweating. A call to prayer echoes from a nearby mosque. At first, you think it is the sound of a sports match. Allow yourself to feel silly, then wonderful. Spot a bookstore. Watch the lights go out. Give up. Pass a Starbucks.<\/span><\/p>\n

11 hours to go<\/b><\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\t\t