As my family and I stepped out of our taxi on an unfamiliar territory, all we could say was "wow." My dad, my mom, my sister and I had finally arrived at The Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. On the outside, the building appeared pristine and perfect. It was painted white as snow with tasteful hints of gold here and there. I admired it as my family and I waited in line to go inside. Dressed in what we had thought were our most conservative clothes, the ladies of my family (along with everyone else who was not dressed properly) were given a long dress with a hood to put on and cover ourselves.

Notice all the men in the background dressed in regular street clothes, while only the women were required to cover up completely.

We ventured on to the inside of the mosque, not before removing our shoes of course, and were silenced by the beauty around us. Taking in my surroundings, I noticed that there was one major difference between a mosque and a church or synagogue. Mosques had no pictures or statues of any holy people. It was just decorated with things like flowers, stained glass windows, and unique patterns.

To my surprise, we were allowed to take pictures inside. I began to snap away, trying to take the best photos I could to capture the room in its entirety. As per usual, my dad wanted a shot of the whole family. The four of us got together, put our arms around one another pretending to like each other, and had our picture taken. Out of nowhere, a security guard came up to us in a panic. Barely speaking any English, he tried telling us that we had to delete the picture. It was simply unacceptable to take a picture inside the mosque physically touching. My dad, still wanting that picture, made us take one standing side by side.

You're lying if you don't think this is the most awkward thing you have ever seen.

Making our way out of the Grand Mosque, I gained a bit of insight about the place where Islam is practiced. I realized that aesthetics are important, holy symbols and figures are not present anywhere in the building and of course, do not take pictures with your arms around someone else.