Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from 1971 until he died in 2004, is still very much a presence in the rapidly growing oil-producing nation he helped create.
Take, for example, his goal of "greening" the desert, which makes up 70% of the country. Today, places such as Abu Dhabi, the capital, and the oasis city of Al Ain boast dozens of parks. Even the highway between the two cities -- a distance of 160 km, is lined with trees, watered by electronically controlled sprinkler systems.
Al Ain, ("the spring" in Arabic) is a popular day trip from Abu Dhabi or Dubai, not only because it's one of the few places in the country that has managed to maintain its heritage, but also because of the many attractions on offer. Our trip with Emirates Adventures includes visits to a palace, a museum, a date palm grove, mountain viewpoints, hot springs and a market.
Built on seven oases, and inhabited for 3,000 years, Al Ain, population 380,000, is considered the cradle of Emirati Bedouin culture. Sheikh Zayed was born there in 1918, so it seems appropriate our first stop was the palace (now a museum) where the late ruler and his family once lived.
After passing through the arched entrance, we walk through a hall lined with the portraits of the former president's 19 sons. A grassy courtyard provides access to several rooms -- including bedrooms, a kitchen and a coffee room. Aside from the nicely decorated "VIP ward," most of the rooms are sparsely furnished.
"Don't forget this was pre-oil days," an English tourist in our group reminded us.
Sheikh Zayed once said: "A country without a past has neither present nor a future."
Not surprisingly, he supported establishing the country's first museum after the discovery of a Bronze-age site on Umm au Nar 45 years ago. Considered one of the country's best, the Al-Ain National Museum, our second stop, houses a collection spanning the history of the Arabian Peninsula from the Stone Age to the modern Islamic period. Among the exhibits are large jars from the Iron Age, ancient bronze jewelry, as well as displays on falconry and the pearl industry.
Next to the museum is the impressive Sultan Fort. Built in 1910 of sun-dried mud brick and clay, it has three round towers, one of which once served as a jail.
Our trip to the date palm grove, one of the largest in the country, wasn't what I expected. Instead of walking on the earthen soil among the palms as I imagined, we drove through the plantation on paved roads.
The date is the most widely cultivated indigenous fruit in the emirate thanks to its tolerance of the desert environment.
We stopped at a small mosque set amid the palms and saw the falaj system of canals that irrigate the groves.
Camels for sale
"Come, see the baby camels," said the bearded man carrying a long thin stick, inviting us in to one of the pens. "This one is two months old, that one three months and that one five months," he gestured.
We were on the outskirts of Al Ain at one of the last traditional camel souks left in Arabia. There must've been thousands of camels in the pens which seemed to stretch for at least a half a kilometre. I didn't see any evidence of buying and selling, but the place was so huge, who could tell.
One of the keepers, who spoke a bit of English, told me the camels are divided into categories. Some provide milk, others are sold for meat, while others are kept for breeding or racing.
Not being much of a meat eater, I was glad to see there was no camel on the menu at the Hilton Al Ain, where we stopped for a delicious buffet lunch. But there were plenty of other local items including hummus, baba ganoush, and Hamour, a type of grouper fish common in the Emirates.
After seeing nothing but flat terrain in Abu Dhabi, the rocky mountain outcrop of Jebel Hafeet was a welcome sight. A road leads to the 1,200-metre summit, from where you can see a nearby palace perched on a hill, the city of Al Ain, more mountains in the distance, and Oman. Somewhere on these mountains the Arabian tahr -- an endangered wild goat, is said to roam.
Along Jebal Hafeet's lower slopes are hot springs which gush geo-thermally heated water turning both sides of the streams a verdant green. Girls were dipping their feet in the hot water and encouraged me to do the same.
In more ways than one, Al Ain is a pleasant change from the bustling cities of Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
For more, see aam.gov.ae. For details on day tours offered by Emirates Adventures, check emiratesadventurestours.com or book through the Shangri-La hotel in Abu Dhabi.
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EN ROUTE
Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, operates three non-stop flights-per-week from Toronto to Abu Dhabi. Flights on the Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, depart Toronto Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Return fares in April start at $1,159 plus fees and taxes.
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The Toronto-Abu Dhabi flight offers two levels of service. In Coral economy class guests can use the complimentary luxury coach service between Abu Dhabi international airport and Etihad offices in Dubai, Al Ain and Sharjah.
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From Toronto, passengers can fly to Abu Dhabi and connect to points in the Middle East, the Far East, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Australia, South Africa and Beijing, the airline's newest destination. Currently Etihad flies to 48 destinations in the Middle East, Europe, North America, Africa, Asia and Australia, and will expand to 55 destinations this year. For more, contact 416-221-4744 or etihadairways.com.
