AL-AIN;
OASIS CITY
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The
United Arab Emirates was established in 1971 as a federation of seven
emirates, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Al-Fujairah, Ras Al-khaimah
and Umm Al-Quwain.
Geographically, the UAE
is situated in the south-east of the Arabian Peninsula with strategic
coast lines stretching on the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Gulf.
This position has made the UAE
vital in linking the Far East and India with Europe.Abu Dhabi is the
largest state in the UAE.It is located to the west with its capilal,
bearing the same name, on an Island connected with two road bridges
to the mainland . The total area of Abu Dhabi forms approximately
eighty percent of the UAE's land.
| The green "Oasis City
" of Al-Ain is about one hundred sixty Kilometers to the east
of the Capital, Abu Dhabi. Al-Ain is also known as the Garden
City of the Gulf. It is the Emirate's second city and it is linked
to Abu Dhabi by a six-lane high way. |
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 |
Al-Ain is located between
a desert and its magnificent sand dunes to the west and the jagged
and impressive Hajar Mountains. The solitary Hafeet mountain reaches
the height of 1160 meters, dominating the horizon to the south
of the city. |
 |
Excavations around the
gardens of Hili reveal a remarkably well organised society dating
back
to the 3rd millennium BC. Later, about 1000 BC, Man began building
aflaj (sing, Falaj), which are irrigation systems consisting of
ancient, underground water channels, as deep as twenty meters
which have been retained and maintained to channel water from
the aquifers to the oases. Water is then raised by gravity and
passed along ground channels. Such aflaj still run with water
through the oases of Al-Ain. The area is also bestowed with some
wells. |
In addition to Hili, the
historical and archeological sites of Al-Ain include the Jahili fort
and Ain Al-Faydah, the latter a resort located in a spectacular setting
at the foot of Al-Hafeet mountain.
 |
Historically , Al-Ain
was located on the junction of major trade routes linking Abu
Dhabi to inland settlements and ports of the Arabian Sea. Some
seven plantation villages were watered by the falaj system. On
the edge of the Empty Quarter, they were a significant oasis and
a trading center for travelers. Modern Al-Ain is well watered
and it is perhaps the greenest city in the region with its population
of 300.000. it is a center for agriculture, education and science. |
Al-Ain has always been fertile
and a typical oasis among the desert. But the vision of one man, Sheikh
Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan, UAE President, has made the modern city
of Al-Ain and whose life has been inextricably linked with Al-Ain
for more than seventy years.
Al-Ain is a thriving modern city
and is the country's center of learning, housing the UAE University
in addition to Technological Colleges and a branch of Ajman University
for Science and Technology has been opened in the city.
 |
Al-Ain is famous for
its roundabouts. The intersections of the main dual carriageways
are almost all roundabouts. The majority of them comprise of features
symbolising the heritage of the City or the Emirate such as Pearl
Shells, Traditional Coffee Pots, Camels, Arabian Oryx, Dhows,
Falcons and Forts. |
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Above all the landscape
of Al-Ain is dominated by date palm trees. They stand as a true reference
to the oasis heritage of the city.
A major programme is underway. This includes the conservation of the
seven historic date plantation oases, namely the revitalization of
the ancient falaj system and the restoration of old buildings, especially
forts. The forts were predominantly constructed with mud bricks, Al-Hosn
fort is among some thirty such buildings. The fort is located next
to the Al-Ain Museum which contains among others some archeological
objects dating back to the Bronze and Iron ages.
In 1997 Al-Ain came second in the
International competition, "Nations in Bloom", by the narrowest of
margins to the City of Westminster in London, U.K.
