Fujairah, UAE- Dec 1

Sailing away from Muscat

The sail away from Muscat last evening was so very lovely. There were ships in the harbor working hard to get loaded and unloaded and the lights in the city were beautiful. You cold clearly see the strings of green, white and red lights as part of their Independence Day celebration. The city gate, the fort and the huge incense monument to Frankincense were brightly illuminated. Made for a festive sailing out to sea.

Muscat City Gate

Likewise the sunrise as we sailed into Fujairah, United Arab Emirates was beautiful this morning.
In between we had a great dinner at Sette Mari, the Italian Restaurant. Kathy had not gone with us yesterday so we were glad to catch-up with her.

Fujairah is the 5th largest of the 7 United Arab Emirates. They were part of the Trucial States until 1971 when the UAE was formed. Portugal, the Dutch and the British have occupied Fujairah in the past. From 1958-1968 oil was discovered in this area and life began to change. Currently there are 8.2 million people in the UAE with 130,000 of them living in Fujairah. Abu Dhabi and Dubai are the two largest emirates and only the Emirate of Umm al-Quwain has fewer occupants.

Sunrise at Fujairah

Josie-our guide

Power is ultimately help by the ruler of Fujairah, His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi, who has been in power since the death of his father in 1974. Fujairah’s economy is based on subsides and federal government grants distributed by the government of Abu Dhabi (the seat of power for the UAE.) Local industry consists of cement, stone crushing and mining.

Jim’s knee was bothering him today so he stayed on the ship.

Car Decorations to honor the Sheikhs

We met our guide Josie and driver Ali and were off to see and learn about the history, customs and life.

 ^nd and is their Independence Day. Houses and business were all decorated with UAE flags, pictures of the Sheikhs and the number 42. Never saw so many flags flying. The flag has a vertical red stripe standing for strength and courage, and horizontal stripes of green for hope, white for peace and black for oil. Many, many cars along the way were also decorated with flags or painted the colors of the flag. Even many cars were decorated for the celebration. There are 231 nationalities in the UAE.
Tomorrow is December 2

We rode by many flags painted on the mountainsides and there were two with the same slogan meaning “May my country live long. “

Emirate citizens (not people from other countries like Josie and Ali) receive a free house, free medical care, and free education here and abroad. If an Emirate citizen marries another Emirati they receive 300,000 Dirham (almost 4 to a US dollar) as a promotion to have more Emirati babies born. 

Fujairah Fort

Our first stop was the Fujairah Fort located on a hill at the edge of town. It is surrounded by date gardens and is about 350 years old. It is believed to be the first stone building on the Fujairah coast.

Oldest Mosque

We saw the oldest mosque in the UAE built in 1446. A small fort stood on the hill on top of the mosque. The mosque is built of mud and local stone. There are four domes supported by a central interior pillar. The internal decorations consisted of stone carvings and wall niches for the Quran.

We had a wonderful trip to the beach area of Dibba Al-Fujairah and a drive through the magnificent mountains- including one stop at a tall peak and deep valley called the Grand Canyon. As in Oman, construction abounds. At the beach there were more luxury hotels being built. This is apparently a great place for both snorkeling and scuba diving.

We also made a stop at the Friday Market- which happens everyday. Got its name because Friday was the beginning of the week-end and so most often in years gone by a time for a visit to the market.

Friday Market

Josie told us about drinking coffee. They use tiny cups so the coffee stays very hot to the bottom. It is strong and you drink it black. If you have had enough coffee you just shake your cup and they stop pouring….if you don’t you get at least 7 cups of this brew. You said you must eat dates along with the coffee to add a sweet taste. Josie also said a favorite way to drink coffee is with a little saffron, pistachio nuts, cardamom and almonds.

People are so proud of their country. It was fun to ride among the many, many flag draped buildings and even the traffic circles with huge number 42s in the center. Many signs said “42 Spirit of the Union.”

Men at the Market

This seems to be a much more liberal area than I would have thought. Women drive, vote and can own property. Most women work outside the home. Josie has twin 12 year old sons and her mother-in-law takes care of the boys. She was a fount of knowledge and had a great sense of humor. Originally from India, she has lived in Qatar and Germany also.  She is Hindu but said this area is so accepting of almost anybody and any religion. The Sheiks, mainly the President of the UAE- the Sheik of Abu Dhabi, provide lots of money for the welfare of all the people. The Arab Spring caused the powerful seven sheiks to worry and to even provide more the keep people happy.
Stopped by a huge mosque that is under contraction.

Instead of the normal 5 minarets this one will have 6. Guess men and their efforts to be the best of the bunch appears in many ways.

We got back to the ship about 15 minutes before the first wave of bus tours and were so thankful. The staff and crew were setting up for a welcome back aboard with cold towels, champagne and music. We were just as happy to get aboard quickly. The poor staff and crew stood outside for at least an hour, but at least they had umbrellas to protect somewhat from the hot sun.

Welcome Home

Jim’s quote about Oman was ,”this is the most progressive medieval country I’ve ever seen.” Seems to also be true for the UAE.