Hatta Fort

 

We are trying to squeeze in UAE travels while the weather is still tolerable.  One of the places on our list for this spring was Hatta, a fort town in the mountainous center of the country.  The climate at Hatta is hot but drier than Abu Dhabi and Dubai, making it a relative summer haven.  

Nearby Hatta Fort is a small complex of a few towers and a main square, now converted into a museum scattered with all-too life-like soldiers.

We stayed at a charming hotel, open since 1981 (an eternity by UAE standards).  Hatta Fort Hotel lacks the sheen of modern UAE architecture, and we didn't miss the glitz one bit. It is an unofficial gathering spot for the Dubai Harley Davidson club. The 100+ degree weather didn't deter the bikers from parking their bikes in the sun and striding about in their leather pants.

The hotel has an endearing medley of attractions: a putt-putt course, where the "greens" are cement (the ball never stops rolling!), rabbits in a rabbit house, goats, ducks, and several loquacious peacocks.

Even though it is spring here, it is still quite warm.  We walked up to the hotel's observation point. Despite our considerable sweat, no one will be impressed with our ascent.

 

Fujeirah

The UAE has seven emirates: Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Dubai, Ras al Khaimah, Ajman, Um Al Quwain, and Fujeirah. We've been in the first four long enough to go for runs, spot flamingos, camp, and scope beaches. We've hardly touched the last three. Especially Fujeirah, the pink region on the map below.

This is a serious omission. On the east coast of the Arabian peninsula, just below lovely Musandam, Fujeirah has an entirely different look and feel: coastal mountains gathered next to sandy beaches, tremendous snorkeling (or, in our case, diving with goggles), and a whole new gulf to swim in. 

The drive there from Abu Dhabi sent us up past Dubai, through the rather scrubby interior....

....until dunes begin in earnest.  

And then, as if the terrain couldn't get any stranger, the mountains set in. 

Then it was over the mountains and a quick swoop down to the coast, where we stopped at a tiny Indian restaurant.

"No menu, just biryani," the proprietor explained enthusiastically. Two deep-fried fish later, we wandered out to meet the Gulf of Oman. 

We made it up the coast nearly to Dibba, where we stopped at Snoopy Island, named for its uncanny resemblance to Snoopy asleep on top of his dog house.

 

And that's where we spent the night. On the beach, with an Emirati family camping nextdoor.  

But first, we played some frisbee, swam in our front yard....

....and watched the sun set.

 

 The next day, we swam out to the coral reef near Snoopy Island, where we saw fish that could only be described as tie-died, sea slugs, urchins, anenomes, and all kinds of coral. We lay on the beach afterwards, listening to the German, Russian, and dubious English of the various vacationers. And then started back by a different route. 

Sharjah

Summer is over, the weather is good and tourists are streaming into the UAE.  And not just into Dubai - last weekend the final race of the Formula 1 season was held in Abu Dhabi, which meant real traffic, hour-long queues for taxis, and strange sightings across the UAE.  In other words, a perfect time to leave town and explore Sharjah.

Sharjah is the emirate directly north of Dubai.  It has taken us anywhere from 15 minutes to two hours to travel between downtown Dubai and the city of Sharjah.  This time we left Abu Dhabi on Friday morning, guaranteeing a relatively traffic-free trip.

Sharjah is the most conservative emirate and is famous for its cultural center.  It has nearly half of all the museums in the UAE and a well-preserved fort.




The Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization had artifacts from the Berlin Museum of Islamic Art when we were there, but we enjoyed the permanent collection, which focuses especially on contributions to science, most of all.

We were most pleasantly surprised by Sharjah's corniche.  Sharjah is built along two bays, and there is a great running and bicycle path along both, as well as on a bridge which connects the two.  We were very, very slightly reminded of the amazing bicycle paths in Stockholm.

The Blue Souq is a pair of beautiful buildings right on the water.  We were eager to be charmed by the inside, but unfortunately it is more mall-y than souq-y.

We enjoyed getting to know one of the other emirates, and may be back for its most famous event, the Festival of Lights.

Ras Al Khaimah

The Ras Al Khamiah Half Marathon bills itself as the fastest in the world. The first edition was only seven years ago, but in that time both the men's and woman's half marathon records have been set at RAK.  Our goals for the race were more modest: have a nice run and explore the northern tip of the UAE.

After the race, we went a few miles north to Dhayah Fort, which was built in the 16th century.  It was an important part of the emirate's defense, but was partially destroyed by the British in the 1800s and only recently renovated.  

Unlike Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah doesn't have oil -- its main industries are cement, tourism and fishing -- but it does have mountains!

We saw cows lazing by the side of the road, and goats crossing when the mood struck them (like Berkeley pedestrians!).

After driving by the cement factory a few times, we finally located Wadi Litibah.  It was only a few miles inland from the coast, but felt very far from the bustle of RAK.

There are farming families who keep herds of goats.

And fields which are irrigated by the wadi.

We went for a hike up one of the mountains.  Away from the wadi everything is dry... except for the occasional, lone tree.

As we went up it began to look more and more like another world.

After a bit more exploring we climbed down and started back for Abu Dhabi.  Along the way, we stopped a few times to gaze at flamingos, who were happily flapping in mangroves, dirty ponds, and even in golf course hazards!