Qasr Al Hosn Festival

I never knew that the Qasr Al Hosn was actually a building, although not just any building.  The "Old Fort" or "White Fort" was constructed in 1761 which makes it the oldest building in Abu Dhabi.  It was built to protect the only fresh water well in Abu Dhabi island and then it was later used as the residence of the ruling Sheikh.
The Festival is held every year for 11 days to celebrate the Emirati culture and heritage.  We had some friends visiting from out-of-town so we decided this would be a good chance for us to learn a few things too. There it is... smack in the middle of the city!

We had a little wait going into the festival.

Who knew there was water on the inside!

There were lots of exhibitions going on including building a boat or Dhow. There was a whole pile of strings on the side that they would put in the seam of the wood. Amazing how that keeps the boat afloat!

A little baby turtle as they talk about turtle conservation:

Learning the art of throwing a fishing net:

The market area - I'm surprised I didn't buy anything!

And here's the fort!

The boys rather played with sand of course and there were obviously lots of that around us!

The festival wouldn't be complete without the camels:

There was a whole bunch of other stuff to do at the Festival but it was getting late as it was almost dinner time.  It's too bad it only starts at 4pm although it does end at 11pm, but that is obviously way too late for the boys on a school night (or even on any night!). Quite funny with these timings. Anyhow, different place different culture!