Camel fair’s trek into the past

AL GHARBIA // The question that had to be asked was, “Why walk all that distance?” Hamad bin Ramis al Minhali had what should have been the obvious answer.

“Why would we truck the camels over here?” he asked. “It’s not the Bedouin way. Our grandfathers trekked across all the deserts of Arabia. Our journey lasted only 22 days but their journeys often lasted for months or simply never ended as they trekked from one oasis to another to trade and sell goods with other tribes.”

His answer was one that reflected the spirit of the Al Dhafra Camel Festival, meant to celebrate and preserve the culture, heritage and tradition of the Arab desert nomad.

For Mr al Minhali, 25, and his father, Ramis bin Saleh, an Emirati, the trek to the event in the Al Gharbia town saw them drive the 1,000km at camel speed from the Saudi city of Al Kharj.

Yesterday afternoon they, along with an entourage consisting of 50 Majaheem camels, family members, and dozens of members of their tribe, had only 3km to go to reach their encampment.

The scene was a spectacular one as the camels made their way from paved roads across rust-coloured sand dunes, followed by more than 30 4x4 vehicles and a dozen men and boys on foot.

Inside the vehicles traditional Arabian music was blaring over the stereo speakers as both men and young girls danced in their seats to it.

They were in a celebratory mood as they approached the normally sleepy town, which had once again come to life with the start of the third annual festival.

For the past week, camels have been the spectacle as they slowly strolled through the town’s central district, making their way to Madinat Zayed.

The 50 camels had cost the al Minhali family Dh11 million (US$3m) to purchase. With some pride, Mr al Minhali the younger said: “One of them my father bought for Dh5m. He is a stud and is worth so much because he is a purebred and has fathered several calves.

“He won’t be up for sale during the festival but we brought him to show him. But, then again, if someone makes an extremely generous offer, my father might consider it.”

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