Pristine
“We want to be doubly sure that the dhows are in pristine condition because we don’t to want to run into any inconveniences later,” the captain noted.
The pearl divers would try their luck off shores of Khairan and try to gain their haul. There would be much merrymaking on the island. The captain said that in the old there were select destinations where the chances of finding pearls were the highest.
In the heydays of Kuwait’s pearling industry, there were many such spots in and around Kuwait. Among them is Shuwaikh Island, a small island lying in the bay near the shore. It was called the Small Island. Until recently it was popular among some Kuwaitis who went there for summer outings, and where Kuwaiti poets would hold poetry contests, either praising or reviling the island.
There are historical records to show that fishermen of the Awazim tribe used to live on the island and built settlement there for fishing. The land was muddy and it had a port called Al Tuwaina, where large passenger ships used to dock.
Umm Al Namil Island also lies in the bay and was called Big Island. It reportedly got its name from a large number of ants called Namil, inhabiting it; nearby was Ras Ashairij, a large island that was rectangular in shape inhabited by fishermen from the Awazim tribe, who built settlements there. The Awazims were said to have been on the islands and on the shore for ages.
The island is now said to be connected to the mainland as a result of engineering works in Kuwait port at the time.
The largest among the Kuwaiti islands in the area is Bubiyan Island. Several creeks can be found in the place but the island does not rise much above the sea level. It lies in the waters of the Gulf near the coast that is bounded on the east by the sea and on the west by Khur Al Subiyyah. It is not far from the mainland at Subiyyah which was used at the time by fishermen.
Warbah is another small island just to the north of Bubiyan and is the farthest form Kuwait in the direction of Iraq.