‘LAND OF THE GAZELLE’ SEES LEAP IN VISITORS
Louvre Abu Dhabi is among the initiatives drawing Chinese and other tourists to the UAE capital, which is flourishing as a world showcase of culture. Reports by Lee Hill Choi
Abu Dhabi, whose name means “land of the gazelle” in Arabic, is the capital of the United Arab Emirates and a busy cultural hub alongside glamorous Dubai, its sister emirate.
It is home to the Louvre Abu Dhabi, one of the biggest jewels in its cultural crown, which has welcomed over a million visitors in its first year since its opening last November.
Forty per cent of its visitors are residents and citizens from the other six emirates – Sharjah, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah, Ajman, Dubai and Fujairah. The other 60 per cent comprises countries such as France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States and especially China, with the number of Chinese holiday seekers increasing year on year.
In May, Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism (TCA Abu Dhabi) led a delegation of partners and stakeholders to the ITB China event held at the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition & Convention Center to promote the emirate to Chinese travellers.
Figures from TCA Abu Dhabi reveal that the number of inbound Chinese hotel guests rose almost 40 per cent in 2017 compared with the year before. The first quarter of 2018 has also seen China maintain its position as the leading international hotel guest supplier, with more than 127,000 Chinese staying in the emirate – a 31 per cent increase compared to the same period the year before. Total figures for visitors for the first half of 2018 to Abu Dhabi showed that the
number of hotel guests rose by 5 per cent on the year, totalling over 2.4 million guests seeking to explore the emirate’s cultural and natural attractions.
Besides Louvre Abu Dhabi, which opened with much
fanfare on Saadiyat Island in November last year, other cultural initiatives and discoveries have been announced.
Saadiyat Island, which is a cultural and entertainment hub, also houses the famous Yas Marina Circuit, the site of the annual Abu Dhabi Grand Prix; Ferrari World theme park, which boasts the world’s fastest rollercoaster; top hotels; and the sprawling Yas Mall.
The district will also be the site of two planned museums: Guggenheim Abu Dhabi and Zayed National Museum. The latter will be the UAE’s first to focus on the life and work of the country’s founding president, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.
In September, the Louvre Abu Dhabi, in collaboration with France’s Musée d’Orsay, launched its latest exhibition, “Japanese Connections: The Birth of Modern Décor”. Omar Sultan Al Olama, minister of state for artificial intelligence, attended the opening, alongside French ambassador Ludovic Pouille, Japanese ambassador to the UAE Kanji Fujiki, the ambassadors from Mexico, Argentina, Spain, Tunisia and Oman, and other dignitaries.
The new exhibition showcases 50 paintings, prints and folding screens, aiming to explore the artistic and cultural
... A cultural hub that is uniquely positioned between East and West
SAIF SAEED GHOBASH, TCA ABU DHABI
dialogue between Japan and France.
This is also the year in which Abu Dhabi Art – one of the region’s leading art fairs – marked its 10th edition. The four-day event, which ran in November this year, took place at various locations around the city and the art and multimedia centre Manarat Al Saadiyat.
“Achieving this milestone is further testament to Abu Dhabi Art’s international appeal …,” said Saif Saeed Ghobash, TCA Abu Dhabi undersecretary. “Given its exceptional depth and the quality of its programming, Abu Dhabi Art adds impetus to our efforts to position the city as a cultural hub that is uniquely positioned between East and West. Once again, we present an event that breaks the traditional boundaries of a fair and continues to be a key platform, contributing to the global cultural scene at the same time as presenting our national identity and artistic contribution.”
In September, TCA Abu Dhabi archaeologists discovered in Al Ain, a city in the Eastern Region of Abu Dhabi, irrigation networks (falaj), three buildings and a mosque, all dating back to Islam’s Early Golden Age of the Abbasid Caliphate, about a 1,000 years ago, making them some of the oldest monuments to be found in the country.
“The new findings at the Al Ain archaeological sites prove the richness of the region’s history, which allows us to expand our knowledge of ages long past,” said Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of TCA Abu Dhabi, when the discovery was made.
“The discovery of a mosque from the Abbasid period in Al Ain demonstrates the deeply rooted influences of Islam in the region, despite the immense distance from where Islam first emerged and at a time when modes of transportation were quite rudimentary.
“These findings display clear and profound cultural influences that reveal how the connections established by our ancestors with neighbouring cultures and nations transcended borders and surmounted transport difficulties, which in turn calls for further analysis to form a holistic understanding of our past.”