Climbing a palm tree isn’t easy. The first episode of Al Ain: A Living Oasis, a four-part documentary by DCT Abu Dhabi, makes this painfully apparent.
Salem Al Attas, an engineer who is presenting the series along with photographer Obaid AlBudoor, is seen trying to scale a palm tree in Al Ain Oasis. Strapped to a flip line, he tries multiple times to climb the lofty stem. Al Attas is a seasoned jiu jitsu practitioner, as his co-host AlBudoor points out, and his failed attempts show just how arduous it is to climb a palm.
His feet slip off the leaf scars protruding from the trunk, his grip fails him and he falls to his knees in the sand with an exasperated “khalas.” As AlBudoor says: “Unfortunately, gravity was not on his side.”
Al Ain: A Living Oasis delves into the city’s heritage and traditions through similarly relatable and fun interactions. DCT Abu Dhabi’s tourism arm, Visit Abu Dhabi, released the trailer to the documentary series on Monday. The series will be available on Visit Abu Dhabi’s YouTube page, as well as the Visit Al Ain website, where the first episode has already been published.
Al Ain: A Living Oasis explores the city’s history, which dates back to the Neolithic era, while simultaneously visiting modern tourist attractions, including Al Ain Zoo. Along the way, Al Attas and AlBudoor try their hand at archery, zip lining, rafting and horse riding. They explore Al Ain’s coffee culture, and visit landmarks such as Jebel Hafeet as well as the city’s ancient forts.
“If you thought you know Al Ain, think again,” AlBudoor says in the documentary’s trailer.
Al Ain is one of the country’s most historically-rich areas. Several sites across the city have been inscribed in the Unesco World Heritage List. These include the Jebel Hafeet Tombs, which was the first to be excavated in Al Ain, after being discovered by a Danish archeological team in 1961. The dome-shaped tombs date back 5,000 years and mark the beginning of the Bronze Age in the UAE.
The Hili Archaeological Site, meanwhile, shows the earliest evidence of an agricultural village in the UAE, dating back to 2,500BC. The site features the famous ancient irrigation system, known as al falaj. The channels carry water from underground and provide a constant flow throughout the oasis. The site also has the largest collection of ancient tombs and buildings in the country.
While the tombs and the archaeological sites in Al Ain provide ample evidence of the city’s ancient life, its oases are also troves in themselves, providing information about how people lived in the area millennia ago. The largest one, Al Ain Oasis, covers 1,200 hectares and has more than 147,000 date palms. While the oasis is famous for its palms, there are also mango, banana, lemon and fig trees.
The first episode of Al Ain: A Living Oasis explores this lush expanse. It explains the working of the al falaj irrigation system. While Al Attas and AlBudoor do speak about the history of the area, they also note how the oasis, and really Al Ain as a whole, offers respite from the bustle of major UAE cities.
“As a photographer, traveller and explorer, it is very rewarding to be able to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life and recharge my creative energy in such a quiet and beautiful place,” AlBudoor told UAE news agency Wam. “There is a unique energy in Al Ain that has left a great impact on me.”
