Liwa International Festival has had its run extended “following a remarkable turnout”, the Abu Dhabi Media Office has announced.
The event, which is currently taking place in the Abu Dhabi desert, was meant to end on December 31, but organisers will keep it going until January 8.
The festival puts Emirati heritage front and centre, attracting local and international visitors to take part in a variety of activities — from desert motorsports to family-friendly fun.
This year marked the opening of Liwa Village, which is split into six thematic zones.
One of these is the Souq, which houses a night market selling spices and oud. Visitors can also experience customary practices such as henna art, khoos basket-weaving, live cooking sessions and more in this space.
It also includes Gaze, a multisensory dining experience, which features guest restaurants hosting special meals, with Antika and Zuma taking part.
The Oasis, meanwhile, is a spot offering tranquillity and relaxation. Try your hand at terrarium-making, jewellery-designing and terracotta pot-painting, or sign up for a tea excursion. There is also the central pavilion filled with e-gaming machines and an arcade zone.
Liwa Village also houses a main stage, where several regional household names are scheduled to perform, including Khaled Al Mulla, Khalid Abdulrahman and Ali Bin Mohamed, who are taking to the stage on December 31.
All of the activities will be retained until January 6, but it's not clear yet whether new musical performances will be added to the programme.
The event was extended after a visit from Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed, the Ruler’s Representative in Al Dhafra Region, who toured the village and met several celebrities including Steve Harvey, Tyrese Gibson and Cody Walker.
The US stars were in Abu Dhabi for FuelFest Arabia, the Middle East debut of the car and music festival founded by Walker, brother of the late Fast & Furious star Paul Walker. American rapper Ludacris performed as part of the event, along with Gibson.
Until January 6; from Dh15; liwafestival.com
This story was originally published on December 28
Scroll through the gallery below of Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed, the Ruler’s Representative in Al Dhafra Region, visiting the festival
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Mobile phone packages comparison
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Started: Back to Games (2015); Boardgame Space (Mark Azzam became co-founder in 2017)
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Fanney Khan
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'Nope'
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3 Number of seasons without a major for McIlroy, who finished in a tie for 22nd.
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5 In the fifth hole of the final round, McIlroy holed his longest putt of the week - from 16ft 8in - for birdie.
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9 Jon Rahm's age in months the last time Phil Mickelson missed the cut in the US PGA, in 1995.
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14 The world ranking of Justin Thomas before his victory.
15 Of the top 15 players after 54 holes, only Oosthuizen had previously won a major.
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17 The first round scoring average of the last 17 major champions was 67.2. Kisner and Thorbjorn Olesen shot 67 on day one at Quail Hollow.
18 For the first time in 18 majors, the eventual winner was over par after round one (Thomas shot 73).
TCL INFO
Teams:
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
When December 14-17
SPECS
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