Camel beauty contest

• Image Credit: Hadrian Hernandez/Gulf News
• Three-year-old Jazmyn Tagg reacts during a close encounter with one of the participants in the camel beauty contest at the Al Dhafra Festival in Abu Dhabi yesterday.

Abu Dhabi: Emiratis and expatriates alike attended the opening of the sixth edition of the Al Dhafra Festival on Saturday in large numbers, organisers said.

The 15-day festival at Madinat Zayed in the Western Region of Abu Dhabi hosted hundreds of visitors marking a successful first day of what has become an annual touchstone for Emiratis to honour the country’s rich heritage.

“The festival seeks to preserve the Emirati folklore. It has many other objectives including the stimulation of the economic activities in the Western Region and the promotion of the Gate of the Empty Quarter, Madinat Zayed, among the lovers of heritage tourism from all over the world,” said Mohammad Khalaf Al Mazroui, adviser for culture and heritage in the Court of the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

Al Mazroui also serves as chairman of the festival organising committee and board Member of Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (ADTCA). “As it seeks to attract more visitors to attend the various events and discover the cities of the Western Region, the festival has turned into a special opportunity, and a renewed annual meeting between the people of the Gulf cooperation Council (GCC),” he said.

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Giving a brief review of the history of the Al Dhafra Festival, Salem Al Mazroui, festival director, said, the first edition of the festival in April 2008 attracted between 10,000 to 15,000 camels and the number of participants and camels has been increasing every year.