Al Ain Oasis

One of the cool things we wanted to do while living in Abu Dhabi was to visit Al Ain.  Al Ain is home to a huge oasis and the world's oldest permanently inhabited site. It is classified as a UNESCO World Heritage site.  We picked a day that was sunny, but not too hot, and then we packed up some snacks and the camera and headed out for a quick 90-minute drive through the desert.  Side note:  I regret not taking a photograph of G the day we went.  He wore his cowboy boots, the silver belt buckle he got for Christmas from his dad, and the Stetson hat he purchased just before we moved.  With his backpack slung over one shoulder and his DSLR camera on the other, he was the ultimate Texan Tourist in the Middle East!

Finding the oasis was slightly challenging.  Actually, I take that back, finding the oasis was easy - it's a giant fenced off park.  Finding the ENTRANCE to the oasis was challenging - When using Google Maps, it pretty much tries to drop you off in the middle, which meant we drove around the oasis for awhile until we found what we thought was an entrance.  Turns out, like many other public parks, there are a lot of entrances.  It also turns out, that like many things outside the USA, signage could be vastly improved.  Anyway, we eventually found it.

Walking path through the oasis

The Ail Ain Oasis is a nerdy civil engineer's dream.  The ancient irrigation system has been operational for over 4,000 years (yes, Four.  Thousand.  Years.) and brings water to over a hundred thousand palm trees within the oasis.  The irrigation system is basically a system of tunnels from the mountains that come rock and clay-lined ditches once they reach the surface.  The Emirati's call them "falaj" .  Within the oasis, the irrigation ditches section off the areas in such a way as to create mini eco-systems to help the survival of the the palm trees in the harsh desert.  We learned there is an Arab saying that the date palms "should grow with its feet in running water and its head in the fire of the sky", which makes sense because date palms require water at their roots, but need a hot, dry environment in order to bear fruit.  According to G (my resident plant expert), we can grow date palms in Houston, but they just won't fruit  out as well as they would in hotter, drier climates.

Irrigation network through the oasis

The little indentations along the irrigation falaj allow for small "dams" to be put in place to direct the water as needed

The oasis is also a nature lover's dream.  When we walked into the Oasis from the city, we could feel a noticeable temperature drop.  The massive palms provide a clean shady environment, an interesting juxtaposition from the hustling bustling city around the oasis.  In addition to the date palms, there are tons of other species of plants that thrive beneath the shade of the palms and fill the lush, green space. There is a mini-oasis outside the main oasis that has a neat little exhibit hall explaining the importance of the oasis to the area and how the date palm is the perfect plant for this environment.

Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling terribly well on the day we went to the oasis (yay, pregnancy), so we didn't get to stay as long as we liked. Being the amazing husband that he is, G insisted we leave before I got sick in the park.  We plan to go back when I'm feeling better so we can see more than just a quarter of the oasis site!