Fujairah Collage

Fujairah Collage
Some distinctive landmarks in Fujairah

Sunday, December 30, 2007

Renting in Fujairah

While on Friday 28 December 2007 the Dubai government lowered the rent cap to five per cent, Fujairah’s rent cap is 15 percent, the same as that in Ras Al Khaimah.

The report in Gulf News 30 December 2007, says that the rent cap (c.f. 5% in Dubai, 7% in Abu Dhabi) applies to new tenants and to those whose rents were not increased last year.

The setting of the rent cap is an attempt to rein in the soaring rental increases and bring some stability to the rental market.

Newcomers currently looking for 3 bedroom (family villas and apartments) are finding it tough in Fujairah.

The decision to turn the Faseel Towers into hotel accommodation is sending scores of existing residents searching for alternative accommodation while newcomers to the city are faced with few options. There are some apartment towers in the process of being built but rooms appear to be some time before they will be ready for residents.

Many other Fujairah renters have experienced an increase or are bracing themselves for a change in the new year.

See also: Fuad Ali, ‘Fujairah Residents feel the heat as rents soar on heavy demand’, Gulf News 1 January 2008.

Dr. Geoff Pound

Image: Fujairah Towers.

Thursday, December 27, 2007

Beating His Own Drum in Fujairah

There is a fascinating story in Xpress News today about Fares Humaid Bin Bakheet (pictured) who is one of the last traditional drum makers in the UAE.

Link: Mohammed N Al Khan, The Drummaker of Fujairah, 27 December 2007.

Image: Fares Humaid Bin Bakheet explaining his craft. Photo courtesy of Xpress News.

Tuesday, December 25, 2007

Wadi Siji, Fujairah

Further lovely photos have been posted at this site depicting the dam at Wadi Siji, Fujairah.

Dr Geoff Pound

Image: This gives a taste of the three photos. Thanks!

Monday, December 24, 2007

‘This is Why I like Fujairah.’

The person who owns this web site has posted some wonderful photos (‘for everyone’) of one of Fujairah’s great areas: Wadi Al Wurayah.

The title of her post: ‘This is one of the reasons why I love Fujairah. The view is breathtaking.”

Thanks for giving us a look at your wonderful pictures.

Dr Geoff Pound

Image: One of the views of Wadi Al Wurayah

Friday, December 21, 2007

Fujairah: Water, Water Everywhere…

The desalination of water in Fujairah is set to develop in Fujairah and cater for the growth of the city and its burgeoning industries.

Veolia Water has been selected to run the Operations and Maintenance part of Reverse Osmosis (RO) the desalination plant in Qidfa, on the coast, just north of the city of Fujairah. This contract for Veolia Water builds on a contract awarded in August 2007 for the Multiple Effect Distillation (MED) plant in Fujairah.

The new plant will produce 136,500m3 of desalinated water per day.

Source: ‘Veolia Water Wins a New Contract in the Major Fujairah 2 Independent Water and Power Project for Fujairah, UAE’, Water Online, December 21, 2007.

Thursday, December 20, 2007

Forecast for Fujairah Boom Fuelled by Oil

In an extensive article in Business 24/7 entitled, Fujairah primed to become regional energy export hub Nassar Hoath declares (20 December 2007) that, “Fujairah is set to become one of the largest energy export hubs in the region.”

Hoath bases this statement on these major developments:
* The fuel supplies set to flow from Abu Dhabi through the Habshan-Fujairah 360km-long, 48-inch-diameter pipeline (to be ready in 12 months).
* The crude oil export terminal which is being built to export the oil received via the pipeline.
* The new Taweelah-Fujairah gas pipeline supplying the emirate with Qatari gas.
* The building of an export terminal for the gas supplied from Taweelah.
* Expanded and new refineries.
* Expanded bunkering capacities.
* Expanded tanker-berthing facilities.
* Anticipated success from the current survey of Fujairah off-shore areas in search of new gas and oil sites.

Location, Location, Location
Fujairah is increasingly been viewed as situated in a strategic location outside the Strait of Hormuz. The new oil pipeline will circumvent the congested Strait and such lines take on a greater importance when the region is jittery about international reaction to Iran’s nuclear developments.

Scale of Fujairah’s Growth
“The crude pipeline, in addition to the emirate’s own oil exploration surveys and the fast-growing shipping industry, will completely change the face of Fujairah,” said Fujairah businessman Musa Barakat. “It will bring the emirate on par with emirates such as Sharjah, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. There will be an economic and commercial boom very soon.” Business 24/7 said: “Economists and analysts also see Fujairah’s economy benefiting from its emergence as an energy export hub, not only for the UAE but also for the entire region.”

Skilful Balancing Needed
The anticipated growth in Fujairah’s bunkering, refinery and export terminals looks likely to bring a welcome injection of dirhams to the city and region. However, Fujairah’s tourism industry has stated goals to increasingly showcase the region’s beautiful beaches, mountains and environmental treasures. No matter how hard one tries, the ports and related industries in any city do little to enhance the beauty of the environs and attract tourists. Already one major tourist guidebook has described the port as a blot on Fujairah landscape and has encouraged its readers to give the city a miss and head to the beaches further north.

The growth of the port and petrochemical industries in Fujairah must be done skilfully so as to avoid spoiling the natural environment and jeopardizing the growing tourist industry.

Dr. Geoff Pound

Image: A falcon’s eye view of Fujairah with the port north of the city. Click to magnify.

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Fujairah Information


Following the recent post about the many questions people are asking about Fujairah, I am posting this basic Information list that I started long ago for my personal use.

This list is incomplete with lots of gaps.

I plan to update this and would welcome people suggesting items to be included and pointing out mistakes or links that don’t work.

General on Fujairah
A-Z of Fujairah HCT resource for newcomers

Basic Information on Fujairah
Wikipedia Article

Accommodation (see also hotels)
Backpackers Fujairah
Youth Hostel

Airport
Fujairah Aviation Academy
Fujairah International Airport

Archaeology and History
ADIAS Guide for Fujairah and Kalba (Sharjah)
An Archaeological and architectural evaluation of fort Wadi Safad
Fujairah Abounds with Historic Sites Gulf News 2002

Banks
National Bank of Fujairah

Beaches
Coastline often trashed
Don’t Sell Off the Beaches
Oil on the Beaches
The Treasure of the Fujairah Coastline
Warning about Swimming at Night

Boating

Customs
Fujairah Customs

Food
Al Zamam Restaurant
Coffee and Coffee Pot Round-About
Emirati Food
Mango Mania

Food Shopping
Food Shopping
Friday Market
Safeer Mall (Opening Soon)
Supermarkets and Hypermarkets
Two Dirham Shop

Hotels
Trip Advisor-Hotels
Al Diar Siji Hotel
Emirates Springs Hotel and Apartments
Hilton Fujairah Resort
Jal Hotel and article
Le Meridien Al Aqah Beach and article
Rotana Resort & Spa Al Aqah Beach and article on its offerings & Tariffs
New Hotel on Fujairah Beach (Coming)
Sandy Beach Motel
Shariah Compliant Hotels

Human Rights & Ethics
Amnesty International 2006 Report-UAE & Fujairah
Corruption and Transparency Record
Freedom of the Press
Journalism Ethics
Labour Exploitation
Refugee Support & Resettlement
Religious Freedom
Stoning and Lashing
Suffering Beneath the Skyscrapers

Basic Services
Car Cleaning
Hair Cuts: Going to the Salon or Saloon?
Hair Cutting Costs

Business, Commerce, Industry
Emirates/Fujairah Ceramics Factory
Fujairah Cement Industries
Fujairah Free Zone
Fujairah Rockwool Factory
Fujairah Oil Wikipedia Map
Fujairah Trade Centre
Vopak Horizon Fujairah Oil Terminal

Cinemas
Dana Cinemas
Hindi Movies House-No web site

Clubs Organizations
Indian Social Club
Toastmasters

Schools, Colleges & Universities
Primary
Fujairah Academy

Secondary
Our Own English High School

Tertiary
Ajman University
Higher Colleges of Technology HCT—Women’s & Men’s

Communications
Yellow Pages

Culture
Little Queuing in Fujairah

Demographics
Population Perplexities

Environment, Nature, Wildlife
Air Pollution
Bird Sighting Report
Cyclone Gonu (see articles on this site through June 2007)
Energy & Switching to Solar Power
The Falcon
Plastic & the Need for Green Bags
Plastic Pollution
Recycling Project Initiated by HCT
Wildlife Sanctuary Opening Soon

Fishing & Marine Life
Fishing in Fujairah Martin James
Fishing around Fujairah
Fujairah: Fishing Capital of the UAE
Report of Archaeological Diving Expedition 1994

Health
Bird Flu
Breast Cancer at a Crisis

Images and Photographic Galleries
Aidan O’Rourke Gallery
David Henderson Gallery
East Coast, UAE Photo Gallery Brian McMorrow
East Coast Photo Gallery Philipp Holzmann
Fujairah: Great City in the Making
Fujairah Tourism Bureau Image Gallery
Fujairah Travel Pictures
Sandy Beach Motel Gallery

Industry
Industrial Area (old); this is being transferred to the new Al Hayle area

Lighthouses, Navigational Points and Towers
Al Jaber Tower Fujairah’s tallest and this link
Etisalat Tower
Fujairah Tower

Living
Creativity & Creativity City
Gardening the Emirates
How Peaceful is it living in Fujairah and the UAE?
Quality of Living
Rising Cost of Living

Government
Federal
UAE Federal e-Government Portal
UAE News and Information

Local
Fujairah Municipality
Fujairah e-Government Portal, News, Weather, Prayer Times
Shaikh Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi—Ruler of Fujairah
Statistics

Hospitals
Fujairah Private Hospital Wikimap (being built)
UAE Hospitals Directory
UAE Interact Travel Tips, Health, Hospitals

Investment, Property
Fujairah Attracts Resort Developers Gulf News Aug 07

Internet
Google.ae

Maps
Fujairah Colleges Map PDF
Fujairah Emirate and City MapQuest zoomable
Fujairah City Map –Municipality
Fujairah City -UAE Interact
Fujairah Tourism Bureau Maps
Road Map especially to port
World 66 Google Earth of UAE
World 66 Google Earth of Fujairah
Wikimap starting at Indian Social Club with notes of places in Arabic and English
Wikimap starting at Port with notes
Wikimap Road to and Including Fujairah (Arabic mainly)

Media
Fujairah Media (including Creativity City)

Photos
[See Images and Photographic Galleries]

Publications, Books
Birds of the Middle East
Municipality Publications

Port
Fujairah’s Bunkering Port-‘Gateway to the Gulf’

Religions
Fujairah Prayer Times
Islamic Guidance Centre
Mosques Becoming Emiratized & Hi-Tech
Religion in the UAE
Religious Freedom

Shipping
Fujairah’s Floating Gas Station

Sports
Dive Centers Fujairah
Fujairah football Club
Fujairah Rugby Club

Tourist Attractions
General
Dubai City Guides-Fujairah
Environmental Agency Abu Dhabi-Fujairah
Fujairah Country FactFile Gulf News April 2006
Fujairah Fridays Khaleej Times 5 May 2006
Fujairah-Special Focus Gulf News
Fujairah Targets Tourism for Growth 25 October 2007
Fujairah Tourism Bureau
The Fujairah Factor-Gulf News
Sights and Service HCT
Wikitravel-Fujairah

Specific
Ain Al Madhab Gardens
Al Bidya Mosque (oldest mosque in the UAE)
Al Hayle Castle
Bithna Fort
Bull Butting Khaleej Times article 5 May 2006
Fujairah Fort
Heritage Village (includes the Fort)
Fujairah Museum
Fujairah Petroglyphs Archaelogical Sites
Fujairah Wadis
Masafi and Friday Market

Tourism (also see Video section)
Frankfort! Florence! Fujairah!
Fujairah Moving Towards Natural Tourism
Fujairah is Fun Gulf News October 20, 2007
Fujairah: Full of Eastern Promise-The Independent
Visitors Checklist for the Emirates
Tourists Heading to East Coast
Tourist Destinations in Fujairah and Lesser Known States

Videos
Fujairah Tourism Video on YouTube
Fujairah Beach-Faseel (not the best quality)
Road Trip to Fujairah
Dubai (Mall of the Emirates) plus road trip to Fujairah
Kalba Road and the Gillay Tunnel
Kids Fishing in Boat of Fujairah
Children Playing on Fujairah beach
Fujairah International Marine Club
Diving in Fujairah Waters

Trade and Business
Fujairah Freezone

Walking, Driving, Roads, Fuel
Cars Don’t Stop for Pedestrian Crossings in Fujairah
Record Number of Cars
Road Safety and High Accident Rate on Fujairah Roads
Stop Signs in Fujairah Mean Give Way
Petrol Costs
Car Cleaning Costs
New Highway to Fujairah
Driving the Emirates—New Book ‘On Road in UAE’
Tail Gating Mania

Weather
AME Info Temp, Pressure, Humidity, Visibility, wind etc.
BBC 5 Day Forecast plus info on sun, temps, wind, visibility, humidity, bar.pressure (these can be sent to you by RSS feed )
UAE Ministry of Commun. & Met Dept Basic info plus marine, tides, satellite imagery,
Weather Forecast plus temperatures, moon, barometer, humidity
Weather Stations Google Map & Temps
Weather Underground 5 day forecast, humidity, wind, moon

Youth Hostel



Dr Geoff Pound

Monday, December 17, 2007

Questions People are Asking about Fujairah

Famine of Information on Fujairah
At the time of writing this Fujairah in Focus web site has been going for less than two months and has only reached 45 postings. However, the number of hits on this site is already reaching into the thousands.

There is a famine of information about Fujairah in the English language and when it exists, most people do not know where to find it.

Furthermore, people are seeking information from places outside Fujairah and the UAE and are relying greatly on obtaining their information online.

What People are Seeking to Know about Fujairah
I had a list of objectives when I launched this site but probably the item that most people are keen about is this one—“To amass some resources, especially for people visiting or settling in Fujairah.”

When I commenced this site I had no desire to become an online Fujairah Tourism Office or a Citizen’s Advice Bureau but I have been happy to give the small body of information I have to people who are inquiring.

Chief Questions or Queries for Information
I have kept a record of the inquiries but here are the main questions people have been asking most recently, in this month of December (a period of less than three weeks). Any short time period will shape the type of questions and this month of December has evoked more questions about the recent Fujairah Monodrama and activities relating to the Eid Al Adha holiday.

Here, in descending order, are the questions or requests people have been making about Fujairah (the numbers are in brackets):

Requests for road directions or street maps. (33)
Request for photos and videos on Fujairah. (18)
Questions about weather (especially fog conditions). (15)
Questions about fishing or fishing equipment in Fujairah. (13)
Questions about the hot tourist spots or places to see? (11)
Questions about cultural activities and specifically Fujairah Monodrama. (10)
Requests for tourism advice. (10)
Questions about hotels and motels. (6)
Questions about boat trips and water activities. (6)
Questions about the oil refinery or oil. (5)
Questions about the picnic spots in Fujairah? (4)
Questions about the parks in Fujairah? (4)
Questions about the main camping grounds? (4)
Questions about Fujairah media. (3)
Questions about buying property in Fujairah. (2)
Questions about schools in Fujairah. (2)
Questions about Fujairah beaches. (2)
Questions about Bull Butting (and the cost to see this spectacle). (2)
Questions about bird watching. (2)
Questions about the Al Bidyah mosque. (2)
Questions about the Fujairah marina. (1)
Questions about the Water Desalination Plant. (1)
Questions about places to shop. (1)
Questions about the Fujairah Port and request for a map. (1)
Questions about ongoing accommodation? (1)
Questions about Fujairah Free Zone. (1)
Questions about where to find bakeries in Fujairah. (1)


Some Concluding Observations
The most urgent need is for maps that give clear directions as to how to get to Fujairah, including the different routes and street maps of Fujairah city, Kalba, Dibba and towns of a significant size.

If these maps were sufficiently detailed and listed many of the places cited above—hotels, motels, parks, picnic areas, camping grounds, churches, the port, refinery, desalination plant, bakeries, schools, shopping areas, tourist hot spots—they would go a long way towards assisting people with many of the questions that newcomers and tourists are asking.

Digital maps available online would be useful for adding to or altering as places and landmarks change and develop.

Dr Geoff Pound

Sunday, December 16, 2007

Fujairah: A Place for Tourists to Chill Out

In a recently released video interview, the CEO of Le Meridien in Fujairah, Patrick Antaki, says that his hotel is principally a place where international tourists can ‘chill out’. He says they come to be pampered, to enjoy the quietness with no vigorous excursions or energetic activities.

Antaki states that he and his team have worked hard to corner the European market. The Brits usually come for an average of 5-7 nights, the Germans come for 7-10 nights and the significant Russian contingent for 7-14 nights [does this mean that the Germans take longer to be pampered and the Russians require a longer period for chilling to the extreme?]

One might think that the Europeans come less to chill out than to warm up by lolling around on the Al Aqah beach or sipping vodka by one of the pools.

There is nothing wrong with a holiday to chill out but Antaki’s survey of his customers has important implications for Fujairah tourism. It appears that the majority of international tourists to Fujairah never come to the city of Fujairah. Instead they are whisked away from the Dubai International Airport and after 45 minutes they are at the entrance of Le Meridien or one of the neighboring hotels (Antaki has some comment to make about the Al Aqah hotel cluster).

To be successful, the leaders of tourism on the UAE east coast need to create and showcase some relaxing and stimulating half-day trips. If things were packaged and presented well a trip (by boat and 4WD) with an environmental theme to the Kalba ecological wetlands, a sorti to the Fujairah museum, fort and an archaeological dig or an excursion to the wadis and farms nestled in the Hajars might be just the thing to tantalize the hoards blobbing out around the Al Aqah beach and bars.

The new video interview with some footage of Le Meredien and the emirate of Fujairah can be seen at this link, courtesy of AME Info:

Fujairah: a Growing Tourist Destination

Dr Geoff Pound

Image: A Fujairah blogger chilling out at Le Meridien, Al Aqah.