Liwa Date Festival
 from tomorrow

The week-long event, taking place under the patronage of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs Shaikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, will run till July 18 and feature a wide array of competitions, displays and activities celebrating not only dates but the UAE’s broader cultural heritage. “The festival is developing year after year, improving in quality and quantity,” said Al Mazrouei.

“The activities of the new edition of Liwa Date Festival will set up a unique platform for many individuals and establishments with a passion for palm trees and date fruits. Many cultural sessions will also be held with an aim to highlight the UAE heritage and to promote awareness on the most prominent elements of popular traditions, etiquette of eating foods and manner of greeting.”

As in the past years, the festival’s 8^th edition will include a kid’s tent hosting competitions and educational activities, as well as a traditional souq highlighting traditional Bedouin handicrafts such as products derived from palm trees and dates. Competitions for different varieties of dates will be spread out over the week, offering first prize awards of up to Dh200,000 for certain categories.

Liwa Date Festival 2011 introduced mango and lemon competitions, which will carry on at this year’s event on July 13. Al Mazrouei expects an even greater turnout for Liwa Date Festival 2012 than the 70,000 who attended last year, many of whom travelled to Liwa from within the UAE or abroad to participate.

Festival organiser Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority hopes the event will increase awareness of the cultural and historical legacy held by Abu Dhabi emirate’s Western Region, where Liwa Oasis is located.

aisha@khaleejtimes.com