Hadda Go to Hatta

We've been meaning to go to Hatta for a while, for several reasons. It's not far from Dubai and is the site of various local attractions, including the Hatta Fort Hotel (nice for getaway weekends) and the Hatta pools (pools in the desert? that I gotta see). It's also the closest place to exit the UAE for those needing to do a "visa run". That's what people do when their UAE tourist visa, limited to 30 days, is expiring. If you leave the UAE with the requisite exit stamp, enter the bordering country of Oman, paying 200 dirhams for the Oman visa, then turn around and leave Oman and reenter the UAE, you get a new tourist visa (free for Americans!) with entry stamp good for another thirty days. Apparently this is a well-accepted practice, but those of us who may need to do it scour the expat discussion forums for updates, afraid that it may not work and we may get stuck somewhere. The word "run" does have a somewhat negative connotation, after all!

I wanted to practice the visa run in case I ever needed to do it for real. We got confused at first due to the presence of several border checkpoints that we had to pass through along the way. The heavily armed guards wanted to look at our passports and seemed interested in where we were going, but they did not seem to want to stamp our passports, even when we thought that perhaps they should. Eventually we realized that these were just checkpoints and not the real border crossing. The real border crossing areas turned out to be much more involved, with big buildings and facilities on both the UAE side and the Oman side. Most disconcerting of all was a huge line of trucks waiting to get though an area for agricultural inspection and quarantine on the way to Oman, but this turned out not to be a problem for us as cars were waved through.

We both agreed that if asked about our plans in Oman we would admit that we were turning around and heading back into the UAE--honesty is the best policy, right? That appeared to be the case with all the westerners like us at the border, and they made it easy on us by assuming that was what we were doing and having us simply confirm our plan to return immediately to the UAE. Which made me wonder why we had to go through the trouble of entering Oman and paying for the Oman visa--why not just get the UAE exit stamp and skip going to Oman? My husband tried to explain that we had not really exited the UAE until we entered Oman, which made some sense, I guess, and who am I anyway to question the logic of the accepted practice?

In Hatta we enjoyed a nice brunch at the Hatta Fort Hotel where we met the Swedish ornithologist and were glad we had not sprung for an overnight stay. We skipped the Hatta Heritage Village (having seen a model on display at the Hotel) and went in search of the pools. Missing the turn "at the flags painted on the rocks" we got an unexpected chance to visit the newish looking dam, which had an impressive lake of water on display for us and several other visitors, and where we thought we spotted a few of the birder's missing birds. (We could have spent more time admiring the water there as we discovered later that the Hatta pools paled by comparison.) We continued our search for the Hatta pools, for which there was no signage whatsoever, wandering through a huge wadi (ravine), walking by all kinds of puddles and litter in the rocks and recesses, coming upon small groups of picnicking families in shady spots. Finally we spotted a group of SUV's signaling what we hoped to be the real pools, with yet another walk down the rocky wadi to reach an area where young men wearing swimwear were climbing down through rocky passageways. I guess they found water there but it was too narrow and deep to see and my shoes too slippery to make the steep descent to look. I didn't even see any wet bathing suits! So I am not really sure there were any Hatta pools (unless you count the puddles). Perhaps that explains the lack of signage and the now understandable popularity of the dam.

The most amazing site of all on our day trip was not in Hatta but along the way, in an area of big sand dunes referred to in our offroad tourbook as Big Red. In the morning as we headed out we came across a couple of places advertising motorcycles and dune bashing trips. By the time we returned, the area was full of traffic and activity, pictured above. The highest dune was covered with vehicles of all types madly racing around like ants on an anthill. Police and emergency vehicles were also on hand, apparently for good reason. It looked like fun in a crazed sort of way, but not the kind of fun that can be sustained with people en masse, so we didn't stop, and I doubt we'll return anytime soon. That is, of course, unless I need to go on a visa run.

Sanctuary of Another Kind

Another kind of sanctuary can be found in Dubai, right in the middle of all the new buildings, roads and desert. It's name is Ras Al Khor, and it's a wildlife sanctuary for migratory birds, especially flamingos, which numbered over 2,700 at last count (including a few fibreglass models used to attract the early arrivals!) The area started as a dry inland tidal creek, but is now a successful protected wetland full of mudflats and mangroves and birds of many kinds. The public is now encouraged to take a look with the construction of bird hides. It's a magnificent place to see the city skyline, softened with greenery and avian grace. A massive residential development called The Lagoons is planned for the vicinity, which also includes an industrial area, so it's a good thing the sanctuary has time to get established first and prosper.

Living on a man-made island I feel a simple joy whenever a bird comes in for a landing and looksee. On one of my treks around the Palm, dodging cars and buses where the sidewalks disappear, my day was made by the discovery of an exotic-looking bird, later identified as a hoopoe. On a day trip to Hatta we met a young biologist from Sweden who was spending a month in the UAE looking for one specific bird. He was bemoaning that he'd only managed to spot three in his first week. Later my husband and I were certain we saw several, but we could have been mistaken.

UAE Rising

The unrest and uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen and other parts of the middle east contrast with the relatively quiet scene in the UAE, which seems to be emerging as a safe haven in the storm and rising to a leadership position in attempts to address the crisis. People from all countries and their money seem to find refuge here, at least temporarily. (The UAE is very successful in keeping its population of discontents to a minimum through its strict visa and immigration controls.) President Obama reportedly called Sheikh Mohammad, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, to discuss the situation in Egypt. The official UAE position is one of concern for the threat to Egypt's stability while rejecting foreign attempts to interfere in the internal affairs of the country. How this translates into what we all hope will be a smooth and orderly transition process is, of course, unclear, as the antigovernment protests continue in Tahrir Square.

Life goes on as normal here. Over a year since my arrival in September 2009, Dubai looks better than ever, despite suffering through a very serious economic downturn. All is peaceful in the Global Village, pictured above, where families flock at this time of year to buy sweets and souvenirs from other countries (Yemenis begged us to try their famous honey, while Iranians welcomed us with an impressive array of goodies to sample). Landscaping has filled in at new developments, with flowers and birds adorning the scene; projects that were half completed are now being finished. Studio City, which used to look like a Hollywood movie set with nothing behind the facade, now towers with solid looking buildings and activity, right next door to a gorgeous polo club, which looks to be the center of a sprawling new subdivision of enormous villas for those looking to live the "equestrian" lifestyle. Not far away, in the middle of nowhere, we discover a huge blue metallic blob, which must be a brand new sports stadium, looking to hold 50,000+. Our neighborhood on the Palm Jumeirah boasts several new hotels on the fronds, monumental in size and scope, and a brand new mosque with modernist architectural notes. The Dubai Pearl, a multipurpose development at the base of the Palm, is also continuing to rise with the promise of a bespoke lifestyle.

Nice, if you can afford it! Unfortunately, most people can't, and the wars between the haves and the have nots continue elsewhere.