Photos from Our World

Sharjah, the most traditional Emirate

Sharjah City (ash-Shariqah) is surely the cultural capital of the Emirates, as is evident in the many wonderful buildings, carefully restored and faithfully reconstructed. Some display the "Barjeel", the windtowers that provided a kind of air conditioning; an unusually shaped round wind tower can be seen on the Majlis al-Midfaa building. There are traditional houses, now musea, like the Bait Obad Bin Eissa al-Naboodah. But pride of place should go to the Souq al-Arsa, the oldest souq in the UAE, beautifully restored with its "'arish" palm leaf roof; as a concession to modernity it is now fully enclosed and air conditioned!

The central city surrounds Khalid Lagoon, with impressive views. Walking along it, Al-Qasha canal is reached, linking Khalid Lagoon with Al-Khan Lagoon to the west. Sharjah Maritime Museum and Aquarium is located at Al-Khan Lagoon. Dhows, wooden trading vessels, may be seen along Khalid Lagoon (or Sharjah Creek) on Corniche Road in the Heritage Area of Sharjah City.

About 15 km from the City is University City, a large educational district of higher learning, artificially greened, with extensive lawns, flowers and fountains. The architecture is really worth seeing and reflects the importance of higher education in the Emirates. Here is the American University of Sharjah, the Higher Colleges of Technology (Sharjah Men's College and Sharjah Women's College) and the University of Sharjah. There is also the Sharjah Police Academy, the Sharjah Teaching Hospital and the Sharjah Library.

	View in Sharjah	Traditional house	The Souq al-Arsa	Inside Souq al-Arsa
	Khalid Lagoon	Al-Qasha canal	Dhows along Sharjah Creek	Shops in Sharjah
	University City Hall	Police Science Academy	Health Science Colleges	American University

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