- His Highness the Father Amir visits festival
- World Cup festivities continue
He was accompanied by HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani, former Prime Minister and former Minister of Foreign Affairs.
His Highness the Father Amir was received by Katara general manager Prof Khaled bin Ibrahim al-Sulaiti.
His Highness Sheikh Hamad flagged off the journey of the flags of the 32 nations participating in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, aboard heritage dhow boats to sail past the Doha Corniche and Qatar’s world-famous Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) on to Doha Port.
He also toured some of the pavilions of the participating countries.
His Highness the Father Amir was briefed on the activities of the festival and its heritage activities, marine competitions and folklore performances, Katara said in a press statement.
The grand and hugely popular festival showcases Qatar’s pearl-diving legacy and the rich values of fishing and maritime history – a cultural pride in the hearts of Qataris for generations.
The festival includes 50 pavilions – including exhibitions of marine heritage collectibles and others for crafts and handicrafts known as 43 handicrafts, and ship building workshops from nine countries: Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Iraq, Yemen, India, Turkiye and Tanzania.
The dhow festival will remain open on all days until Qatar National Day (December 18).
“The 12th edition of the Katara Traditional Dhow Festival is an exceptional and landmark occasion, as it coincides with Qatar’s historic hosting of the 2022 FIFA World Cup,” said Prof al-Sulaiti.
“The distinctive and celebrated festival will be a window for all visitors from around the world to learn about Qatar’s and Gulf nations’ strong connection with the sea and the richness of the maritime heritage and history,” he said. “The festival will further add to extending the bridge of communication between cultures and peoples."
On its opening day, the Katara Traditional Dhow Festival witnessed a large audience of different age groups and nationalities, who followed a variety of folkloric paintings presented by a group of girls, in addition to the performances by the Omani Al-Ardah band and representative paintings inspired by the lives of the people of the sea, such as farewell to the Yazwa and deep sea divers when they started their diving journey, represented through songs.
The various sections of the festival extend over the entire Katara Beach, evoking the ancient form of Al Furjan and offer a variety of traditional products related to traditional crafts and industries associated with the sea.
* Mexican-Qatari Centre inaugurated
Within the programme of its activities accompanying the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, Prof al-Sulaiti inaugurated the Mexican-Qatari Centre in the presence of Mexico’s Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard Casaubon.
The centre includes a health clinic in addition to a security office, passport clearance office and a cultural events office, to cater to Mexican visitors to Qatar supporting the Mexican national football team at the World Cup.
Katara aims to co-ordinate with various authorities and institutions in the country in everything related to the World Cup, including providing various services needed by the fans.
Katara also continued to amaze with its various activities accompanying Qatar 2022.
The Thuraya Planetarium received visitors for a second day, with five daily shows.
An exhibition of fine arts, football and collectibles (supervised by the Qatar Photography Centre of the Ministry of Culture) attracted a wide audience of those interested in art and football.
Algeria, Morocco, Sudan, Qatar and Lebanon are all represented.
Qatar’s footballing history has been brought alive in the second hall, where drawings of the most important moments and pictures have been chosen by Rashid Muftah al-Sulaiti, editor-in-chief of *Al-Saqr magazine.
A third hall displays sports gear belonging to previous World Cups, which are t-shirts worn by players in previous World Cup tournaments, old publications that covered the World Cup in previous tournaments, as well as medals, footballs and tickets, all of which belong to different historical eras related to the World Cup.
Katara will continue with its festive activities until December 18.
