The waterfront of Katara – the Cultural Village witnessed performances of the traditional Qatari Ardha show, from 3pm-11pm on Friday, in the presence of a large audience of different nationalities.
Speaking of her experience, Jennifer from Argentina said: “I am very happy to learn about Qatar's beautiful culture and heritage.”
“I came to Qatar to watch my national team in the World Cup,” she said. “Katara provided me with the opportunity to learn about the culture of the Qatari people.”
“The atmosphere here is wonderful and what I liked the most are the delicious Qatari dishes,” said Rebecca from Italy. “Today, I followed the performances and was impressed by the band's clothing, the consistency of their movements.”
Adolf from Germany expressed his happiness at the various shows and learning about the local culture.
“It is a different culture from what we are used to in Europe, but it is rich,” he said. “It has well-established customs and traditions that people still maintain.”
“I am happy to follow the various presentations,” Adolf added. “I am passionate about researching and learning about the culture of the region.”
Ardha is a multi-form Gulf folklore, including the Qatari Ardha.
This dance evolved from war chants and is now performed during celebrations and on holidays.
It is based on the repetition of certain poetic verses and chants, followed by a dance in which swords are used in co-ordinated movements, in addition to drums and tambourines.
The Katara Traditional Dhow Festival is also witnessing an increasing turnout, with visitors enjoying its activities and displays at its pavilions, as well as the folklore presentations of sailors' singing and the wonderful atmosphere.
The Qatari attire is also attracting the interest of foreign visitors at the dhow festival which has a section for traditional clothes.
Nadia al-Mannai, an expert in traditional clothing, said that foreigners were fascinated by Qatari traditional costumes: the motifs, colours, and multiplicity of shapes, especially women's costumes.
The traditional clothing section also contains various types of shields decorated with motifs from the Qatari culture, garments made of chiffon or tulle, in addition to various forms of colourful dresses decorated with threads.
There is also a studio where visitors can get themselves photographed in Qatari clothes.
The Oud Exhibition at the Katara Oud Centre continues to attract a large number of Oud lovers.
The Novel Centre is holding lectures and seminars, including an explanation of the contents of the 22 books issued by Katara Publishing House on the occasion of the World Cup.
The contents of the books were abbreviated in an audio recording, in addition to screening documentaries which explains the origins and objectives of the Arabic Novel Library.
A group of travellers from Uzbekistan visited Katara on their journey from Tashkent to Qatar, completing 5,000km by car, with the aim of supporting the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and the activities of Katara accompanying the World Cup, and in return introducing the Uzbek culture.
