Would-be explorers on a 500km camel trek across the UAE desert have reached the halfway stage of their epic ‘In the Footsteps of our Ancestors' expedition today.

The trip, which is being organised and supervised by the Hamdan bin Mohammed Heritage Center (HHC), is designed to showcase the more nomadic existence experienced by Emirati travellers in the olden days.

Its back-to-basics approach has meant that 20 nationals from countries such as India, Malaysia and Oman, among others, have temporarily escaped the pressures of modern-day life in a completely tech-free environment.

Said Ibrahim Abdul Rahim, Director of Event Management at the Hamdan bin Mohammed Heritage Center, commented, "This trip will give everybody on it a unique, once-in-a-lifetime experience that will live long in their memories, but a great many of them will be only too keen to go exploring again in the years to come."

He added, "The sheer number of applications we received on the official HHC website quite honestly exceeded our expectations, although we are fully aware of the passion that many people have for exploring the Arabian Desert and living life under clear blue skies."

Mohammed Fansouri bin Mohammed Faheemi, from Malaysia, is one of the game explorers currently on this 10-day adventure.

He said, "This is a very fruitful programme and I hope that, through it, I will gain further insight into Emirati culture and heritage. This camel ride will open people's eyes and let them get to know even more about the Emirati people. This is the right exposure for the public. I'd never ridden a camel before and I soon discovered that you cannot simply ride a camel like you would a horse. It is a totally different experience. But, I received really good training by Mohammed (Bin Taryem, the renowned UAE explorer), who taught me all of the techniques and everything."

Faheemi and his fellow participants set off on the first leg of their daily journey at around 7:30 every morning. They will then stop at 12 noon for roughly two hours prior to recommencing their own voyage towards their camp for the night at 5 p.m. or so and sufficiently prior to sundown. They expect to traverse around 50kms daily.

Source :WAM