Touring the Jimi and Qattara Oases

Al Ain, the Garden City, is the modern version of what was once a series of separate oasis communities. Several of these original oasis communities have now been redeveloped and some of the original structures reconstructed. However, there are still some of the original mudbrick buildings to enjoy for those willing to take the time to explore.

Photos by Geoff Sanderson

Sections of the original mudbrick walls are still evident	Thoughtless industrial dumping around the perimeter of each oasis is still a problem	The new walls and pathways are attractive but evidently no more immune to destruction than the mud walls	At the Qattara oasis, the main gate -- Bab al Qattara -- is still in place though in poor repair
Helene in the shadows near one of the original towers	The tower soars above the tops of the date palms	The Qattara souq is being used as houses for laborers	At the Jimi Oasis, this picnic area is very popular with the green parrots that visit each winter
The Jimi picnic area and one of the two remaining original structures	On one visit, workmen were making mud bricks for a fortified home	The mud mixing area; clay is mixed with straw in the traditional manner	Mud bricks drying in the sun
One of the completed houses plastered in sarooj	Just outside the Jimi oasis, young girls enjoying television outside their home	A modern tannour oven	View across the Jimi oasis towards downtown
Setting sun over the Jimi oasis	Flood irrigation is still the way crops are watered	Water was once delivered from wells dug throughout the oases	Today water is pumped in to irrigate the crops
Some farm plots are more carefully kept than others	Suckers are allowed to mature on this date palm; suckers are a second revenue stream for farmers