UAE | General

Beachgoers hail decision on fence

Natthaya Saikaeo who jogs every morning on the beach next to the Burj Al Arab shrieked with joy when told the fencing will be pulled down soon.

  • By Mahmood Saberi, Staff Reporter
  • Published: 00:00 March 31, 2007
  • Gulf News

  • A day after the wall being built along Jumeirah beach was ordered dismantled, this toddler savours the beloved shores near the Burj Al Arab.
  • Image Credit: Hadrian Hernandez/Gulf News
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Dubai: Natthaya Saikaeo who jogs every morning on the beach next to the Burj Al Arab shrieked with joy when told the fencing will be pulled down soon.

The Thai expatriate was enjoying the setting sun with a friend while families were yesterday busy pitching tents for a night on the beach, which has become as famous a Dubai landmark as the iconic Burj Al Arab.

Expatriates have various names for this favourite spot, from Russian to Suqeim Park Beach. It is the one of the top five places residents bring their visiting friends and relatives.

It was recently being cordoned for a project. Then late Thursday an order was issued to stop the fencing and keep the beach open to the public.

"I do not have too much money," said Saikaeo, trying to explain that this was one of the places where she can come and relax, for free. "Thank Allah and thank Shaikh Mohammad," she said, when told the work has been stopped on the orders of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

'This is great'

"In Thailand all the beaches are free for everyone, except maybe one," she said. "It would have been sad if this beach were closed," said Saikaeo.

"This is great," said Fiona, who was tugging at her son Brayden, on the news the beach will be kept open. "There are not many beaches in Dubai where families can go to enjoy." Her husband Brad said they come here whenever they get a chance.

Joe Dudzinski, a German expatriate, who was reading a best-seller and reclining on a towel, said, "They would have missed it," pointing to the crowd of weekend holidaymakers.

"It's a nice place and close to where I live," he said, adding that he comes to the beach every Friday.

There is one more open beach, but it is past the Jebel Ali industrial area. Not many people know about it as the approach to it is difficult.

Yasser Salah, an Iraqi, was strolling on the beach with his friends.

"We love the water," he said. When they were in Baghdad, "a weekly visit to the riverside was a must," he said. "We used to catch fish for lunch." He and his friends who are living in Dubai for the past two years, said this was a good place for everyone.

Namal, a Sri Lankan, had also come to the beach with his friends. He was not aware the beach was to be cordoned off. "There is no other place we can go to enjoy." He was happy that his beach wasn't not being taken away from him.

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