Abu Dhabi: Two festivals reflecting different elements, education and heritage, successfully concluded their runs yesterday, with thousands attending each venue and enjoying the diversity they represented.
Those looking for a more scientific entertainment-based event explored what the Abu Dhabi Science Festival (ADSF), which ran from November 18 to 26, had to offer, including exhibitions, workshops, special performances and more at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (Adnec) and the Abu Dhabi Corniche.
Inaugural edition
"We welcomed over 80,000 visitors in addition to students from over 200 schools from across the emirate, which exceeded our expectations, given that this is the inaugural edition of the festival," Wissam Kabbani, director of the Science and Technology Promotion Department at the Technology Development Committee, organisers of ADSF, said.
Visitors who were looking for a more cultural approach headed to the Emirates International Date Palm Festival, which ran from November 21 to 26 at Adnec as well, where they were offered the opportunity to not only sample different varieties of the fruit but also to enjoy traditional activities, games and competitions.
Saplings
"The festival was very successful. We not only received a higher number of visitors but several new elements that were launched during this edition were quite successful, such as the Palm Tree Planting where we exceeded the number of saplings that will be presented to President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan during a special ceremony, from our initial target of 150 saplings to over 400," Qaboos Khalid, the festival's project director, said.
