96kg date branch is Liwa’s winner

96kg date branch is Liwa’s winner Silvia Radan / 21 July 2013 A palm branch of dates weighing 96 kilograms has taken one of the top prizes at the Liwa Dates Festival — landing its owner with a lucrative prize. The branch won the “Biggest Adj” (branch) competition at the festival on Friday night. “They were ‘shahal’ dates from Liwa, which are usually very heavy,” festival director Obaid Khalfan Al Mazrouei told Khaleej Times. The winner was Rashed Faraj Salem Al Mansouri, who was awarded Dh50,000 for his fruitful production. Second place in the “Biggest Adj” competition and Dh40,000 were taken by Moza Mohammed Afsan Al Mazrouei, while the third place went to Mansour Ali Salman Mohammed Al Mansouri, along with Dh30,000. As with all other competition categories, the top 15 contestants are awarded here, too. The remaining top 12 prizes ranged from Dh25,000 to Dh2,000. On Friday, the second day of the festival, the winners of the Dabbas dates category were also announced. Musbeh Saeed Al Murar from the village of Latair (Liwa) had the best quality Dabbas, winning Dh125,000, followed by Fatima Mohammed Saeed Salem Al Murar from Liwa’s Al Nabtiya village who was awarded Dh100,000 and Hameed Jaber Sultan Battal Al Murar from Al Dhowaiher in Liwa, who won Dh75,000. The fourth to 15th place winners received prizes from Dh40,000 to Dh5,000, respectively. For the first time this year, the festival’s organisers have put together a supportive Dabbas dates competition for first time participants. The first Dh70,000 winner in this category was Saleh Abdullah Hatha Al Murar from Al Nabtiya (Liwa), the second prize of Dh40,000 was taken by Ateeq Khalfan Mohammed Jarash Al Murar also from Al Nabtiya and the third Dh30,000 award went to Fakhira Thamer Khalfan Al Murar from Al Sheya in Liwa. “Altogether, we had over 400 people taking part in these three competitions, not just from Liwa, but elsewhere in the UAE,” said Al Mazrouei. The winners of Hounaizi and Abu Maan dates competitions will be announced today. Although the festival is closed to the public during the daytime, since it falls during Ramadan this year, on Saturday morning Shaikh Tahnoon bin Saeed bin Tahnoon bin Mohammed Al Nahyan visited the festival and he was most impressed with the heritage area of the festival grounds. “We have allocated ample space to heritage displays and shows, having life-size replicas of ancient Emirati houses showcased and traditional household objects usually found in such houses,” explained al Mazrouei. From 8pm to 1am, the opening hours of the festival, there are performances of traditional Emirati folk groups, as well as storytelling. The festival will continue until July 25. — silvia@khaleejtimes.com Taylor Scott International