It’s strange that I am posting this a week late. We went to the Gawa Pools in Wadi Shis last Friday and didn’t get a chance to post until today. Better late than never I guess.
With kids having their vacation, it is but natural that we would be on the roads. The weather would change pretty soon from hot to hottest, after which we would have to pretty much hibernate inside home. The only mercy would be going to the wonderful beaches out here. Apart from that, we just will be at a loss what to do as we aren’t the kind of people that enjoy the malls or night life. We love outdoors and it is but natural to feel sad to see the beautiful weather go.
This season has been pretty surprising with hailstones and storm clouds. There was bit of damage when heavy rains lashed few days back. And the weather had been pretty cloudy and pleasant more often than before.
I was hoping that we would have the same kind of weather when we started to wadi shis, with cool winds, overcast sky but it was a sunny day. But the drive more than compensated for it.
Madha is a pretty funny place. It is very near to Fujairah and still part of Oman. If you see the map you will realise that Madha is a small area within the United Arab Emirates which belongs to Oman. And in that small area there is a place within, which belongs to United Arab Emirates. I salute the co operation that exists between these countries which are beautifully co existing. And yes, just to clear the air, if you are in United Arab Emirates you don’t need a visa to visit Madha. But you will the Oman flag flying and even a Omani petrol station just off the main road.
Starting from home, we took the Emirates Road (previously Dubai Bypass Road, I always get confused with the new name) and onto the Maliha Road it was a pleasant drive watching the sand dunes. We then took the Shailh Khalifa Highway to Fujairah and then to Madha. It is a small part of Oman within the UAE. It’s pretty strange indeed, but then that is how it is. There were plenty of springs along the way. We have never seen water even though we have been there quite a few times. The dams, the water beds were always dry as a bone but now there was a steady stream along the way which was not only a pure joy but nothing less than extra ordinary in this desert. Okay, Fujairah is not a desert but more of a mountainous region along the coast. But then even that is a rare sight in the United Arab Emirates. The goats grazing on the moutains (what do they find there) and the moutain standing majestic in front of us was a welcome change from the daily grind.
There is a very good camping spot near the dam which was our original plan. To just go and relax there. We had no clue what is stired for us, subhan Allah. The dam was full of water and there was a stream following through it.
We had seen the dry river bed before but had no idea that water actually flows through it. We always used to wonder why have they built the dam as it was always dry. Well now we got the answer.
We went all the way to Gawa Pools in Wadi Shees. It is a lovely off road drive with mountains and streams engulfing in front of us. Though we saw lot of sedan cars upto the pools too. The water level was at same level like before but it was lot more crowded than before, when we went for the first time.
There was no other car apart from ours when we first went. There were quite a bit of dragon flies out there flying around.
We then stopped at the playground on the way back and it was pretty dark when we returned maneuvering through the water logged roads in the dark that was quite something. It might sound strange to those staying in other countries with rainfall and rivers but for us this is pretty much what we have and relish in the United Arab Emirates.
On the way back, we stopped at a small play area where all the kids had lot of fun before returning home tired which would take a day to wear off.
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