Al Shindagah

Al Shindagah | Issue 139 | 9 he exhibit opened to its first visitors, a group of 30 prominent Emiratis, who were taken on a private tour of the high-tech space. As soon as they stepped through the doors of the Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor's Life Journey they were taken back in time to when the Al Habtoor Group Chairman was a small boy living in a cramped barasti hut with his family. The Boy from Shindagah features a barasti hut with authentic items from the past, including an olden wooden chest belonging to Al Habtoor's father, which used to hold the family’s most prized possessions. Visitors senses were awakened the moment they entered the small home. They experienced Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor opened a permanent exhibition of his life recently revealing different aspects of his life’s journey from his humble beginnings to his charitable and philanthropic work, business life as well as insight to family life. Joanna Andrews reports. T sight and sounds from the past, and their senses were treated to aromas of the past: sea air mixed with middle eastern spices. Al Habtoor said, “It doesn’t seem that long ago when we used live in a similar home to this. I remember those days as if they were yesterday. I would go out into the desert with my father where he taught me to ride camels and how to hunt.” He added, “Our traditional barasti home seemed gigantic to me back then. Yet in reality it was tiny and cramped. The only item of furniture we had was a bed which no one slept on. We preferred to sleep on the floor on thin mattresses with blankets. We would fold them up each morning and neatly arrange them on top of the bed where most our meagre belongings were kept.” As the guests meandered through the exhibit they we able to delve into various aspects of Al Habtoor’s life. After emerging from the barasti they stumbled upon The Emirati display, which represents the deep- rooted culture and traditions that Al Habtoor holds dear. This is where he pays homage to his ancestors, as well as the UAE leader, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the main driving force behind the formation of the United Arab Emirates, and the late Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the founding father of modern Dubai, who had a lasting influence on Al Habtoor’s life.