[Heart] of Sharjah

 

 

The day I got my offer letter... last year in the UAE.

At my friend's place in Sharjah, I received a call from Australia, early in the morning. The voice told me that I had been chosen to serve the firm that provided services in the healthcare sector.

Puzzled! haan...

0800 hrs___I felt like celebrating but then also crying as I was half asleep and the horrible ring tone of my phone had struck my ears like thunder bolts. However, there was only one thought going round and around my brain, and that was a place that I had been reading and researching since days.

" a visit to the Heart of Sharjah"

How did I come to know about it? It is simple if you are a freak at exploring places. Try using guide books that you can find at every forgettable corner of the airport. It will give you a very rough idea about the related city. The rest depends on yourself, how you want to explore its discovered or hidden gems.

If you ask me, I would always go for the places that are not touristic, the places where every traveler would not go. Such places make you more aware of the city's essence.

Somehow, this place reminded me of a city with which I have very strong connections named 'Jhang' back in my hometown, Pakistan. Therefore, a visit was quite necessary, I suppose.

A place that reminds you of home is worth thousand visits, I believe.

1100 hrs___ I should treat myself... right? A new job for a person who is new to the city deserved a special treatment on this particular day. And how was it supposed to happen. Not one of the most celebrated ways but I just grabbed a bus to reach this heritage site.

Travelling in Sharjah is comparatively easy and cheap, lets assume. I really did not know where to get down and somehow the maze of streets that the bus was running through made me more and more anxious, until I saw a park where I could see people running like ants. So I decided to make my first stop over.

This was not an ordinary place, it was the "Rolla Square Park" a memorial park built in remembrance of the plantation of the first banyan tree in Sharjah in 1800s. Locally this type of tree is called Rolla, hence the name for the landmark was kept to commemorate that moment.

History! history! history!

I had already started to enjoy the unorganized historical patterns of the city. This was the time where I felt the urge to use a city map that would take me to the place where I had planned to make my next stop.

It was a long walk and somehow my urge for seeking absurd architecture details made me detour. And then what I saw is right below...

On the outside___



As I walked through the back mid-rise residential areas, I could see a long endless wall.



 

Now this is pure vernacularism... the construction technique of the wall spoke of a technique used in a specific time without technology serving the basic need. What does a boundary wall do? It provides 'privacy'.

The are coral reefs used as building blocks for the walls.

The back entrance to the site and guess what! no ticket required... it is all for free.

At the inside___

Alright! now this is interesting. This is from the inside of the Sharjah National Theatre. They had hung hundreds of portraits of members from its first days till date. I managed to meet a couple of actors too, they were just spending some time as you can see the place is very cosy. I will say it was a 'Diwaniya' for people who did theatre.

At your right are the stables for horses that were kept in the past.

Observe!... the mystery of the architect's imagination.

This was the entrance to a small museum... the entrance fee is 5 dirhams as far as I remember. It is worth going inside and read a bit about the area.

On the roof___

 

1700 hrs___My visit to this forgettable piece of land was a feast for my brain. Vernacular, but from the time when this city started to build up. The architecture spoke of stories of people who once lived here and imagined a prosperous emirate for future.

I think you [missed] it!

Dubai! The commercial convivial city, which has forgotten its past, maybe. Hmmm! possibly one of the reasons being ‘time’ - seems to wade through life too fast now in this land of black gold.

Just imagine, people from across the globe coming here every day in search for a livelihood and they hardly know about the transitional phases that this city has gone through to become what it is today. Perhaps it is not even required to go into such details. Don’t you read before you go to a different place?

For instance I have met people who would claim for not going to the older parts of Dubai, and somehow they are perfectly fine with it. It is not a big deal, but like really?

Let me cut short. I am Architect by profession and somehow old, derelict buildings have always fascinated me. For instance, when I came in Dubai for the first time, areas of Bur and Deira seemed to be the best areas to hang around. Even then these areas cannot be considered as ancient because of the newand modern dwellings that have paved their ways through. However, I had done some research before landing and I somehow knew where and what to look at that would be a feast for my eyes.

The time spent in roaming around in the narrow streets, the spice souks, the fish market and then old mosques provided me with a ample understanding of this emirates' culture, at least that is how I thought in the beginning but I was so wrong. I kept thinking something was missing until I came up to the gateway that opened to an old residential neighborhood – the Bastakiya.

 

It is said to house almost sixty units at one time, but then most of them were turned down to make way for new developments in the later part of the last century. The best part for me was that traditional wind towers were used in Al Bastakiya houses to keep the house interior cooler than outside temperature and heat. Luckily the quarter is conserved and is open to the glorified as well as the common man to go inside and be part of the experience. I would say that the rest of the information can be found online, since, the name is there, you can search on your own.

What I really want to create is a scenario, through my words and photographs where one can focus on the first signs of the cultural barrier that this small area had created among the locals and the expatriates. Al Bastakiya was a neighbourhood, solely dedicated to the migrants who came in during the dawning of developments for a 'New Dubai', which was to become the metropolis of the region. This dates back to Sheikh Saeed's era.

Why am I even focussing on this topic? If you were to be told that you would work or live in an environment like this for long, I think the photographs in this blog will not fascinate you. Nevertheless, they will interest you, making you think that still Dubai is acknowledging their past and providing you with a glimpse in what they have provided to facilitate expatriots back in the days. The houses are conserved only for the sake of tourism now. That is how buildings are dealt with when they have served their purpose or, are of no use (I am being a little harsh to say this). You simply turn them into museums with a ticket to enter and they are good to stand their until their last brick falls. But on the other hand they are narrating you a story of a specific time in history.

The histories of times are told in this way, is'nt it? There have always been people, there have always been events, and then there always were these soulful, clueless structures forming the background- architecture of that time. Not all are great pieces of architecture, but they were there to make an era glorious.

Dubai has grown to become a giant in the list of most demanding cities to work in. And with all that it is providing better communities to accomodate its guests.

...don't let Kuwait get you!!!

…. from Sameer Aftab on Vimeo.

As the title suggests " don't let Kuwait get you", one might think ... it is a conjuration of awe, an enchanted country that promises prosperity to every individual entering its boundaries for the first time; you do get rewarded... but, only for sometime.
The unemotional environment starts getting on you... 'Kuwait' starts getting on you.  

The Video -  I have explored frames of events in different times of the day in the video. It is a compilation of stop motions and time-lapses that narrates a story.

[spring] in q8

It is quite astonishing when you think of the time... 'spring' and Kuwait. I always read, on blogs, newspapers, travel magazines, etc. that the climate of the country was as hot as a fire ball. Almost throughout the year, the scorching sun and its rays settling upon the floors of fine sands in the deserts, making it shine like gold. However, I never heard of people dying of heat waves. So I always wondered how people carried on with their day to day lives in such an extreme weather.

So here I was… in Kuwait,

The time when everything seemed to blossom. 

The flowers in parks, the people's lives in their secluded dens, the cars roaring around on roads, the silence in the desert, the blue waters of the Persian Gulf, and last but not the least the 'Shurtaa's' (traffic police)… they all seemed to cherish the bloom of the spring time.

The only thing that did not blossom were the attitudes… the attitude of the community. 

Somebody once told me, the only thing consistent in the country will be their instincts towards non-natives.

© Sameer Aftab

[scottish] highlands

Its been quite a while that I have not uploaded anything but here I am with a story from the very first day of the new year, 2014 when we were on our way to #Glasgow in #Scotland. Its a bit late though but its better late than never.

I always had a wish to travel to the highlands.
Why? Because of 'Loch-Ness' - when I was a child I had read about a monster, I had seen him in some documentaries as well and that was none other than the 'Loch-Ness monster'. A myth or maybe a reality, but this notion, the urge to see it with my own eyes was always there. However, this was just not the right time I guess.

These photos are from that journey.

in search of the [beacon]

... and it was the month of November here in England when I decided to go over the waters of River Mersey and search some 'beacons' and this was my very first time in a year and a half. All this time I was in #Liverpool but never got a chance to go on the #Wirral side.

[time-lapse]

... I made this time-lapse over the period of two days. I have tried to capture the environment - the beacons standing tall, once used as a source of invitation. Almost all of the beacons are not in use anymore.
I am borrowing a quotation from a book that I read sometime back, that said, "Every place has its history and symbolic connotation that merge into an event that obtained its meaning through the time of the day, illumination, weather and landscape.

Hmmmm! have a look at the video maybe you will be able to observe that connotation:

in search of the beacon from Sameer Aftab on Vimeo.

[bidston]

12:52 hrs

Yellow: indicates the area that I covered by walking, 

while my visit to Bidston.

I had arrived in #Bidston. The most unattractive, smallest stations I had ever seen in England till now,  even the #Edgehill station did not seem to me so inadequate. I was a bit lost because there was nothing in between anything. I saw no houses around, no people, no cars, the only thing that I could see was the sign that said, "Temporary Ticket Office"and even that was closed.

Anyway I started walking towards a bridge that stood so lonely that I could even hear the whistling of air as it passed through the hollow bars. As I was standing on the bridge, I could see the lighthouse on a hill that was considered as the highest point on the Wirral Peninsula.
"It is going to take me ages to reach the lighthouse," this is all I could think of because in order to reach there I had to cross a highway and since I did not know anything about the place so had to find my way to it.

Why... always a lighthouse?? To me they symbolize 'hope'.

I decide to walk along the Hoylake road which met Worcester road on the right and lead me to Vyner road north. Yes, I was using the maps from my i-phone otherwise I would have been completely lost.

 The walk took me to the entrance of the Bidston Hill Park, a natural reserve.

The illustrated map at the entrance showed me a wind mill. 

"This brick built tower mill replaced a wooden 'peg' mill that was destroyed by fire in 1793, and was used to grind corn into flour for 75 years up until 1875. Although access was difficult for a horse and cart laden with sacks of grain or flour the top of the hill was the ideal place to catch the wind. In fact, it is believed that there has been a windmill on this site since 1596."

I knew I will not be able to find it on my own so I took help of a couple walking in the same direction. These locals of the place told me that a fifteen minute walk will take us to the mill. 

There it was, gorgeously standing in one of the remote areas in #England, I suppose. I was standing close to it in order to take the best shots from my camera. There was plenty of light but still I used long exposed techniques to take pictures using my tripod that I was carrying as well.

Ahhhh!!! there was some special essence in the moment that I was in, the smell of the bricks that were not adhered well with its surface, the texture of the mortar that I found extremely historic... seemed like I was not standing in 2013. 

This was not it... there was a walking track that led to an old observatory.

"The Observatory was built in 1866 when Liverpool Observatory had to relocate due to the expansion of Waterloo Docks. The building is made using the stone mined during the creation of the cellars, the deepest of which (36 feet or 10.97 meters) maintains a constant cool temperature.In 2004-5, the Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory relocated to a new building at the University of Liverpool."

Behind the observatory was the Bidston lighthouse constructed in 1873. It is part of the observatory, not accessible at all.

"There has been a lighthouse on Bidston Hill since about 1771, when the first Bidston Lighthouse was built, further from the shore than any other lighthouse in Britain. The tower was octagonal, and the lamp room featured a massive parabolic reflector, 13’6″ in diameter, developed at the Bidston Signals Station. The present Bidston Lighthouse and Cottages were built by Mersey Docks and Harbour Board in 1873, after the original lighthouse was damaged by fire and demolished. The building is Grade-II listed and privately owned."

It was getting dark, so had to rush to the station. 

the [rain] began again

Stop Motion Time-lapse # 4

This is another compilation of photographs I took one fine day while in Liverpool... only that it was raining. The video shows transitions from how the bright sunlight was overwhelmed by the raindrops. Just an ordinary day but with a little bit flavor of clamminess.
 

the [rain] began again from Sameer Aftab on Vimeo.

[ keep walking - New Brighton awaits you ]

Remember - the main purpose of the trip was to find lighthouses across the Mersey river on the #Wirral side.

1310 hrs
I was at the #Liverpool Central (station), rushing towards the Wirral line tube and hopped in after waiting for ten minutes. It is quite ironic that sitting in the train usually reminds me of end of times. I am saying this because the journey from the station to #Birkenhead Park was almost underground. The train was almost empty. No one going to New #Brighton... I suppose.

1330 hrs
I got off from the train at the station and started walking on the Atherton street towards the sea... the Irish sea I am talking about here and reached the King's Parade. Now by looking across the road I realized that I was standing at the Marine Point. I could very well see the #lighthouse from here. I had read before it was the Perch Rock lighthouse that stood there since 1827 and now it was not being used anymore. The point seemed to be a complex of high-end retail brands. Anyway I started walking towards the tower.

I was walking...

... walked a little more.

... and finally I reached the tower. "Errr!!! Not a pleasant day to come out" I kept saying this to myself all the time. The sun was shining and I could feel the warmth of it but then nothing seemed alright because of the howling wind.

I stood right in front of the tower, close enough to get a feel of the environment. Aaaahhh!!! what a pleasing view. I could see the white tower wearing a red hat standing amongst the blues of the sky and water... the water did not seem that blue maybe because the clouds had covered the sun now.

I remained there for an hour, clicked loads of photographs. I had brought my tripod along as well but was almost useless because I did not have a ND-filter to take long exposure at the daytime. I walked to the pathway that lead to the tower. I thought I could make it but then the waves were aggressive and I remembered what my friend had told me about the weather forecast in the morning, "There will be a thunderstorm, do not go out (in a squeaky voice)." At that time I could only see the sun and the storm but thunder was missing, then I decided not to go any further.

There were people everywhere now. Trying to run on the stones and guess what... no one succeeded to reach anywhere near the site.

1500 hrs
I left the site and started walking towards the New Brighton Station to catch a train to #Leasowe - another lighthouse to explore.

Hmmmm!!! It was one bright corner of #England I must say, which was not that vivid historically as this part was hugely owned by smugglers and thieves.

You can look at the coloured images on Facebook.