Football Fever and Much More in Fujairah’s Neighbouring Town of Kalba

Think Outside the Box
Promoters of tourism in the UAE might serve the best interests of tourists by thinking outside their emirate.

Nowhere is such collaboration needed more as between Fujairah and Sharjah.

Crossing Borders
If tourists drive towards the east coast through the Gillay Tunnel at the southern most part of the UAE, they will reach Sharjah’s enclave of Kalba, which is a couple of kilometers from the Omani border and eight kilometers from Fujairah.

One might be heading for Fujairah but there’s so much to see in Kalba.

If one was to drive north from Kalba the full length of the Fujairah coastline, one would go in and out of the territories of Sharjah two or three times and quite likely through an enclave of Oman.

Impressions of Kalba
The National has recently posted a good-news story from Kalba about the healthy state of football (the team now plays in the Pro League) and the impressions of some of the big names that are visiting this ‘football outpost’. Here’s a sample:

David O’Leary, Ahli’s Irish manager, who has walked touchlines in major din at Leeds United and Aston Villa, finished a trying evening of management after a 2-2 draw he did not expect yet still said: “It’s been a lovely place to come and play football.

“I’ve been coming to Dubai for 11 years with my family. I really like this part of the world. I never thought a place like Kalba existed. We came down here last night, were here today and it’s just a lovely coastal town. Beautiful, and will only get more beautiful.”

Out in the hallway near the end of the night, he effused still more. “Refreshing, to come here,” he said. He noted that from afar you always hear about “Dubai, Dubai, Dubai,” so it had energised him to see this place just two hours away, “just to wake up, walk around.”

Link
Read this article by Chuck Culpepper and watch the short video by Razan Alzayani:
Kalba Scores in UAE from Football Outpost, The National, 18 September 2010

Related
Things to See and Do Along the Fujairah Corniche to Kalba and the Omani Border, FIF, 20 June 2009.
Sharjah and Fujairah Look to Team Up to Promote Tourism, FIF, 7 July 2009.

Geoff Pound

This article is also posted on the Fujairah in Focus Facebook Page upon which many more articles and links are posted than on this blog.

Click on the above link and get Fujairah news and pictures coming onto your daily Facebook News Update.

Image: Ittihad Kalba players going through their training routine. (Photo courtesy of the Gulf News)