Sharjah (الشارقة) is one of the United Arab Emirates.
Cities
Understand
Sharjah is an emirate geographically contiguous with Dubai, with daily traffic streaming to and fro creating long traffic jams at rush hours. People will generally live in Sharjah and work in Dubai because the cost of living is cheaper in Sharjah, but the best jobs are in Dubai.
Unique amongst the Emirates in that it has coastline on both the West and East coast of the peninsula. This is by virtue of being split into exclaves of Kalba, Khor Fakkan, and Dibba Al Hisn.
Talk
As in the rest of the UAE, Arabic is the official language, with most residents actually speaking other languages entirely - particularly Hindi and Urdu. English is widely spoken in shops, souqs, and hotels.
Get in
Most people will arrive either via Sharjah International Airport or Dubai International Airport. Sharjah centre is around 15 kilometres from Sharjah Airport and 20 minutes taxi ride from Dubai International Airport (dependent upon traffic).
There is no bus or shuttle connecting Sharjah international airport to Sharjah centre or Dubai. The only way out is to take a taxi. There is a 20 AED starting fee for taxis, which are taken from the airport. If you want to save money, walk towards the mosque and the road around there. Instead take the taxi from there.
If your final destination is Dubai, take the taxi to Rolla station in Sharjah, it will cost 25 AED. From there take a minibus to Dubai. The buses are going to Deire or Bur Dubai so ask before hand. It will take one hour or more to reach Dubai depending on the traffic.
Get around
There is no public transport in Sharjah, which means that visitors will need to have their own wheels or rely on taxis. Sharjah's taxis have historically been unmetered, and although some of these remain, several new companies operating metered taxis have become operational. They are similar in quality to Dubai's taxi fleet.
Taxi Drivers, although mostly courteous, do have the tendency to refuse passengers if the time of travel coincides with rush hour traffic. It is advisable to plan your travel well, allowing for traffic jams which could take upto an hour/hour and half to get out of.
See
The emirate itself has some middle of the road beach resorts in addition to having the reputation for being a center of Islamic education.
The public buildings in the Emirate were all designed by the present Shaikh (a qualified architect) and make a nice visual change from the usual fare of skyscrapers in the other Emirates.
The "Blue Souq" (Souq Al Markazi or Central Souq) is an interesting, if slightly shambolic, shopping centre hosting around 600 shops in two wings. The ground floor shops tend to stock gold and expensive designer clothes, with the upper level containing shops stocking carpets and curios from as far afield as Afghanistan and Tibet. Haggling over prices in the upper-level shops will frequently attract massive discounts. A great place to buy gifts and traditional goods. Considered superior to Dubai for carpets by Western expatriates. Another souq worth a visit is Souq al-Arsah (considered to be the oldest souq in the country).
The Heritage District of Sharjah city is dominated by the Sharjah Fort Museum. The fort itself has been lovingly restored by the present Shaikh, and the museum provides something of a glimpse at social history of the Emirate. Many exhibit signs, however, are solely in Arabic, with those in English often being rife with errors.
Also in the Heritage District is the Islamic Museum. This is a fascinating place for any visitors with an interest in the faith, as there are handwritten Qur'ans, letters from the Prophet to other leaders of the time and various artifacts from Mecca itself. There is also a comprehensive display of Arab handicrafts.
Most sites in the Heritage District have certain opening times set aside solely for women. Visitors of both genders should make certain of these on arrival in the city.
Do
Eat
The ubiquitous shawarma is sold all over Sharjah and makes a very cheap and hearty meal.
Get out
The beautiful and peaceful Iranian Kish Island is close by.
The Emirate of Sharjah (Arabic: الشارقة ash-shaariqah) extends along approximately 16 kilometres of the United Arab Emirates's Persian Gulf coastline and for more than 80 kilometres into the interior. The emirate covers 1,003 square miles (2,600 km²)
The total population is 636,000 (2003).
Description
Sharjah is the third largest emirate in the United Arab Emirates, and is the only one to have land on both the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Sharjah is ruled by Sheikh Dr Sultan ibn Muhammad Al-Qasimi of the Supreme Council of the UAE and Sheikh of Sharjah.
In addition there are two enclaves belonging to Sharjah situated on the east coast, bordering the Gulf of Oman. These are Kalba, and Dibba al-Husn. The emirate has a total area of 2,590 square kilometres, which is equivalent to 3.3 per cent of the country's total area, excluding the islands.
The city of Sharjah, which overlooks the Persian Gulf, has a population of 519,000 (2003 census estimate). It contains the main administrative and commercial centers together with an especially impressive array of cultural and traditional projects, including several museums. Distinctive landmarks are the two major covered souqs, reflecting Islamic design; a number of recreational areas and public parks such as Al Jazeirah Fun Park and Al Buheirah Corniche. The city is also notable for its numerous elegant mosques. The Emirate of Sharjah is also known to be the Cultural Capital of the UAE. The Expo Centre of Sharjah is well known for the annual book fair that is famous all over the region. The Emir personally takes keen interest in this event which brings together hundreds of publishers from all over the world and thousands of titles. f. Links with the outside world are provided by Sharjah International Airport and Port Khalid.
Sharjah also encompasses some important oasis areas, the most famous of which is Dhaid where a wide range of vegetables and fruits is cultivated on its rich and fertile soil. Khor Fakkan provides Sharjah with a major east coast port. An offshore island of Sir Abu Nuáir belongs to Sharjah. Sharjah also claims the island of Abu Musa which Iran also claims.
Sharjah has one Omani enclave, the Madha territory, wherein lies an UAE exclave, called Nahwa.
Sharjah is a sister city to Dubai and Ajman (two fellow emirates) on both its borders. The three urban areas have now expanded to each others borders. Sharjah is about 170 kilometres away from the capital city Abu Dhabi.
Sharjah is the only Emirate in which the sale, possession and consumption of alcohol is banned. It also maintains the strictest decency laws in the UAE, introduced in 2001, with a conservative dress code required for both men and women. Mixing between unmarried men and women is illegal: "A man and a woman who are not in a legally acceptable relationship should not, according to the booklet, be alone in public places, or in suspicious times or circumstances."
History
Historically, Sharjah was one of the wealthiest towns in this region with a settlement in existence for over 5000 years.
In the early 18th century the Qawasim clan (Huwayla tribe) established itself in Sharjah, c.1727 declaring Sharjah independent.
On 8 January 1820 Sheikh Sultan I signed the General Maritime Treaty with Britain, accepting a protectorate to keep the Ottoman Turks out. Like four of its neighbours, Ajman, Dubai, Ras al-Khaimah and Umm al-Qaiwain, its position on the route to India made it important enough to be recognized as a salute state (be it of the lowest class: 3 guns).
On 2 December 1971 Sheikh Khalid III joined the United Arab Emirates.
Like the other former Trucial States, Sharjah's name is known by many stamp collectors because of the large numbers of "stamps" that were "issued" in its name shortly before the formation of the United Arab Emirates. Many of these items feature subjects unrelated to the emirates whose names they bear, and therefore many popular catalogues do not list them. For example, the 2003 edition of the Scott catalogue, dominant in the United States, lists no stamps of Sharjah after 1965.
The historically known rulers were:
Sports
The Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium has hosted almost 200 cricket One day internationals, more than any other ground, and 4 Test matches.
Sharjah sport clups.
Al Sharjah First leage
Al Shaab First leage
Al Hemriah 2nd leage
Al The-aed 2nd leage
Al Itthab 2nd leage
AL Khaleej 2nd leage
Dibba 2nd leage
Kalbã (Khwor Kalba)
Kalba is a fast growing city in the emirate of Sharjah, along the eastern coast of United Arab Emirates, located about 8 km from Fujairah, on the UAE Oman border.
It is accessible by road from Fujairah (8 km), and Hatta (40 km approx), via two sea ports (Fujairah and KorKalba) and the airport at Fujairah.
The road from Kalba to KorKalba extends till the border with Oman, and is one of the exit entry points between UAE and Oman.
Kalba is famous for its back-waters and the surrounding mangrove forest. It also boasts of ancient forts and a hot water spring at Wadi Halu.
In 1903 a tiny entity, called Kalbã after this city as its capital, achieved de facto independence from Sharjah. On 8 December 1936 it was recognized by Britain.
In 1952 it was re-incorporated into Sharjah.
It has only had three rulers:
External links
U.A.E. based News Papers
