Traditional Dhow Exhibition, Katara, Doha, Qatar

This evening we ventured into Doha’s valley of culture, Katara to the First Traditional Dhow Exhibition in the Gulf region. The Dhow is the name for traditional Arab sailing vessels. For the last 13 centuries, dhows were used as the main trading vessels sailing to India and East Africa and were commonly used by fishermen and pearl divers.

Dhows are not an unfamiliar sight in Doha.  They are seen docked along the Arabian Gulf on the harbours of the corniche, however the exhibition was a chance to see the Dhow up close. We arrived as the sun was setting providing a beautiful view of the bay. A lot of the dhows seemed to be Omani (probably from Sur), and were built over forty years ago.

Sonya next to the Traditional Dhow Exhibition welcome sign
Entrance to the exhibition, Qatar flag on sails
The many Dhows on display
Captain relaxing on his dhow
Captain in a relaxed pose
A dhow
Sonya on a dhow
Travis with dhows in the background
Captain on his dhow
Dhow with half-mast sail
Qatari playing checkers