National Culture and Heritage Festival draws large crowds

The 17th National Culture and Heritage Festival in Jenadriyah, one of the most popular cultural events in the Middle East, was attended by more than 120,000 people on January 24, the first day it was open to the public, following its inauguration the day before on behalf of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdulaziz by Deputy Prime Minister and Commander of the National Guard Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdulaziz. The exhibit is a showcase of traditional arts and crafts, culture and heritage, as well as the achievements of modern Saudi Arabia. The location is Jenadriyah, a custom-built site that features hundreds of traditional mud forts, souqs (markets) and elements of a historic town, as well as modern buildings and facilities.

The first event of the festival was the traditional camel race, where several hundred racing animals from Saudi Arabia and other countries competed for the prestigious prize over a 12-mile course through the desert. Crown Prince Abdullah presented the winning prizes. Later, traditional Saudi singers, dancers and musicians performed for the crowd.

The two-week event allowed Saudi citizens, visiting dignitaries, tourists from neighboring countries and expatriates living in the Kingdom to learn firsthand about the Kingdom’s rich culture and heritage. Special exhibits from Saudi Arabia’s 13 provinces provided demonstrations of traditional crafts and arts, as well as recent developments in industry and agriculture. A large number of government ministries, agencies, universities  and other organizations featured their own exhibits to highlight their activities and exhibit various aspects of Saudi Arabia’s tremendous development over the past few decades.

Nightly poetry recitals and performances by Saudi singers, musicians and dancers were some of the more popular events. Also, scholars from Saudi Arabia and other countries in the region and other parts of the world attended a number of symposia, many of which were open to the public.