Musings: The Parrots of Khat
Khat is a very small village, off the beaten track.
To get to Khat, one must reach the outskirts of Ras Al Khaimah. There one sees a road going to Digdagha. The road continues beyond Digdagha and ends abruptly. This is Khat.
Khat has hot springs and the sulphurous water that bubbles up to the surface is considered to have healing powers. It has become a tourist attraction of sorts – deserted during the week and visited during holidays and weekends.
The hot water spring is right where the road ends. Two pools have been constructed – one for women and the other for men. In the UAE men and women cannot share a single public pool, so if you plan to visit Khat remember that your group will be split (if there are women in the group).
My first visit to Khat started off gruesomely. On the road I saw a camel that had been hit, obviously at high speed, by a car or a truck. Its remains were strewn across the road. Ugh! It is the only camel that I have seen hurt like this in this country. Here they place such a high esteem on the camels that almost all roads are fenced off. These days camels cannot stray on to most roads and hence are safe from the dangerous drivers of the UAE.
On my second trip to Khat, I returned with a friend. As we approached Khat, I saw a watch tower behind a wall. Only a part of it could be seen. It was inside a compound. Strangely, this was a school compound! The watch tower appeared to be in ruins and we decided to investigate.
We stopped the car in front of the school gate and had to walk around the perimeter to get a better look at the watch tower. However the wall was about 3 meters high at the point where one could get the best view, so the two of us dragged a stone on which one could stand and peer over the wall.
The stone was very wobbly. I took the photo of the watch tower teetering on the stone. The camera angle wasn’t the best one but under the circumstances it was the best that I could do.
A little further up the road we came to the hot springs. This is where the road ends.
It was a cold winters day and we were looking forward to the hot bath.
There is a nominal charge to enter the pool. Once inside there are many cubicles where you can change and leave you clothes to hang. An attendant keeps watch but it would be prudent to leave your cash and other valuables in the car.
If you don’t have a pair of swimming trunks, you can enter the pool in your underwear (so take a spare set along).
The circular pool is about forty feet in diameter. It has been made out of rocks to give it a natural look. The floor consists of large pebbles. One end is shallow – about two feet deep. The other end is about six feet deep. One can stand on ones toes and keep one’s nose just out of the water.
The water wasn’t boiling hot as we had expected. It was hot bordering on very warm. It had probably cooled during its transportation from the source to the overhead tanks to the pool itself.
I felt that the water was denser than normal tap water. Maybe it was just an impression. I also felt that the water had a rusty color to it (again maybe it was the dark rocks and pebbles that gave it this illusion). I also felt that it had a strange taste that I am unable to define. However it felt pretty good and we spent a few hours in the pool.
There were about thirty people in the pool; people of all ages but mostly Asians. Many kids were jumping into the pool from the rocks in spite of warnings that this is not allowed.
Two hours later we got out of the pool and showered I felt very fresh and invigorated.
Just next to the spa is a building made of stone with an ornate gate. It was locked and we couldn’t investigate it.
Behind this stone building is another ancient watch tower in a state of disrepair. This is the only place I have seen watch towers and other old buildings decaying. In Dubai and the other Emirates, the watch towers, wind towers and other heritage buildings have been fully restored to an immaculate state.
Anyway, the dilapidated watch tower was about a hundred yards from the road. As I set out towards the watch tower, I almost stumbled on a goats head. It had been decapitated!
In Saudi Arabia they say that a sheep (or goat’s) eyeballs are a delicacy and a good host offers his guests the eyeballs to eat as a symbol of hospitality. This goat had its eyeballs intact indicating that the UAE doesn’t follow this tradition.
A little further and nearer the watch tower was another goat. A female. Probably grieving for her lost brother, lover, husband? As I moved closer, she scampered away.
This watch tower is home to parrots.
As I approached the watch tower, they fluttered up and flew around the watch tower shrieking and making a huge racket. It really shattered the silence. I just couldn’t believe that four tiny parrots could make such a din! The birds went on and on until I beat a retreat. They then went back to their perch and thankfully fell silent.
All this happened over a year and a half ago. I wonder whether the parrots of Khat are still there. Let me check. One of these days I will visit Khat and submit my report.
Bye for now!
Prakash
To get to Khat, one must reach the outskirts of Ras Al Khaimah. There one sees a road going to Digdagha. The road continues beyond Digdagha and ends abruptly. This is Khat.
Khat has hot springs and the sulphurous water that bubbles up to the surface is considered to have healing powers. It has become a tourist attraction of sorts – deserted during the week and visited during holidays and weekends.
The hot water spring is right where the road ends. Two pools have been constructed – one for women and the other for men. In the UAE men and women cannot share a single public pool, so if you plan to visit Khat remember that your group will be split (if there are women in the group).
My first visit to Khat started off gruesomely. On the road I saw a camel that had been hit, obviously at high speed, by a car or a truck. Its remains were strewn across the road. Ugh! It is the only camel that I have seen hurt like this in this country. Here they place such a high esteem on the camels that almost all roads are fenced off. These days camels cannot stray on to most roads and hence are safe from the dangerous drivers of the UAE.
On my second trip to Khat, I returned with a friend. As we approached Khat, I saw a watch tower behind a wall. Only a part of it could be seen. It was inside a compound. Strangely, this was a school compound! The watch tower appeared to be in ruins and we decided to investigate.
We stopped the car in front of the school gate and had to walk around the perimeter to get a better look at the watch tower. However the wall was about 3 meters high at the point where one could get the best view, so the two of us dragged a stone on which one could stand and peer over the wall.
The stone was very wobbly. I took the photo of the watch tower teetering on the stone. The camera angle wasn’t the best one but under the circumstances it was the best that I could do.
A little further up the road we came to the hot springs. This is where the road ends.
It was a cold winters day and we were looking forward to the hot bath.
There is a nominal charge to enter the pool. Once inside there are many cubicles where you can change and leave you clothes to hang. An attendant keeps watch but it would be prudent to leave your cash and other valuables in the car.
If you don’t have a pair of swimming trunks, you can enter the pool in your underwear (so take a spare set along).
The circular pool is about forty feet in diameter. It has been made out of rocks to give it a natural look. The floor consists of large pebbles. One end is shallow – about two feet deep. The other end is about six feet deep. One can stand on ones toes and keep one’s nose just out of the water.
The water wasn’t boiling hot as we had expected. It was hot bordering on very warm. It had probably cooled during its transportation from the source to the overhead tanks to the pool itself.
I felt that the water was denser than normal tap water. Maybe it was just an impression. I also felt that the water had a rusty color to it (again maybe it was the dark rocks and pebbles that gave it this illusion). I also felt that it had a strange taste that I am unable to define. However it felt pretty good and we spent a few hours in the pool.
There were about thirty people in the pool; people of all ages but mostly Asians. Many kids were jumping into the pool from the rocks in spite of warnings that this is not allowed.
Two hours later we got out of the pool and showered I felt very fresh and invigorated.
Just next to the spa is a building made of stone with an ornate gate. It was locked and we couldn’t investigate it.
Behind this stone building is another ancient watch tower in a state of disrepair. This is the only place I have seen watch towers and other old buildings decaying. In Dubai and the other Emirates, the watch towers, wind towers and other heritage buildings have been fully restored to an immaculate state.
Anyway, the dilapidated watch tower was about a hundred yards from the road. As I set out towards the watch tower, I almost stumbled on a goats head. It had been decapitated!
In Saudi Arabia they say that a sheep (or goat’s) eyeballs are a delicacy and a good host offers his guests the eyeballs to eat as a symbol of hospitality. This goat had its eyeballs intact indicating that the UAE doesn’t follow this tradition.
A little further and nearer the watch tower was another goat. A female. Probably grieving for her lost brother, lover, husband? As I moved closer, she scampered away.
This watch tower is home to parrots.
As I approached the watch tower, they fluttered up and flew around the watch tower shrieking and making a huge racket. It really shattered the silence. I just couldn’t believe that four tiny parrots could make such a din! The birds went on and on until I beat a retreat. They then went back to their perch and thankfully fell silent.
All this happened over a year and a half ago. I wonder whether the parrots of Khat are still there. Let me check. One of these days I will visit Khat and submit my report.
Bye for now!
Prakash
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This article copyright © Prakash Subbarao (e-mail: info@datadubai.com)
posted by Prakash Subbarao's Blog at
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