Photos courtesy of Denise DeShetler An update from my long-time friend Denise DeShetler who recently visited the UAE and has some exciting updates to share. Some pictures above she shares with us. Denise says: I am back from my trip and I had such a wonderful time. I was able to explore Abu Dhabi and Dubai in a tourist and a local’s perspective. Quite an interesting experience. Also, I was able to go to Al Thiqah Club For Handicapped, it is located in Sharja just outside of Dubai. I met with the Executive Director, Ahmed Salem H Al Madhloum. He was so hospitable. Toured myself and my friend Thamer around the whole facility and told us all about the services being offered. I have to say, I was Highly Impressed!!! In 2011 a lot of good things are going on! I learned the following:
- The facility opened in 1987 and is now the largest Disability center in the Middle East and the only one with a pool. Sporting Services are for both Paralympics & Special Olympics Transportation is provided in the vicinity of the facility.
- Every member that needs one, gets a FREE wheelchair. Even non members can go there and get FREE maintenance on their wheelchairs.
- Besides sporting activities, there are others services provided such as a library/computer lab, arts & crafts, haircuts/grooming, delicious meals, prayer rooms and Rehab with Massage & Physical Therapists.
- Programs that educate the public through Community Outings and services & events that bring school children and govt employees to the facility.
- They are in the midst of constructing a Women’s Building, at the moment they are using a small section for female athletes until that building is complete.
Needless to say, for a Muslim country in the middle east, I was highly impressed. Ahmed Salem H Al Madhloum was a genuine man and I was pleased to see all of his and the facility’s intentions and potential for being such a model center for the middle east. Quite exciting. Also, I noticed throughout the city of Dubai that there were proper curb cuts. Plus I saw several people in wheelchairs out and about roaming the city. They have a website but most is written in Arabic so you would have to translate the text to English – www.althiqahclub.ae The IWAS (International Wheelchair and Amputee Federation) World Championship 2011 will host world amputee games in Sharjah, UAE. Competitions will include: Athletics Badminton Power Lifting Race Running Shooting Swimming Table Tennis Amputee Football Sitting Volleyball Wheelchair Rugby Thanks, Denise. I can’t wait to hear more from your next trip to Dubai. Also, I’ve just learned my nephew, Keen is going there on vacation! Pics please?
Sharon’s Trip to Dubai: The article below appeared in OPEN WORLD MAGAZINE. SATH and the UAE Department of Tourism sponsored the trip.
DUBAI A VISIT TO THE DISABILITY CENTERS
—Sharon Myers, Chair SATH-Sports and Adventure Travel Committee; SATH-Adaptive Equipment Committee “If one hurts, we all hurt” was the sentiment heard again and again as the kind people of Dubai welcomed me into their oasis, a realm of beauty in which culture and technology are cemented together in a multi-national society.
To learn more about visiting Dubai, contact: The Philadelphia Office of The Govt. of Dubai Dept. of Tourism and Commerce Marketing at (215) 751-9750 .
eTurboNews | Dec 12, 2008
“When four-time Paralympian and world traveler Sharon Myers entered her handicap-accessible suite in Dubai’s world-renowned Burj Jumeriah Hotel on a visit four years ago, she was amazed. It was the most luxurious room she had ever seen.
Myers had no problems accessing the suite’s second floor on the elevator, no difficulty getting through the widened doors, and the bathroom’s roll-in shower, she says, was not only fully accessible, but it was absolutely gorgeous – covered in blue and turquoise tiles – the most elegant she had ever seen. There was just one hitch – there was no bench in the shower, a must-have for any fully wheelchair accessible bathroom. And while Myers was able to travel between major sights and attractions, the windows of the van she was transported in were far too low for someone seated in a wheelchair to see out of, preventing her from viewing the skyline and the buzzing city around her.
These glitches may have been minor, but they occurred in one of the few destinations in the Middle East actively seeking to attract this growing segment of the tourism market – a regional “frontrunner” in terms of accessibility. See the complete story at: eturbonews
With disabled or special needs individuals representing one out of every 10 people, the purchase power of this population can make billions of dollars of difference in the tourism market.
Al Arab Hotel
The sail façade represents an astonishing technical challenge, featuring a double-skinned Teflon-coated woven glass fiber screen. It is the first time such technology has been used vertically in such form and extent in any building worldwide. Noted as the world’s tallest hotel building, the Burg is dazzling white by day and used as a canvas for a rainbow of spectacular light displays at night. In the shape of an Arabian dhow sail and dominating the Dubai coastline, this is one of the world’s most spectacular and luxurious hotels. Burj Al Arab stands proudly on a man-made island some 280 meters offshore, linked to the mainland by a slender, gently curving causeway.” Read the entire story:
This picture was taken from the reflection in the mirror over the bed.
All bedrooms are on the second floor. This adapted room had its own private elevator! This was the most lavish roll-in shower I’ve ever seen. All fixtures were gold plated, of course! But, there was one item missing–the shower bench!
Al-Thiqah Club for Handicapped
This was one of the several state of the art equipped buses. Notice the marked pathway and cut curb.
Accessible van
Through friends in the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation, I was introduced by e-mail to Majid Al Usaimi, manager of the Al-Thiqah Club for Handicapped, located in Sharjah, next door to Dubai. There are over three hundred male members with disabilities. The Club boasts accessible saunas, hot tubs, exercise rooms, (I counted 32 exercise machines), billiard tables, huge indoor and outdoor basketball courts, tennis courts and a well-lit track and field area that serves as the training facility for local athletes who have brought home gold and silver from international This facility also has on sight sleeping accommodations for traveling teams. Most impressive was the indoor Olympic size swimming pool complete with ramps and lifts and roll-in showers. Majid, an international table tennis champion, and I enjoyed a match, but his fast serves were more than this rusty player could handle.
Another location in Dubai
A ramp built into the steps. What a clever idea!
Kissing Camels
