A Journey Through The Centuries Awaits at Global Village's Egypt Pavilion

Dubai, April 3, 2017:  Every season Global Village, the region’s leading multicultural festival park, showcases the extraordinary history and culture of major civilisations from around the world. This season, Egypt Pavilion is a must for guests visiting the popular destination, as it takes them on a cultural journey across centuries exhibiting the many varied and diverse cultures of the country during different points in the rich history of Egypt.  

The pavilion’s façade of the current season resembles three of the most prominent landmarks of ancient Egypt. The ‘Deir el-Bahri’ temple, which is located on the west bank of the Nile River, also known as the temple of Queen Hatshepsut, is clearly displayed on the left side of the pavilion’s exterior. The right side demonstrates a replica of the ‘Abu Simbel’ temple, most well known for having a statue with a fallen head due to a major earthquake that took place in the same area.

As you enter the pavilion, guests can enjoy the central feature of the façade that has been modeled on the Karnak temple of Luxor, which is also the inspiration of the pavilion’s interior architecture. The first thing guests see when they enter is a 41m-high replica of the Lateran Obelisk, the largest standing ancient Egyptian obelisk in the world which is currently located in front of the Lateran Palace in Rome. 

The pavilion also features an Egyptian museum with more than 50 replicated artefacts that have been spread out into different rooms showcasing the eras of Egypt’s history. Two of the museum’s rooms are dedicated to the Tomb of Tutankhamun. One of the rooms features examples of artefacts found in the tomb of Tutankhamun which in total has more than 5,000 artefacts of which approximately 3,000 were made of gold, not to mention the wide variety of replicas of jewels and miniature statues. 

As guests wander around the pavilion’s heritage square, they will immediately notice one unique craftsman Ali Mohamed Nabih who specialises in Arabesque work. Ali said: “Arabesque is a form of ancient Islamic architecture that dates a thousand years back to the times of the Abbasids. It was commonly used in the form of a ‘Mashrabiya’ structure which were mainly used as a way to cool off the rooms and give it a sense of privacy.”

Another corner of the heritage square at Egypt pavilion hosts a talented Egyptian potter who has been in his trade for 30 years, “I have been participating in Global Village since the first season Egypt pavilion had taken part. It is fantastic to see the hugely positive response from guests to what we have to offer here.  One of the most popular pottery items is the ‘Olla’, which is an ancient Egyptian container that was used to keep the water cool. We even make small ones that are intended to be used by children”, said the potter Mohamed Atiyeh. 

The most distinguished item in the heritage square is the date palm furniture, a craft that has been in Egypt for centuries. “Almost any type of furniture can be made from date palm,” said Mahmoud Bayoumy, the craftsman. “I can make anything starting from a couch to side tables, chairs, and even cupboards”, he explained, “It’s a traditional craft that has been around since the times of the pharaohs. My colleagues and I aim to showcase ancient Egyptian crafts to teach the new generations about this authentic and rare craft” 

From the old to the new, guests are welcomed in true Egyptian form by shopkeepers to browse around the pavilion’s different stalls that offer different products ranging from sweets to embellished ‘jellabiyas’. There are also a number of souvenir shops in the pavilion that sell items such as wallets and pouches that are branded with notable Egyptian celebrity figures, as well as papyrus paper where guests can write their names on them in hieroglyphic.

Global Village will continue to provide its guests with unique cultural experiences every day until April 8, 2017.  Global Village's opening hours are from 4 pm to 12 am Saturday to Wednesday and from 4 pm to 1 am on Thursdays and Fridays in addition to public holidays.