Doha: Citizens and expatriates yesterday celebrated Qatar National Day (QND) with full fervour with their families and friends across the country.
Doha Corniche, Souq Waqif, Cultural Village Foundation (Katara) and Aspire Zone hosted an array of activities to create a sense of loyalty among people of Qatar towards the country marking Qatar National Day.
Citizens and expatriates yesterday lined up to express their loyalty to Qatar in a large billboard set up at Katara.
The event ‘Loyalty Book’ received overwhelming response from people especially young children.
The participants wrote beautiful words in the book like ‘I Love You Qatar’, ‘Long Live Qatar’, ‘We Are Qatar’ demonstrating their true love and bonds with the country.
A large number of vehicles with families on board waving Qatar National Flag participated in a parade at Katara. Military bands also participated in the parade.
An Arda show amazed the visitors creating a beautiful environment.
Under the slogan of Qatar National Day celebration ‘Ancestral Meadows: A Matter of Trust’, a sculpture ‘Al Samra’ was inaugurated in the square opposite El Talleh Restaurant, in Katara in cooperation with an environmental initiative, Al Shabhana Environmental Association and ExxonMobil.
The sculpture is made of bronze. It is about a person embracing Samar tree and symbolizing the connection of the Qatari people to this local tree, which was known for its resistance to erosion factors. It also bears the symbolism of preserving this tree and the environment in general in the country.
Explaining the launch of the sculpture, General Manager of Katara Professor Dr. Khalid bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti, said that the idea behind this sculpture is President of Al Shabhana Environmental Association Abdullah Al Khater.
Speaking to Qatar TV, he said that the association is attaching great importance to such kind of local trees like Samar which has long history in Qatar’s ecosystem.
“The sculpture has been set up to give a message to people in Qatar to preserve this tree. Qatari artist Fatima Al Shaibani is enjoying international reputation with large number of international artworks,” said Dr. Al Sulaiti.
Souq Waqif also hosted a number of activities to celebrate Qatar National Day. The brass band of the Performance Center and the Music Battalion of the Qatari Armed Forces performed musical shows inspired by Qatari arts at Souq Waqif yesterday.
A number of Qatari musicians also presented several traditional music making visitors to rejoice the moment of Qatar National Day at Souq Waqif.
Aspire Park hosted a number of cultural activities and games which attracted large number of visitors. Al Muqatar activity was organised to introduce visitors about the customs and tradition of the country. They were taught about Arab coffee making. Other activities included storytelling, playing Rabab, the folk puzzle competition (Al Rama’a), and the etiquette of the Majlis.
Harem House received visitors to exchange talk about Qatari customs and traditions, and how to prepare Arabic coffee, in addition to carrying out a number of other activities. The Grand Majlis is a heritage event held annually within the celebrations of the National Day, while Al Muqatar houses are adjacent houses that embody how the conditions of the desert were in ancient times.
The FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021 final and third-place play-off doubled the joy of Qatar National Day as a large number of fans from citizens, expatriates and visitors enjoyed the matches in the stadiums.
Many people with their families and friends watched the matches at their homes. Sharing the joyful moments with The Peninsula, residents described December 18, 2021 historic day.
“This day will remain in my memory for long. We enjoyed the entire day in celebrating Qatar National Day,” said Saeed Ahmad, a Pakistani National. Ahmad who came with his family to Aspire Park to mark QND said that his children forced him to mark the day out of home. “We have plans to go to Katara and other places to make this day memorable for me and my family especially for my children,” said Ahmad.
