Something is blooming over at Dubai Miracle Garden, and it’s not just the flowers. As the popular Dubai destination gears up for the launch of its tenth season, to begin early November, there’s a new attraction to tickle your fancy – a Smurfs Village.
Inspired by the beloved blue creatures from the Belgian comics (and later popularised by the hit movies), the new attraction will feature their whimsical world through quirky landscape arrangements this winter. Launched in partnership with events company IMG, it will allow visitors to explore a charming forest of mushroom houses, among others.
The attraction will feature four different Smurf themed areas – a Smurf Village, Smurf Activity Area, Smurf Topiaries and a fourth section that is yet to be disclosed but will be “another Guinness World Record to break”.
Visitors can expect the Smurfs Village to feature a number of surprises, structures and designs inspired by the creatures and their dwellings. As with other attractions in Dubai Miracle Garden, natural flowers and plants will also be incorporated into the structures. And come evening, there will be surprise characters appearing and shows taking place too.
“As we celebrate our tenth year, we want to make sure we embark on a wondrous launch. With the Expo 2020 here, we at Dubai Miracle Garden want to surprise and amaze the world with the exciting series of new designs and displays that will take the Grand Floral Show to new extents,” says Abdel Naser Rahhal, creator and co-founder of Dubai Miracle Garden and vice chairman of Cityland Group, the developer.
Dubai Miracle Garden, located in Dubailand, is known for its floral works of art – from the Emirates A380, the world’s largest flower arrangement/structure, to flowers and plant structures in the shape of teddy bears, a floating lady and more. And with Expo 2020 Dubai here, there are more activations and events to come.
The exact launch date will be announced towards the end of October, with the attraction set to open early in November.
More information is available at www.dubaimiraclegarden.com.
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
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COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Sebastian Stefan, Sebastian Morar and Claudia Pacurar
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2014
Number of employees: 36
Sector: Logistics
Raised: $2.5 million
Investors: DP World, Prime Venture Partners and family offices in Saudi Arabia and the UAE
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
