The ancient city of AlUla will now be home to its first roller-skating rink.
It comes as part of the 16-day AlUla Wellness Festival and the launch of AlUla Moments from the team behind Good Intentions, a creative movement helmed by US record producer Swizz Beatz, husband of singer-songwriter Alicia Keys.
The experience, called AlUla on Wheels, will run from October 6 to 22 in the evenings between Thursday to Saturday, and will be in the middle of AlJadidah, the city’s arts district.
The open-air roller rink, decked out in neon lighting, is to be located in an all-boys school and promises a roster of local and international talent, although any names are yet to be announced.
The area will also encompass food kiosks peddling popular and retro meals, although specifics on the menus and brands have also been kept under wraps.
Beatz, along with his business partner Noor Taher, curated the project, from lighting to the sound, inspired by the recent trend of roller-skating parties around the world.
Stars such as Beyonce, Usher and DJ D-Nice have recently either hosted parties or incorporated the practice into their own performances.
Anyone can visit AlUla on Wheels, from beginners to pro skaters, and sessions are about 45 minutes to one hour long. Skates and headphones are provided.
Prices start from 40 Saudi riyals ($10.6) for daily sessions, while weekend tickets for concerts and DJ performances start from Saudi riyals 250.
The AlUla Wellness Festival, which was launched at the end of September and runs until mid-October, aims to promote mental and physical health through back-to-nature experiences.
This season, it leans into the key theme of “silence”, as the health benefits of quietude have inspired many of the festival’s experiences, including a silent trail hike and The Resonant Shell, an immersive art installation by artists Nathalie Harb and Youmna Saba that offers visitors a mini retreat in the form of a double-skin tower in mud brick and fabric.
It’s all taking place in the ancient desert city that’s also home to the Unesco-listed Hegra. AlUla is fast becoming one of the world’s most sought-after destinations for travellers seeking wellness and adventure, as well as a slice of history.
More information is available at www.experiencealula.com
The distance learning plan
Spring break will be from March 8 - 19
Public school pupils will undergo distance learning from March 22 - April 2. School hours will be 8.30am to 1.30pm
Staff will be trained in distance learning programmes from March 15 - 19
Teaching hours will be 8am to 2pm during distance learning
Pupils will return to school for normal lessons from April 5
Dunki
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RESULT
Uruguay 3 Russia 0
Uruguay: Suárez (10'), Cheryshev (23' og), Cavani (90')
Russia: Smolnikov (Red card: 36')
Man of the match: Diego Godin (Uruguay)
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
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About Karol Nawrocki
• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.
• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.
• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.
• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
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The years Ramadan fell in May
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What it means to be a conservationist
Who is Enric Sala?
Enric Sala is an expert on marine conservation and is currently the National Geographic Society's Explorer-in-Residence. His love of the sea started with his childhood in Spain, inspired by the example of the legendary diver Jacques Cousteau. He has been a university professor of Oceanography in the US, as well as working at the Spanish National Council for Scientific Research and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Biodiversity and the Bio-Economy. He has dedicated his life to protecting life in the oceans. Enric describes himself as a flexitarian who only eats meat occasionally.
What is biodiversity?
According to the United Nations Environment Programme, all life on earth – including in its forests and oceans – forms a “rich tapestry of interconnecting and interdependent forces”. Biodiversity on earth today is the product of four billion years of evolution and consists of many millions of distinct biological species. The term ‘biodiversity’ is relatively new, popularised since the 1980s and coinciding with an understanding of the growing threats to the natural world including habitat loss, pollution and climate change. The loss of biodiversity itself is dangerous because it contributes to clean, consistent water flows, food security, protection from floods and storms and a stable climate. The natural world can be an ally in combating global climate change but to do so it must be protected. Nations are working to achieve this, including setting targets to be reached by 2020 for the protection of the natural state of 17 per cent of the land and 10 per cent of the oceans. However, these are well short of what is needed, according to experts, with half the land needed to be in a natural state to help avert disaster.
Moonfall
Director: Rolan Emmerich
Stars: Patrick Wilson, Halle Berry
Rating: 3/5
