One of the oldest communities in the city, Bur Hoaz may not appear on maps of today’s Abu Dhabi.
The words, Bur Hoaz, however, will be familiar to those who can remember an era when the city was little more than a collection of homes thinly spread out among expanses of desert.
Early residents of Bur Hoaz named it after an old power plant in the vicinity, the name developing phonetically from the English words “power house”. But today it is hard to tell where that building stood.
A shisha shop owner waits for customers in the neighbourhood.
A laundary shop shop worker irons clothing in Bur Hoaz.
A cardboard box collector goes about his business on bicycle in the area.
A man fixes a bridal dress on a mannequin in a shop showroom.
A couple take their child for an evening stroll. Bur Hoaz remains a tiny village, lost amid the metropolis.
Bur Hoaz, a group of villas now partially hidden behind Al Wahda Mall on Defence Road, lies in the heart of the burgeoning city and is slowly disappearing from view with every new development. Photos by Ravindranath K / The National
