Families flock to carnival at Khalifa Park

Children of all ages are flocking to the 23 adult and 12 smaller rides dotted around the venue.

Children enjoy rides at the Six Continents Festival at Khalifa Park in Abu Dhabi yesterday. Sammy Dallal / The National
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ABU DHABI // Carnival rides, cuddly characters, candy and games are attracting hundreds of families to Khalifa Park.

The attractions are part of the temporary Six Continents theme park, which opened this month.

The park has been transformed into a loud, bright and animated carnival filled with music, flashing lights, fun rides and tasty treats.

Children of all ages are flocking to the 23 adult and 12 smaller rides dotted around the venue. There are also about half-a-dozen entertaining and skill-testing games where entrants could win large stuffed animals.

In one game, Hook a Fish, 12-year-old Salama Zayed helped her niece Alyaiza Zayed, 3, hold on to a long toy fishing rod as they scooped up plastic fish from a pond. Tuesday was Salama and Alyaiza’s lucky day as their three fish won them the biggest stuffed prize available – a large, plush yellow duck.

“It’s so good,” Salama said of the amusement park. “It’s fun.”

Popular children’s characters such as Barney, Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Bugs Bunny and Dora the Explorer waved to the crowd as they entered the park, with thrilled youngsters rushing over to have their photographs taken with them.

Older children gravitated towards the more daring rides, such as Hell Creator. For Dh20 each child took a seat before the ride spun in a loop forward and backward.

“It was so awesome,” said Zoha Akhter, 9, from Pakistan, who was visiting her aunt. “When I started going backward, then it was very scary, but then I said, ‘No, Allah is in me.’ It was fun.”

Zoha’s aunt, Lubna Khanun, praised the park for its variety and quantity of rides, but said that while entry to the park was free, rides cost between Dh10 and Dh30.

“These rides are very expensive,” said Mrs Khanun, 33, who lives in Abu Dhabi. “The cost is too high.”

At the Circus Circus Glass House, youngsters paid Dh10 to enter a maze of disorienting mirrors.

“We were almost going to bump into each other’s faces because it was all glass,” said Salma Al Mansoor, 9, an Emirati from Abu Dhabi. “It was so fun.”

Older children, such as Emiratis Ameera Al Zaabi and Hamda Al Junaibi, were more adventurous. The thrill-seeking teenagers could be heard screaming as they dangled from their seats on Power Surge, high above the ground.

“I thought I was going to fall,” said 16-year-old Ameera.

“We were screaming all the time, but it was good,” said Hamda, also 16.

The UAE, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, India, Pakistan, Turkey, and Africa all have pavilions at the carnival, although all are still being built.

Red lanterns guided visitors to the one pavilion that was open to the public, China. Although many of its shops had yet to open, the pavilion offered visitors access to about 20 stores selling mobile phone cases, shoes, dresses, jewellery, handbags and home appliances.

A group of Chinese performers were seen getting ready to put on a dragon dance, accompanied by drums.

“It’s not finished yet, some places are empty but there’s still good stuff inside,” said Emirati Wafa Al Nuaimi, 20. “I like the bags and the t-shirts.”

Elsewhere, food from across the globe was on offer. Egyptians chanted “fataya, fataya, fataya” to draw the crowd’s attention to their booth, where the pancake-like treat was selling for Dh40.

The smell of burnt corn was easy bait at a neighbouring stall, where customers waited to get corn-on-the-cob drizzled in lemon juice and salt.

Traditional Emirati foods such as chabab pancakes were cooked by women dressed in traditional clothing, while a serving of five small pancakes cost Dh10.

“We have little customers because this place is closed,” said Ahmed Ali, who was helping the cooks. “When this place is open, it can be busy.”

The Six Continents theme park will be open until March 31. For more information, call 800 22220.

rpennington@thenational.ae