By Tahra Al Hammadi
ABU DHABI — In the first event of its kind, Zayed University held a classic car show in the courtyard from March 19 to March 21. The event was organized by the Labaih Club and French Club in collaboration with Abu Dhabi Classic Car Club.
The show presented eight different classic cars from the 1900s. The club provided brief information about each car.
Many students and faculty members were excited to have such an event on the female side of the campus. Myriam Al Dhaheri, 20, the president of the French Club, said that this event was made for the La Francophone, which means “celebrating the French language and culture.” However, this year, her club was aiming to celebrate it in a different way since the club did not attract many people the previous year due to the fact that many are not French speakers.
Sara Al Muhairi, vice president of the French Club, came up with the idea of a classic car show. The club made contact with the Abu Dhabi Classic Car Club, which has branches in both the capital and Al Ain.
“The first benefit of this event is to educate students in an interesting way,” said Miss Al Dhaheri.
For example, students learned that Bugatti was once French before Italian. Seeing a Land Rover next to the tent in the courtyard also gave a clue to visitors that that kind of car was popular in the United Arab Emirates.
Mashael Al Jaberi, vice president of Labaih Club, explained that many female students don’t know that much about cars, and that for many of them it was the first time to find out about the Abu Dhabi Classic Car Club.
“I think this event will show people inside and outside the campus that Zayed University cares about everything that might entertain and educate the student at the same time,” Ms. Al Jaberi said.
Subaiha Al Ktbi, majoring in tourism and cultural communications, mentioned that she liked the informative presentations next to each car since it helped people understand the car and make better.
“Girls will keep talking about it (the event), and I think it’s something fun and educational at the same time,” Miss Al Dhaheri said.
“It changed the university routine,” Miss Saeed added.
Miss Saeed said the event was unique from most events on campus. Also, as a photographer, she took it as an opportunity to take pictures of the classic cars, which are rare.
This story was originally published on March 28, 2013. It was re-uploaded on Nov. 2, 2020. The photo that accompanied this story was lost due to the loss of the domain name.
