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🎧 E48: Abu Dhabi, UAE – Find me a camel! 🐫
Hey! Guess what day it is?
GUESS WHAT DAY IT IS!
HUMP DAAAAY!
Remember that camel commercial?
Well, in Abu Dhabi, I decided to take it a little too literally.
FIND ME A CAMEL!
That’s what I told the driver I’d hired in Abu Dhabi.
A normal, tourist-style camel ride.
Let’s establish that before the comments get creative!
He looked at me and started laughing.
He could FIND one.
But would anybody let me RIDE it?
No guarantees!
Fair enough.
Let’s go find out!
The last episode brought me to Abu Dhabi on my Wizz Air pass.
Now I had one mission left: CAMELS!
The UAE can feel like the future.
Gleaming towers, polished malls, yachts, and highways.
But before the skyscrapers, camels were vital to life in the Arabian Peninsula.
They carried people and goods across deserts, provided milk, and helped communities survive.
They’re still symbols of heritage and pride.
My driver got to work, and eventually we found a real camel farm.
A WORKING farm, not a tourist gift shop!
Up close, they’re incredible.
Tall, long-legged, wonderfully awkward-looking animals with faces that seem to be judging every decision you’ve ever made.
I was thrilled just to stand beside them!
I got to FEED the camels.
Just these remarkable animals and me!
And the workers weren’t getting ready for tourist selfies.
They were preparing camels to RACE.
That was a surprise!
Think horse racing, Arabian-style.
Owners invest in bloodlines, trainers work with the animals, and champions can become extremely valuable.
There are prestigious races, trophies, and serious prize money.
A champion brings prestige and value.
One important difference: you shouldn’t picture people placing bets the way they do at a horse track in Las Vegas.
Camel racing in the UAE is celebrated for competition and prizes, not conventional legal betting.
And here’s the part that surprised me: many racing camels use ROBOT JOCKEYS!
Small, lightweight devices mounted on their backs and controlled by handlers from nearby vehicles.
Desert tradition meets modern technology!
There’s a darker chapter to the history, too.
Child jockeys were once used in parts of the region, exposing children to exploitation and serious danger.
The UAE banned that practice, and racing shifted toward robotic jockeys.
It’s important to remember that history.
After visiting the camel farm, my driver took me on a tour of the local camel racetrack.
There were no races happening that day, but I got to see where these incredible animals compete.
After watching the workers prepare the camels at the farm, it was fascinating to see where all that training leads.
I could picture those long legs flying down the track, but that day, it was just my driver, me, and the chance to take a proper look around.
It also made me think about the animals.
Whenever money and prestige are involved in animal sports, whether it’s horses or camels, animal welfare matters.
Are the animals cared for properly?
Are they pushed too hard?
What happens when they can’t compete anymore?
I can’t judge an entire industry from one visit, and I’m not going to pretend I can.
But those are fair questions to ask.
And my own great camel-riding plan?
Well, the driver had warned me!
He promised we’d LOOK for a camel, not that I’d get permission to ride one.
No ride, but I’d fed camels and toured a real farm and racetrack.
So, no camel taxi for me!
Except it didn’t feel like a failure at all.
A packaged ride might’ve left me with one photo and a sore backside.
Instead, I came away knowing something about the animals, the people, and a tradition I barely understood when I arrived.
That’s what I love about travel.
The driver laughing at your plan.
The unexpected place he finds.
The conversations and discoveries that weren’t on the itinerary.
Sometimes, the best part is what happens when your original idea doesn’t work out.
I asked for ONE camel ride.
I got an entire camel adventure.
And I’d do it again in a heartbeat!
If you missed how I got to the UAE in the first place, READ, WATCH, and LISTEN to Episode Forty-Seven at NorthAmericanDarrell.com.
What an Arabian adventure!
LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST!
Cheers!