Our last stop before getting off of the ship in Dubai was Sir Bani Yas Island. Sir Bani Yas Island is part of the Al Gharbia region of the United Arab Emirates. The name Sir Bani Yas originates from the Bani Yas tribe, who first inhabited Abu Dhabi. Sir Bani Yas is the crest of a salt dome created millions of years ago by natural geological forces. Sir Bani Yas is one of the eight desert islands of Abu Dhabi. In 1971 Sheikh Zayed became the first president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and chose this island as a retreat. In 1977, he passed a law prohibiting hunting on the island and started developing it as a wildlife preserve in his “Greening of the Desert” program, which was designed to help make the deserts more suitable for human settlement and provide a haven for many of Arabia’s endangered wildlife species. Several millions trees were planted and numerous animals species introduced to the island, including gazelle, oryx, llama, hyrax, giraffe, and ostrich.

For us today was a relaxing beach day enjoying the sun and the ocean.