Dubai: Videos of residents walking and carrying the UAE flag across the country in celebration of the 49th National Day have gone viral and earned praises on social media.
A 34-year old Indian expat from Kerala turned many heads while walking from Ajman Corniche to Sharjah Corniche on December 2. Wearing a white T-shirt, white mundu (traditional garment worn around the waist in Kerala), white face mask and white rubber shoes, Abdul Rasheed courageously carried the UAE flag and walked for over two hours. He told Gulf News: “My motivation was my love for the UAE. I have been a resident for 15 years and this has become my second home. The UAE has always been very kind to me, my family and friends. My love for this country is big.”
Rasheed added his walk was a tribute on “how the UAE is successfully combating the COVID-19 pandemic.” He said he followed the health protocols while walking.
Another video by a Gulf News reader captured an unidentified resident walking along the highway wearing a T-shirt in UAE colours and the flag strapped on his backpack. The video received over 100,000 views on Tik Tok. The man is said to have walked for three days to celebrate the National Day.
Eco-friendly flags and UAE icons
Meanwhile, a Sharjah-based eco-friendly teacher and her young green warriors, created environment-friendly and sustainable UAE flags and patriotic emblems.
Rashida Adil, a teacher for 28 years at Sharjah Indian School Juwaiza (boys), and her students made a UAE flag in the shape of a heart, a Spirit of the Union frame, a Sheikh Zayed frame, and a flag made from 128 coconut shells.
Image Credit: Supplied
According to Adil, the 30X24 inches UAE flag — in the shape of a heart — was made of 2,500 handmade satin ribbon roses while the 37X25-inch Spirit of the Union frame was created from used wooden pieces, buttons, pearls and glass shards.
Another 9.5 X 4.5 feet eco-friendly flag was completed from 5,000 ‘I love UAE’ stamps; and at its centre was an embedded heart made from around 500 handmade ribbon roses.
The ‘Sheikh Zayed and Spirit of Union frame was produced with 1,500 quilted paper arts. The wooden UAE map was shaped by 7,000 pearls and another one was made by pinning 855 small UAE flags.
Adil told Gulf News: “We wanted to show our love to the UAE. Some of the artworks we started working since June and these are our tributes to the UAE.”