Al Jahili Fort

This guide to Al Jahili Fort in Al Ain traces two builds of the same mudbrick walls, a century apart. It opens in 1891, when Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa ordered a garrison raised to protect the date-palm oasis behind it, and follows the laborers who mixed clay and straw by hand, wove palm reeds into the plaster, and worked seven years before the southern gate carried its founder's name. You'll hear how the fort later fell into military hands and crumbled, before a 2007 restoration crew relearned the same forgotten technique. Look closely at the walls for where old brick meets new.