Camel Beauty Pageant

As an ESL Teacher (English as a Second Language), I have the privilege of conversing with students from around the world who want to practice speaking English with a native speaker of the English language.

Today, I spoke with a student from Saudia Arabia. While introducing ourselves to each other, I asked my student about her hometown. She let me know that she is from Hafar Al-Batin. I asked her what is known about her hometown. She said, “The Camel Festival.” Now as an American, I had never heard of camel festivals before. In America, strawberry or garlic festivals are popular, so I was excited to learn all about the camel festival and maybe even visit one day.

After researching the town of Hafar Al-Batin and the camel festival, I am eager to share what I have learned with you.

Hafar Al-Batin is in the northeast of Sauda Arabia. It is known to have the largest camel market in the entire Kingdom of Saudia Arabia. There are about five hundred thousand camels being reared there. There are camel festivals hosted annually in Hafar Al-Batin as well as in other parts of the Kingdom, even in the neighboring countries. The camel festival is an opportunity for Arabians to celebrate their heritage. The festival is known locally as ‘Mazayin Al-Ibl’, which means ‘The Best of the Herds’. Drovers of more than ten thousand camels come from various regions to participate in the event. The festival attracts more than one hundred sixty thousand people annually. It is held to respect the role of the camel in Arabian history.

Saudia Arabia is one of the hottest countries in the world. Camels hold a very special place in Saudia Arabia’s heat. This is because camels are well adapted for survival in the desert. Their large flat feet allow them to spread their weight on the sand. Their thick fur on the top part of their body gives them shade and their thin fur on other parts of their body allows easy heat loss. Camels can go for a long time without water. Their bodies can tolerate high temperatures. Their slit-like nostrils and two rows of eyelashes help keep out sand.

Camels have a long history of glory for the Arabs in general and for the men in specific. Camels are their history, strength, and pride. In Arab culture, caring for camels is caring for the people. Camels are used to travel from one place to another. They are used as currency, as one camel can cost one million Saudi Riyals. Camel skin is also used as clothing and people also feed on their meat and drink their milk.

As camels are very important in Saudi culture, not only do they host a camel festival, also a camel club was established. The camel club was particularly established for the purpose of caring for camels and bringing together those who are interested in them as a way to preserve, support, and develop the Saudi heritage.

Although visiting Saudia Arabia was more restricted in the past, more and more foreigners are welcome to visit nowadays. If you visit Saudia Arabia, be sure to experience the annual camel festival.

At the festival, there are various events. The biggest one is the camel race. Arabian camel racing has been around since the seventh century. In recent years, it has grown in popularity, as winners receive prizes of high value. Unlike horse racing, there are no humans riding the camel during the race; instead, a robot sits on the back of the camel. Spectators anxiously wait for the winner to cross the finish line.

For others at the festival, the fastest camel is not nearly as important as the most beautiful one. Some people travel with their camels for as long as fifteen days to get to the camel beauty pageant event. In the camel beauty pageant, each herd of one hundred camels is observed by judges. They assess the attractiveness of each herd. Some of the aspects about camels that judges use to measure the camels' beauty are by the length of their necks and eyelashes and the size of their eyes and lips.

The winner of the camel beauty pageant also receives a prize of high value including meeting the king himself. Some contestants have been disqualified in the past for giving their camels Botox injections in their lips, noses, and jaws. Therefore, all competing camels are checked carefully before being allowed to participate in the beauty pageant. After the pageant, the contestants wait anxiously for the results as tension fills the air.

In modern Saudia Arabia, it is clear that camels have been and remain important.