Abu Dhabi Hosts World's Largest Floating Book Exhibition

The Logos Hope ship docked at Mina Zayed Port, UAE. (Instagram/@logoshope)

JAKARTA - The largest floating book exhibition held on The Logos Hope Ship, was held again in the United Arab Emirates, (UAE), with Abu Dhabi hosting it, to be precise at Mina Zayed Port.

The book exhibition has been inaugurated by the Abu Dhabi Arabic Center (ALC), the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT). His arrival was part of a special event of the Abu Dhabi International Book Exhibition which took place from 22 and 28 May.

Meanwhile, The Logos Hope ship will remain in Abu Dhabi until June 4, 2023. This exhibition itself is open every day from 16:00 to 22:00 local time every day.

"The floating view of Logos Hope is an innovative addition to the Abu Dhabi cultural agenda. This offering further strengthens our efforts to promote reading culture, and to ensure the widest possible access to books and sources of knowledge for all members of our community, in line with ALC's strategic goals," said ALC chairman Dr. Ali bin Tamim, reported Gulf News May 19.

More than 5,000 book titles and publications were presented at this exhibition, covering the fields of sports, science, arts, dictionary, medicine and language.

"This is our home. We welcome guests to our home," said captain of the Romanian Ionut Vlad ship, who has been on board for the past seven years with his wife and daughter, citing the Khaleej Times.

Over the next two weeks, there will be several workshops, discussions, interactive sessions and cultural programs held on board. The ALC program includes workshops reading children's stories performed by writer Dr Fatima Al Mazrouei, an Arabic calligraphy workshop hosted by Saeed Al Amiri, a book discussion led by members of the ALC Reading Club to a workshop about the history of literature and music delivered by Iman Al Hasemi.

"For the coming weeks, Abu Dhabi residents will have the opportunity to enjoy an extraordinary world of books that cover topics that meet all preferences. We are also proud of the contribution of the Abu Dhabi Cruise Ship Terminal to cultural and intellectual entertainment in the capital," said Noura Al Dhaheri.

Among the first visitors to the exhibition was Alhaji Ahmed Ramadan, Ghana's Ambassador to the UAE.

"I know that their crew has volunteers from Ghana. I am here to see the exhibition and encourage my citizens," Ramadan told the Khaleej Times.

It is known, Logos Hope ships receive about one million visitors each year. Since its launch in 1970, this exhibition has visited 480 different ports in more than 150 countries, welcoming 49 million people, as reported by The National News.

The Logos Hope ship itself carries a crew of more than 65 international volunteers dedicated to the same goal, knowledge-sharing, aid and hope with the people.

The crew visited the area around the port where it docked, such as hospitals and schools and provided community services and assistance.

Last April, the ship also came to the UAE but docked at Ras Al Khaimah Port. Much earlier, the ship visited Dubai in 2011 and Abu Dhabi in 2013.