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Last Sunday, we went out to visit with Mr. Hedley Butterfield to
the club and we met with the administrator Mr. Mike who was a
gentleman and respectful. Initially he welcomed us and then we did a
short interview with him .He accepted all the questions with an open
mind and explained to us all the details about the club and then we
went on a tour around the club; specifically in the reception center he
explained to us some pictures that tell the history of the club and then
we took some photos with him, and he gave as a gift a wonderful book
that tells the history of the club from the sixties until today. I promise
you when I finish processing photos taken there I will lay it down here. I
do not want to forget Hedleys wife Mary; she played a big role in our
visit to the club and gave us full information; we really thank her for her
information. At the end, I would like to tell you it was a fun trip and
interesting and I hope to visit that place again in the near future.

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When asking Mr. Mike about how the club was established in
1962 and how they get the idea to construct the club. He replied that
someone spoke to his highness, and his highness said okay we can sort
out, and a building which was 500 meters far from the main port gate,
it was known by that time as the extirpator He said “okay, take this
building and turn it to the club”, and that how we started in 1962. In
1966, sheikh zayed saw the club and one year later in 1967 sheikh
zayed said to the extirpator if you went to leave this building we have a
new place for you and he give them the previous land, and they
officially started in 1967. At that time they had 152 members but today
they have approximately 4500 the member are from 84 countries, 26 of
them are formal ambassador, while 5% of the members are emirate
local.

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Moreover we
asked
the manger about the
membership and how much
was the cost to be member
in the club and he said the membership is for all nationalities, however
it’s by invitation, and he explained detailing that who wants to join the
club, they have to apply first, then their application will be reviewed
then can be accepted or denied, as it depends on the demand while
keeping in mind their resources. Furthermore we asked the manager
about who the financial system of the club, the manager replied that
the land was gifted by the late his highness sheikh zayed and they are
grateful for that, and since there, the development and the
construction was run by the profits of the memberships. Another
question was if there is an opportunity of opening a shooting place in
the club and he answered we must have the requirements for that and
considering the space for it, also he said that it will be hard to require
the equipment like guns for instance, while in his opinion they will face
some healthy and safety issues, denying any financial obstacles for this
facility as their policy is to provide a membership with a wide variety of
services and facilities at an affordable price. We asked the manager
about the future plans for the club and he said that there vision is to
support the efforts of the government for their future plan of Abu
Dhabi 2030, and their behavior is running in parallel to it, as they also
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contributed the Alnadi tower that presents the legacy of the club over
the 50 years as they had over the last 50 years they had over 30000
members; he also talked about the non-emirate old members and said
that many members said if the club did not exist at that time 1960th
they will be gone back to their countries, so the club is offering many &
various amounts of facilities which afterwards they can contribute to
the development of Abu Dhabi as they have members from all the
sectors and he believes that their job of providing pleasure and comfort
so when the go back to their work in Sunday feeling refreshed and it
continues over the year as their goal to support a larger slice of the
society of Abu Dhabi. Afterward, Nasser asked him about the system of
invitation to friends of the members. He answered that there are two
way , one if the invitation and you are not a member to use the
facilities there are a guest fee, however if a member invited a friend
there will be no charges whoever they were, but with just a call before
for notice. Hamad asked him about the relation of calling the club the
British club. He answered that its historical, however he denied
immediately that it was never the British club and he reasoned that by
that the first elected chairman in 1971-1972 was not a British.

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This map shows all the sites in the club which was drawn 8 years ago by Mr. Hedley’s wife Mrs.
Mary butterfield; who described the areas in details. Many changes happened since the map
was drawn and we will explain these changes.
The vista offers wonderful sea views, the place is great and consistent and attractive and the
food service was fine. There is an international menu and there are omani shrimp and
everything you may like. The place is considered one of the best places for the family for many
reasons the most important is calm and staying away from places nagging (opening hours: SunSat 12pm to 1am)
The club’s breadth of sports and fitness facilities are among the most extensive in abu dhabi.
The purpose built health complex includes a fully equipped gym, fitness studio and offers
members personal training, programmer management and full fitness assessments. The sports
complex features four flood-lit tennis courts, two squash courts and badminton court.
Additionally, the club offers members swimming, sailing, scuba diving, volleyball and basketball
facilities.

A. There was a water front cabin, currently there is vista.
B. There was ramp for boats, currently there is the deck.
C. Tennis courts and club section.
D. Fitness.
E. Facilities
F. Family friendly club.
G. Room family.
H. Private room.
I. Main entrance (reception).
J. Sailing Club.

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Tour In The Sports Bar


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Outside The Sports Bar, a look to the key map.

Heading toward meeting the general manager

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Mr. Headlly introducing students to the general manager outside ALSARAB LOUNGE

Mr. Headlly , talking about meeting plan, outside ALSARAB LOUNGE

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Heading toward THE DECK for the meeting.

Discussion about the meeting with the MR. Mike before starting.

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All seated in before the meeting starts, on THE DECK.

During The Meeting (1) , Hamad asking questions to Mr. Mike.

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During the Meeting (2), Mr. Mike answering a question

During the Meeting (3), Mr. Mike answering a question

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50 years painting about UAR, On the reception area.

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Hamad receiving a book about the club covering 50 years history of the Club (1).

Hamad receiving a book about the club covering 50 years history of the Club (2).

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In conclusion, we found that the club worth visiting and it is
very impassive. We would like to mention that Mr. Mike helped
us a lot in the interview and answered all of the questions in
proper way. Most of us want to have a membership in the club
after hearing about it in the next few years. We also learned
many other things such as the history, rules and facilities. We
wish the best for the club and hope it continue developing.

A photograph represents the classmates with their teacher at the Club.

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Hedlly

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