From mosques to mountains to local food and coffee culture, this video manages to capture the ‘soul’ of Sharjah in just a few minutes…

This beautiful video that captures the essence of Sharjah was posted to YouTube just a week ago and has already had 40,000 views.

Created by Qissa and Sharjah Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with Mike Beech, who is a director based in Seoul, South Korea, the short film explores the landscapes, food culture, people and religious and architectural heritage of one of our quieter emirates.

And we don’t know about you, but we find it so stunning it’s almost got us feeling a little emotional…

Plus, remember, on Friday the drive from Dubai to Sharjah is like a 20 minute affair. So go on, get down there and explore.

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT SHARJAH

– The Ruler of Sharjah is His Highness Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, who, according to his official site became ruler at 32 “on 25th January 1972… after its former ruler, Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, was assassinated in an attempted coup by loyalists of Sheikh Saqr bin Sultan Al Qasimi.” Also, he is the 18th Ruler of the emirate, in a chain of Al Qasimi Rulers that dates back to 1600 AD.

sharjah-1Photo: SheikhDrSultan.ae

– Sharjah is the only emirate that shares a border with all other emirates in the UAE.

– People have lived in the area for over 500,000 years.

– In 1998 it was listed as UNESCO’s ‘Arab Capital of Culture’.

– It was the first emirate to provide education for women, in 1942.