* A bit of a warning - this is a rather massive blog! We've had such a range of experiences since we've been travelling in KSA, and it's quite hard to keep up with the news and pictures. Take your time, and hopefully you will enjoy our adventures alongside us.
There couldn't have been a more typical way to exit amazing Najran. We wanted to try to hitch-hike the next leg of our trip, but thought we'd first grab a taxi to the outskirts of town to start the journey. The taxi driver was so sweet, firstly asking us to breakfast and then refusing payment at the destination. This town is really something!
We hadn't thought through our plan very well, as we were leaving on a Friday morning, and the traffic was thin. But after 30 minutes, lovely Abdullah stopped and with no English he indicated he would take us all the way to Abha, about a three hour drive.
Abdullah was a real joker, and through Google Translate we had a good laugh, and the time flew. Hilariously, he sprayed us with perfume as we entered the car- a telling sign of our backpacker status. Before we got going too far, he stopped at a shop and came out with a bag loaded with drinks and snacks for the journey. The scenery was dry brown mountains, with many old abandoned mud villages. As we moved further north the style of the villages changed somewhat, and were looking forward to seeing some different designs where we were heading.
Funny Abdullah, taking us to Abha, KSA
Scenery during the trip from Najran to Abha, KSA
Saudis we met always told us how good the weather was in Abha, and we realized after a while that by "good" they meant cool and drizzly, preferably with fog, with "bad" weather being hot and sunny.
We didn't gel with Abha as we had with Najran. Not staying with a local, we didn't interact as much with people. The town itself was a bit underwhelming - quite shabby and a bit rough around the edges. The people overall seemed less cheerful, especially the huge population of South Asians. One Bangladeshi, however, stood out from the rest. Entering his tiny cafe one cool night, we were warmly welcomed with a hot meal and friendly chat about his daughter living in Sydney. As we left, he told us he refused our payment, saying we were his guests. Another engaging person we met was a Saudi taxi driver, a pilot oddly enough, who declined our money at the end of a short trip across town.
A tiny heritage area in Abha was of interest, due to the mud building's design. Similar to the buildings we had seen further south, these ones had the added benefit of thin flat stones inserted in layers around the exterior. This was presumably to protect the mud from rain, which might be a bigger problem here than down south. It was an ingenuous design, and the wooden shutters added an aesthetically pleasing touch.
Interesting style of mud houses in Abha, KSA
Abha's small heritage village, KSA
Detail in the stone houses in Abha Heritage Village
We unwittingly perfectly timed our visit to the Thulatha (Tuesday) Souq to coincide with the Saudi Founding Day festivities. Wandering around the fascinating stalls, we noticed many items of exotic women's clothing- long black gowns with gold embroidery, accompanying headbands, scarves of many colours, jingling silver belts, head decorations and plenty of costume jewellery. Obviously, we haven't seen any women wearing these, but it would be lovely to see them bejewelled and uncovered from their abayas and niqabs.
Guy selling hats, Thulatha Souq, Abha, KSA
Brass mortar and pestle, Thulatha Souq, Abha, KSA
Sparkly outfits for sale, Thulatha Souq, Abha, KSA
We hadn't seen so many families in one place since Riyadh, and we noticed many of them arriving dressed up, even the women. They wore gold headdresses and headbands, many had fully made up eyes, and henna markings on their chins. All the little kids were dressed in different Asir styles (the region in which Abha is located), with straw hats, yellow scarves and black dresses being characteristics of the clothing. Many people had flowers in their hair, and bouquets and herbs for sale filled the air with a sweet perfume. The range of colours and ethnic backgrounds in people was also noticeable in this market- some looking quite African.
Local urchins, Thulatha Souq, Abha, KSA
Smiley girl in Abha's Founding Day celebrations, KSA
Saudi kids in the crowd, Thulatha Souq, Abha, KSA
Gold and henna, Saudi Founding Day, Abha, KSA
Dressed up like kings! Founding Day, Abha, KSA
Extremely photogenic kid, Abha, KSA
Young people in the crowd, Saudi Founding day, Abha, KSA
Some dancing broke out amongst the youngsters, everyone looking on, and after there was date pudding for everyone. It was a wonderful atmosphere, with everyone in a happy mood, and it was a change for the women to outshine the men for once! Females happily chatted with Sal, although no photos again unfortunately. Of course, we were thrilled to experience this celebration, especially as most people didn't mind having their photos taken. Richard became surrounded by so many men and boys at one point that we had to sneak out.
Beautiful girls dressed in traditional Asir outfits, Abha, KSA
Our final day in Abha had been put aside for a big day trip hitching to the stone village of Rijal Alma. However, Rich had a bit of a tummy issue, and the site didn't open until 3.00pm, so we opted for a quiet morning catching up in our room, and took a taxi the one hour trip to Rijal Alma later in the day.
*A note about taxis in Saudi. Normally, we rarely use taxis during our travels, unless we absolutely have to. We like to save money and experience local transport. But in Saudi, public transport is rare or non-existent in many towns. We discovered that ordering taxi through one of many apps used here, it is quite affordable, and usually a great way to talk with friendly Saudi drivers. An average 10-20 minute trip across town would cost on average 10-20 SAR/£2-4.
The drive to Rijal Alma was absolutely stunning, and the driver was kind enough to stop a few times in order for us to appreciate the amazing views down into the valley. There were also baboons along the road, which we weren't expecting!
Baboons on the road to Rijal Alma, KSA
Stunning view, road to Rijal Alma, KSA
Making our way carefully down the windy roads, we eventually found ourselves dropped off in a village outside what is one of the most popular tourist sites in Saudi, Rijal Alma. Amidst all the surrounding beautiful nature we were immediately dismayed at what we could see of the "heritage site". A revolting, tacky advertising wall surrounded the location, with bright banners and hideous coloured cafe signs covering the actual historical buildings inside. We don't know whose idea this was, but it completely ruined the effect even from the outside, and we weren't interested in entering.
The old village at Rijal Alma, KSA
The tackiness of the signs and colours on the heritage village, Rijal Alma, KSA
Luckily, in the surrounding village were many other old buildings that had been left alone and although some were in disrepair, at least they were authentic. A small (closed) museum, a mosque and some clusters of ancient stone beauties held our attention, as did an intriguing tower on a hill. After a few false starts we scrambled up a path of sorts leading to the top, but it was overgrown with thorny bushes, and too steep for us to make it all the way.
Close up of door detail, Rijal Alma, KSA
A mix of renovated and more dilapidated buildings, Rijal Alma, KSA
Clay pot hanging in Rijal Alma museum, KSA
Beautiful sunny day at Rijal Alma, KSA
Some of the deserted parts of Rijal Alma village, KSA
Apparently Rijal Alma village is about 900 years old, and used to be an important spot on the trade route from Yemen. We did love the intricate style of the stone and wood structures, quite different from what we had seen around Najran. Such details as alternating layers of small and large flat stones, and inlaid quartz around the windows were unique and pretty.
Quartz used as decoration around window, Rijal Alma
Falling down structures at Rijal Alma village, KSA
A lot of work put into this doorway, Rijal Alma, KSA
There was enough traffic coming back from Rijal Alma, that we were easily able to hitchhike back to Abha. The third lift was from a lovely family, who spoke no English, but clearly wanted to help us. A stop at a service station saw the father disappear inside and return with cold water and snacks for us and the three little kids squashed into the back seat. As we approached Abha town, we discovered they were from Najran (of course they were, so kind!), and were heading home. We tried to insist they drop us on the city limits and continue on their way, but they weren't having it and took us to our hotel.
Rich's tummy seeming to be stable, we set off the next morning for what proved to be a most interesting day hitching to Jazan.
Taking a rest in the outside museum, Rijal Alma, KSA
Our
taxi driver taking us to the edge of Abha seemed apprehensive to leave us by
the side of the road for our onward journey, he said he wasn't sure people would stop and pick us up from there. We
told him we were fine, thanked him, and he reluctantly drove away. Within five minutes a car pulled up driven by a fast
talking English-speaking Saudi army sergeant in fatigues. He was also
worried about us. We told him we had been hitch-hiking for weeks and
had had nothing but positive experiences, and he seemed surprised. He
said not all Saudis were good and some would want to steal our
things. Richard explained to him that we were pretty canny at gauging
people at a glance.
We
spent a couple of fascinating hours with him driving south, and
discovered many new facts about Saudi. An intelligence operative for
the army, he told us briefly about his job infiltrating Yemeni
circles and reporting back to his Saudi superiors. We didn't ask too
many questions about this information!
His
views on life offered a unique perspective. A intense and
stressed little man, he talked about his family life. He had been
married for one year, and his wife had yet to conceive, and he was so
worried there was something wrong with him he had visited the
hospital for tests. He told us that Saudi women were protected and
didn't have to worry themselves with anything practical in the marriage, such as grocery shopping. They were treated like queens.
He
knew all about road fines – there are cameras everywhere, separate
ones for speeding and using mobiles. A particularly large fine of 500
SAR/£100 is imposed for anyone caught driving whilst using a mobile
phone. He described the third degree he put any policeman through who stopped
him unnecessarily on the road, before eventually showing his ID (he
was the equivalent to the FBI, he assured us). This attitude seemed to be
related to traumatic events that happened to him whilst studying in
the USA and Canada, when cops would often stop him and harass him
based on his appearance.
After
insisting on buying us a most yummy kabsa lunch (flavoured
rice and chicken baked together with a divine result), and dropping
us at our hotel, his last words were about how Saudi Arabia is the
safest country in the world, and people here would take care of us
everywhere we went and we should always feel safe! What a
contradictory fellow!
Men we interacted with in Saudi were without fail respectful to Sal, and often called her sister. Occasionally, we could tell they were slightly awkward speaking directly to her, and their questions were aimed at Rich. This was fine, and we just adjusted somewhat in order to make situations comfortable for everybody.
Our
final stretch to Jazan was spent with the most enthusiastic man we had yet to meet in Saudi. An portly ex-soccer coach, he spoke English and
some other languages including Japanese, and was so eager to have
us in the car he nearly crashed into the vehicle in front whilst turned
around talking to us! His hilariously low-key red-bearded brother-in-law sat quietly beside him, and calmly turned off the indicator
that had been switched on in the excitement. They were like a
comedy double act. During the journey, we discovered that brother-in-law
(who didn't speak English at all), had 300 camels, 80 cows, three
wives and 31 children! He put it all down to drinking camel milk!
He
was firm on taking us right to the door of our Jazan
accommodation and seeing that we got in OK. He only then told us that
his home was miles back, but he was so honoured to have us in his
car, he wanted to bring us the entire way to show us we were welcome
in his country. We're not sure what brother-in-law thought about the long detour.
Jazan
is a big city in the far south of Saudi, and there's not a lot to see, to be honest.
We wanted to stay a few days as a gateway to some neighbouring areas.
We
figured out the brand new local bus service, mainly used by
Bangladeshi workers, but felt sorry for the poor guy who sold us the
bus card. We didn't understand how it worked, and he had to answer
all our dumb questions, but he was very patient and we got there in
the end. The various South Asian workers at the main station ended up being
so sweet, and gave us their seats, coffee and a cake whilst we were
waiting quite a long time for the bus to arrive.
We
had found a DJ-ing Saudi to stay with to provide a bit of local help
for the next few days. He was a strange one, laid-back to the point
of indifference. He answered all our messages, but with such
minimalism we weren't sure what we were getting ourselves into.
Anyway, he turned out to be fine, just a bit tired. He was on holidays from
his day job as a teacher, and taking it easy. He very generously
offered us his huge lounge room and our own bathroom in his
apartment. His brother, Mohammed, was called to pick us all up in his
Toyota 4WD for a meal shortly after we arrived. We were taken to what
was a normal eatery for them, but a special “lunch” (it was
4.30pm) for us. We're probably completely stuffing up the names, but
the slow cooked lamb dish was maghsh, and the accompanying
sweet, which is eaten first in Jazan, was called marsah. The two breads were also new for
us- one (lahoor) seemed to have a fermented element to it, and the other
similar to a classic Turkish style (bor). The lady working
in the restaurant took a video of Sal saying how much we had enjoyed
the meal.
The dish and the pot it's cooked in share a name, maghsh
After
dinner, we dropped our host back home and picked up Mohammed's
daughter, a shy 14 year old who slid into the backseat, without any
eye contact. Soon, though, she and Sal were having a selfie session
in the backseat laughing away. After stopping in a park for some
Saudi coffee and a chat, we finally finished the busy evening at our temporary home.
Back seat of the car, Jazan
Normally,
this would be the end of our day, with a chill-out session and maybe
a snack later on. But in Jazan, where the weather is very hot year
round (even when we visited in February), people live an after-dark lifestyle, sleeping most of the day and coming to life after sunset.
We
were informed that we would be going out to eat dinner later that
evening at 10pm, and we could rest until then. After a bit of a nap,
at around 1am we left for a restaurant, and ended up eating at about
1.30am! We couldn't believe how lively it was, with people sitting
around eating, and more crowds arriving even as we left. Luckily, we were
happy to go with the flow! And anyway, it was good practice for the
coming Ramadan month when nothing would be open in the day and we
would have to change our hours to become night owls!
Our
host was very proud to have us try traditional Jazan food, a rich cuisine
provided by the agreeable climate and much arable land in the southern region. Situated by the Red Seamuch of their diet is also fresh
fish, and although we couldn't identify the type of fish we were
eating, it was simply delicious. Spiced veggies, an okra dish and
more different bread rounded out one special meal.
Dinner with our new friend, Jazan, KSA
We found out more
about the teaching profession in Saudi, and that they used to have a
four month summer vacation, but it was recently reduced to two! It
still provided a good opportunity for our host to indulge in his love
for travel, and we were interested in his perspectives about touring around Europe. We also were fascinated by his insights into the lives of young people in Jazan. Apparently, many young women can now move out of the family home and live alone, and also there is a big problem with youth drug use and suicide in Jazan.
Our meal on our last night in Jazan included the bubbling hot fahsah (slow cooked lamb), dagah (minced spicy lamb) and the ever present marsah, the famous Jazan sweet dish, a kind of banana and bread pudding.
We had been invited by our host to come and go as if in our own home (no-one in Saudi seemed to lock the doors to their houses!). Realizing
he was happy sleeping away his vacation during the day, we
decided to take ourselves off to the mountains. We had read much
about the area north of Jazan and neighbouring Yemen, and
seen pictures of the lovely tribal people there who wore flowers in
their hair.
Feyfa local with flowers in his hair, KSA
A
non-English-speaking man from Giza, Egypt picked us up from the roadside, and when he
realized how far we were trying to go, he asked us to wait five
minutes while he finished up with some deliveries to what looked like
his builder's yard. He said then he would have time to take us all the
way. At least that's what we thought he was saying, but it seemed too
generous to be true. Later, we realized, he probably hadn't known the
area we were going to and the poor thing didn't know what he had
signed up for! Of course, we also didn't know, and as the road became
smaller, more isolated and twisty, as it wound it's way up the mountainside, we started to feel extremely guilty. After nearly an hour,
we came to a kind of village with beautiful views, and although the
traffic was scarce to the point of non-existent, we told him we could
stop here. He seemed relieved to be off the hook of his self-imposed
duty to escort these crazy foreigners into the mountains, and we said
goodbye to this lovely man. He gave us all the cold drinks he had
bought for us, probably thinking we might
never been seen again! We were so grateful to him for his generosity.
Road winding up into the mountains, Feyfa, KSA
Village on a hill, Feyfa, KSA
Castle ruins, Feyfa, KSA
We
felt quite relaxed though, and after a few minutes wandering around
admiring the stunning views, another man, a teacher, took us further
up into the hills to a lookout point where we hung out with our cold
drinks and a spectacular vista. If you showed someone a picture of
these mountains, there is no way most people would think “Saudi Arabia”.
It was the complete opposite of the stereotypical Saudi desert scene.
Green hills, with ancient stone terraces climbing up the hillsides,
huge mountain ranges in the distance and falling down stone forts and
towers in every direction. It was quiet and cooler than Jazan, and we loved it.
Views down the hills, Feyfa, KSA
So many old towers scattered around the hills, Feyfa, KSA
Doorway in stone house, Feyfa, KSA
Ruins in the terraced hills, Feyfa, KSA
Shepard and cows, Feyfa, KSA
What a view! Feyfa, KSA
As
we were thinking to steam ahead up the mountain to where we thought
there was a village called Fayfa, along came completely bonkers
Abdullah with his pork pie hat and his gentle son, Mortaz in their
battered old minibus. We were bustled into the bus, and we embarked on a tour around the hills, Abdullah chattering away in Arabic enthusiastically the entire time. Of course we stopped for the obligatory snacks and cold drinks for us all. Language
was a bit of a challenge, but young Mortaz did a sterling job
translating his Dad's exuberant
rantings into English. Jovial to the point of madness, every time we saw something beautiful,
Abdullah would exclaim “Oh My God, Richard” and we would stop for
a photo. After bouncing around the mountain roads for some time listening
to wonderful Yemeni music and speaking to Abdullah's Moroccan wife on
the phone, we understood that they were heading down to the main
highway for something, and they could drop us somewhere in order for
us to get a lift back home. On the way was a stop to wake up a bee man in order to buy us a huge container of local honey, and
another to buy us some flowers to put on our heads, just to complete
the job of us looking like complete idiot tourists! Another amazing
day, another fabulous Saudi character.
Completely bonkers Abdullah with Rich, Fayfa, KSA
What a character, Abdullah in Fayfa, KSA
Lovely, smiley Mortaz, Fayfa, KSA
Trying to fit in with the local flower people, Fayfa, KSA
The day we left Jazan for Farasan Island, we were standing in the street, looking at our map, trying to discover where exactly the bus stop was, when a friendly older gentleman in a flash car stopped to see if he could help. He said to jump in and he could drive us to the bus stop. As we chatted in the car and he learnt we were going to Farasan, he said he would take us all the way to the port. We were grateful for this when we arrived, as we realized it would have been a bit complicated to find on our own. Although we were early for the boat, the terminal was AC and comfortable to wait in. About an hour before departure time, a line formed where IDs were checked, and Sal was asked to join the women's line to enter the boarding area. After showing passports and a thorough pat down, we embarked with everyone else. The boat was quite old, but seemed steady, and there was plenty of space onboard. The most amazing thing was that the 1.5 hour trip was completely free!
Inside the Farasan Island free ferry, KSA
We immediately noticed the people on the boat were different in their reactions to us. No-one really looked at us or said hello - we weren't used to that! This continued as we took a taxi to tiny Farasan village, checked into a hotel, and set out for a walk to look around the area. We had become used to having everyone being over the top friendly in their welcomes, and people here were just getting on with their life, I guess. Island people are often a different breed.
Farasan Island, KSA
Detail on old house, Farasan Island, KSA
Our first day was spent on a very pleasant stroll around the quiet backstreets of the old village. Many traditional houses remained, with their coral brickwork and wooden fames showing. A cute little mosque was right in the middle of the once colourful homes.
Tropical feel, Farasan Island, KSA
Ornate mosque, Farasan Island, KSA
Paved laneways, Old Farasan Island, KSA
Farasan Island, Saudi Arabia
Colourful doorway, Farasan Island, KSA
Large coral house in ruins, Farasan Island, KSA
Decorative interior, coral house, Farasan Island, KSA
Coral walls, Farasan structures, KSA
Decorations on Farasan Island house, KSA
Now being Ramadan, not many cars could be spotted on the roads during the day, and our ideas of hitching to the far end of the island to see what the beaches had to offer were stymied. We decided a day looking round at what we could see of the island would do us, and planned to take the ferry back to the mainland the following day. The weather, however, had other plans. A strong wind blowing for two days saw us stuck, as the ferry was cancelled, deemed too dangerous to cross. We were forced to change our plans, and spent our two extra days wandering around, checking out the fishing marina and catching up on our millions of photos that needed sorting out.
In the end, the delay turned out to be a blessing, as Sal developed a severe toothache, and needed to quickly visit the hospital, which handily happened to be directly across the road from our hotel. We were worried about the cost, as although insurance had been included with our Saudi visas, we were envisioning fancy services and expensive treatments. As we were approaching the emergency entrance, an English-speaking Egyptian anaesthesiologist asked what we needed and then immediately took us under his wing. He must have felt sorry for us, for when the triage staff said it was too late to see the dentist that day, and that we would have wait until tomorrow morning, he took us to his office. He returned with an Indian dentist and some painkillers. The dentist had a quick look into Sal's aching mouth, and pronounced that her bottom wisdom tooth had to come out. They discussed the matter, and came to the conclusion that the dentist should do it then and there, even though it was nearly 11pm. Sal was so relieved- the procedure was painless and took less than 10 minutes. After our profuse thanks, we asked about the paperwork and payment. The Egyptian winked and said "Just think, this never happened". He sent us on our way, no payment needed! We couldn't think of another place in the world where this would happen.
After our unintended extended stay on Farasan, although it meant a 4am start, we were elated to leave on the ferry back to Jazan, in order to continue our trip further north into Saudi Arabia.
A few observations about Jazan. The city had a very different vibe to other towns we had been in Saudi. It felt more casual and less conservative in a way. Many men wore shorts, a first for us to see, and there were not as many thawbs and shemaaghs (robes and headdresses)to be seen. There were more women present in general. Half of the cars on the road were in a complete state - bashed in so much from all sides, it was hard to believe they were still running. The driving style here must be insane. People also looked a bit different, darker and many had thick curly hair. Locals were just as lovely to us here as everywhere else we have been in Saudi.
This leg of the trip, within the context of the entire country
Our complete hitching route around the southern part of KSA
.......next up, we continue travelling north to the mountains around Al Baha.....
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