Across the Desert to Ushaiger

 From hypermodern Riyadh to heritage village Ushaiger.

Not a giant wind farm - though there's room for it - but a step toward modernity in the Arabian desert.

Supermarkets look the same the world over.

But not all are so conducive to cat naps.

Riyadh Skyscrapers

Although I haven't shown examples in my previous posts from Riyadh, our overwhelming impression upon driving in from the airport was how modern the city is, especially compared to other cities in the region. Here are just a couple of examples, at evening.

Al Rajhi Mosque

From Wikipedia: "Sheikh Sulaiman Al-Rajhi Mosque, simply known as Al-Rajhi Mosque, is a congregational mosque and an active place of worship in the al-Jazirah neighborhood of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Inaugurated in 2004, it is the largest mosque in Riyadh and one of the most popular landmarks of the city besides being considered among the largest mosques in Saudi Arabia and the Arab world. It is named after the Saudi businessman and billionaire Sulaiman bin Abdulaziz al-Rajhi, who primarily funded the mosque's construction."

Evening Light and Life in Riyadh

Saudi Doors

One of the things I most enjoyed while walking along the streets of the traditional parts of Riyadh was the ornate but functional wooden doors. Geometrical decoration is one of the outstanding features of Middle Eastern architecture.

National Museum of Saudi Arabia

Part of the King Abdul Aziz Historical Center, a district of Riyadh. These images are a tiny fraction of what's on view in this very impressive museum.

Saudi Arabia: Al Turaif District

Our third MIR tour this past Fall, following Kurdistan and Iraq, was two weeks in "Saudi Arabia: Trade Routes, Tradition & Transformation", October 25-November 7. We began in the capital and business hub, Riyadh, an intriguing mix of hypermodern and ancient. The ancient was the Al Turaif District in Diriyah, in the northwest outskirts of Riyadh.