“The world makes me feel small and alive at once.” – Old Sean
Early Year
After a December of slamming through travel plans, the beginning of January smoothed out considerably. The first couple weeks of 2024 were quiet affairs, uniquely unburdened by rapid transit.
I spent time enjoying coffee with friends and blinking away the fatigue from an overworked December. I joined my friend Jackie on strolls past cats through city, frequenting Chinese restaurants. I met with my friend Ahmed to hatch further nefarious plans to see the world. I did a favor for my friend Jake back in the States by photographing a hotel interior which his design company is working with.
Some days I joined friends for Turkish coffee. On others, I wandered idly, kicking up cool dust from desert winter grounds. But then, I suspect that only a portion of the human psyche is made for peace. A consultant job brought me a unique opportunity, inviting me to a annual citrus festival to the south in the town of Al Hariq.
An Intro to the South
Al Hariq is a small community found to the south of Riyadh, located at the base of a series of commanding sandstone mesas. The town itself is part of a chain of communities following the cliff edges and a series of wadi (dry rivers).
Al Hariq’s main claim to fame is it’s annual Citrus Festival, also known as the Al Hareeq/Al Hariq Citrus Festival, Orange Festival, or Orangefest, depending on the annual choice of branding.
I joined a group of about nine, including my friend Ahmed and his colleague Rabhya. We started our trip from a cafe in Riyadh and quickly began driving south as dawn turned into a full-fledged sunblaze.
While winters in Saudi Arabia are generally chilly affairs, this most recent one has been notably toasty. Despite sweating a little during our outside time, my group continued south, eventually stopping a gas station for snacks before completing our drive.
The Town of Naam
The entire region of Riyadh is actually elevated on a considerable plateau, overlooking lowlands in various directions. While it might not feel like it in the city, a journey to the west or south provides dramatic overlooks of dry landscapes.
We cruised down a massive incline cutting through a pale rock face, descending until our collective ears popped. When we finally reached the base of the road, Ahmed steered us to our first destination, the small town of Naam.
Currently, the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Culture as well as numerous independent tourism organizations, are putting their weight behind tourism development in the nation. Many of these efforts results in impressive creations of museums, heritage sites, notable landmarks, historical zones and new attractions. Naam is home to several of these, the first being the notable historic household “Issa bin Jassas Heritage Palace” (قصر عيسى بن جساس التراثي).
Many of the historic sights in Saudi Arabia are owned by generations of prominent family members who held a vital role in some part of the society. In the case of this heritage palace, the structure served as a waystation, restoration point and home for a local family. Our host was immeasurably kind and showed us every generosity imaginable within his home.
As a tourism attraction, the house has taken on museum-like dimensions. There are numerous relics and antiques which illustrated life in the past, including an oryx horn modified to pry up stored dates, a small bucket filled with a dried-goat-milk food, a large serving platter made from palm wood, bark used for burning oud, large stone grinding wheels, protective palm-woven covers to shelter dates from flies, miniature pulley systems for rising water from wells, frames for creating dense mud-bricks, funnels, grinding devices, wooden donkey supply-saddles, sewing machines, kerosene lamps, antique phones, boxy televisions, woven mats, flag-shaped hand-fans, decorative bowls, a date-weighing stick-and-stone and more.
The largest feature was an immense wooden door rescued from the collapsed ruins of a nearby household.
Traditional Saudi Arabian doors are unique constructs. They are primarily crafted of palm-wood, the most commonly available wood source in the region. However, palm-wood is notoriously difficult to carve and treat. The nature of the material often causes warping and uneven planks. Therefore, the wood must be harvested at the end of the dry season, usually sometime in December, at which point it can be cut into long, slightly-wavy planks. These are braced by perpendicular beams which are then spiked into place with large metal nails. Traditionally, patterns are placed on the door. Patterns and geometric lines are common artistic feature of the kingdom, which has religious taboos against drawing humanoid or animalistic figures, as idolatry is banned. Patterns, however, are perfectly acceptable and vary greatly from region to region. For example, around Riyadh, it’s common to find traditional patterns of concentric circles and triangles, both made of dots. These are created by burning holes into wooden planks by hand. Perhaps most interesting of all from a cultural perspective is the knocking device. Saudi Arabian doors in many regions are featured with a large metal ring hanging loosely at chest-level. By tradition, these knocking devices are used differently according to gender. Men use the knockers on the wood thrice, with slow, manful distinctiveness. Meanwhile, women tend to jiggle the knocker, causing a rattling sound. This allows the household to identify the gender of the guest and send an appropriate individual to respond.
Further Features
Saudi Arabia has a wide range of traditional architectural styles. The household museum I’ve mentioned above is in the Nadj Style, which is defined by broad walls of smoothed mud-bricks, flagstone floors, roofs made from branches reinforced with palm fronds and rich, patterned rugs. The construction is also used with a white chalky-mineral plaster, which caps most walls in a startling white. This water-resistant material defies rare rainstorms and preserves the adobe nature of the wall. Additionally, there are pillars made from carefully stacked, thick, stone disks. These are likewise coated in the plaster material, allowing uniform white pillars to hold up important archways and outdoor dining spaces.
As a historically wealthy Saudi Arabian household in a small community, there are some other unique features to the construction as well. Attatched to the home is an adjacent interior plaza, washing station, fire pit and majlis (sitting/gathering place). The door to this wing of the household is permanently open, allowing guests to come and go as they please. It essentially operates as an ever-hospitable shelter or free hotel for anyone in the region. While the site would have seen many guests during Hajj (the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca), the door remained open year-round. This portion of the home has been restored with special care with rich carpets being installed, the ground being carefully cleaned, electricity being included and expensive Indian-imported wooden planks being used to repair the roof.
The finally two features are compelling as well. The central seating area, a shaded space with lounging chairs decorated in Sadu patterns, served guests coffee, tea, water, dates, crackers, cookies and other snacks. The upper open-rooftop area, reachable by a narrow staircase offered pretty view of the nearby crumbling cliffs. I was also tickled to learn that the rooftop served as a sleeping lounge through summer nights. Families would dunk blankets into water and lay them across the roof. allowing the moist fabric and cooler open air to lower their body temperatures until sleep was possible. On days when the heat was less intense, the mud-brick home interior served better as a sleeping location. Adobe mud-bricks were created in frames and laid flat, the long edge perpendicular to the wall’s direction. This made the walls far thicker and better-insulated.
Poems of the Father
We spent the majority of our morning lounging around the heritage site. Our hosts, enormously gracious, provided us with stories, information and insights about the nation. I can’t adequetly express how relaxing this was.
With coffee in hand, I listened to our host make concentrated attempts to explain things to me in English, despite the fact that everyone else was far more fluent in Arabic. My cup was refilled endlessly as I desired and I was informed that this region’s mannerisms meant I could put the cup down whenever I wanted. (In Jubbah, the cup must be held at all times).
Sweet-smelling smoke curled nicely from the firepit. Songbirds like the desert lark and short-toed lark flittered and sang overhead. Dates lingered sweetly on the tongue and our host, smiling proudly, pointed out poetic letters that his father, the museum’s original builder, wrote. Piles of large oranges smelled sweet on tables, operating as food as much as decoration. Breakfast was served, a combination of honeyed-buttered mini pancakes and a rich, slightly-sweet dish of grains with dates mixed in.
It wasn’t just a nice way to spend a morning. It felt like the right way to spend it.
After some time, the rest of our traveling group joined us. We gathered together and drove as a caravan of cars, our host guiding us to the next portion of our southbound journey.
Beat By Heat
As the temperature of the day continued to rise, my group was led to a dusty trail. A narrow foot-bridge spanned a shallow gully, leading to a walking route known as the Ancient Ajlaan Trail.
The trail once served as an important route for caravans, pilgrims and pedestrians crossing the region. It was a foot-path which eventually merged with larger walking routes. The trail has additional fame since it was used by Saudi Arabia’s founder, King Abdulaziz. At some point during his liberation and unification campaign for the nation against the flagging Ottoman empire, King Abdulaziz’s forces used the route to move thorugh the desert.
The route is a surprisingly well-paved trail of 2.5 km, climbing about 100 meters upwards on a switchback. The entire trail follows a rough “U” shape, eventually leading through the ancient passage, past some shallow caves, over the Ajlaan Viewpoint and to the Sunset Viewpoint, a popular area for locals and guests near the end of the day.
Sadly, we didn’t hike the trail personally. I intend to make a return trip at some point, as the hiking route looks exceptionally enjoyable.
Following our brief mini-hike, my group continued onwards. We moved back to our cars and enjoyed the majestic drive along the lower cliffs of the region.
It’s worth mentioning that the sandstone mesa formations of this area are beyond gorgeous. Craggy stone faces are rugged against blue skies. Their unstable nature results in shifting piles of loose, broken stone clustering around their bases, like wide, dusty dresses. Occasional peaks jut up from lonely break points, all accented by hardy green bushes, often in upside-down funnel shapes.
May Bergamot Reign
After our mini-hike, our group made it to our true destination, the Citrus Festival.
It’s worth mentioning that the vast majority of Saudi Arabia’s traditional events are enjoyed at specific times. This is generally due to the religious observation of prayer times or the need to beat the sun’s heat. As a result, most festivals in the Kingdom reach their peak after sundown.
The Citrus Festival of Al Hariq is no exception. When we arrived, there were many stalls already prepared and plenty of features being set up. But the true crowds had yet to arrive. I had it impressed upon me several times that the crowds were usually so dense that it was impossible to walk through.
I silently thanked my lucky stars for our fortunate timing. I never have desires to meld with crowds, my aversion to them is well-established in my own mind. But the pre-festival was more than joyous enough for me.
The outer area of the festival was decorated in an odd combination of features. There were Saudi Arabia flags, green and cracking lightly in the wind. Below, a traditional Bedouin pickup truck was decorated with a metal carriage roof over the bed. There was also a fancy, mint-green Rolls-Royce and giant scultpures of painted fruit made from densely packed Styrofoam.
Once we finally ducked into the main halls, I was pleased with the displays. The Citrus Festival lived up to its name, with dates, lemons, oranges and more readily available. I learned, much to my surprise, that dried dates can be stored for an incredibly long time. Dates last for an impressive amount of time when dried due to the lack of water within, which effectively bans mold for years, potentially.
Fortunately, there were plenty of samples for me to try. I ate the occasional dried date, fresh date and candied date. Orange wedges and lemon concoctions were sampled. At one point, Ahmed pointed out a dried-goat-milk treat I boldly attempted and immediately decided I didn’t like.
I also got to browse various oud samples, honeycombs, strange fruit artworks, figs, purple fruits I have yet to identify and other tiny stalls. Additionally, I found an amusing mistranslation in the area. Navel oranges are a popular fruit in the area, grown with its telltale depression at the stem. However, someone must have used Google Translate in an odd manner, because the oranges on sale at a couple of stalls read “Bellybutton Oranges.” This brought me joy. It continues to bring me joy.
In the end, however, what most-readily captured my attention, were the locally cultivated Bergamot Oranges.
These fruits look like a type of Frankenstein Lemon with yellow-greenish skin and a lumpy exterior. They’re far larger than an orange or grapefruit, but surprisingly light to hold. Their scent, especially when the skin is pierced, is a pleasant combination of lemon-and-orange. While initially a bit bitter, it’s quite a treat with a sprinkle of sugar.
The Bergamot Orange various I saw in Jubbah was a different breed; larger and far too bitter to attempt eating. However, the ones I enjoyed here were a true delicacy, something I’ve not tasted before or since.
Before Resorts
When my group finally left the festival, we paid a young man with a trolly to tote our heavy produce to our cars. Bless his soul, he wasn’t the most careful courier. Twice, he dropped our produce and by the second time, Ahmed and I simply carried more than half and let the lad rattle behind us with his trolly.
Properly supplied with citrus, we followed our guide to our next destination, which doesn’t exist at all yet.
Souq Al Mufaijer Shopping Mall is a rising private construction project dedicated to bringing a traditionally-styled Saudi Arabian resort to the region. The owner, landholder and private backer of the project met us out front, showcasing the full range of amenities and designs he intended to showcase when the site opens, hopefully in 2025.
Broad doors with Saudi Arabian patterns opened near new shopping buildings. A vast circular plaza was ringed with seats for traditional performances. An ancient well was tucked away in the back of the city, with a modern recreation being placed more centrally. The well used a series of traditional water wheels, pulleys, dense waterskins and labor-camels to manage the water supply. There were milking stations set aside for both goats and cattle, a supply of fresh produce for visitors to the resort. The buildings were all made in the Nadj Style, with adobe walls and bracing wooden beams sticking out. While Nadj buildings are often built with triangle and circle holes to provide ventilation, these structures were hooked up with air conditioners. As such, the traditional patterns didn’t punch through the walls entirely, merely decorating the outer portion.
I was deeply impressed by the span and ambition of the project. I also love walking around buildings that are under construction. The appeal of seeing something tangible growing from human design brings me a satisfaction I have trouble fully expressing.
Feast of the Gardens
Our finally stop on this trip was a supremely nice meal in an open garden. Starting with coffee and chocolates in a beautiful indoor seating area, our group eventually moved outside to dine under the swaying branches of a tall palm grove. Flowers lined the trail as we sat at white tables, eating kabsa, veggie mixes, camel meat, folded pastries, cranberries, fruits, flan-like deserts and refreshing yogurt drinks.
Substantially rounder, I joined our group for a short jaunt through the gardens, looking at the palm groves, grape vines, singing birds, irrigation channels, wandering chickens, orange trees and other unique features.
However, the structure that impressed me most was the well which supplied the entire garden. Only eighty meters down, it was drilled by Pakistani laborers and engineers. The well, while not deep enough to sustain the orchards, was cleverly designed to operate as a funnel.
The ground of the region, being mostly compressed sandstone formations, isn’t stable enough for straight-down drilling without expensive reinforcements or wider tunneling techniques. To overcome this, the Pakistani team drilled back outwards in five directions, moving parallel underground to the surface of the earth. They did so at a two degree incline, tapping other natural moisture sources and funneling it back towards the central well-pool.
This demonstration of genius ensured the well would function and keep the orchard thriving even during extreme droughts.
An Easy Path Home
Following our long day of unique touring, my group said our farewells and thanks to our guides and hosts. We piled into our vehicles and rumbled back north towards Riyadh, all curving separate directions eventually.
I’m very pleased with this first trip of 2024. It felt insightful and educational. I feel better grounded now that I’ve had a chance to travel once again. I have further trips on the horizon as well.
So until then, best regards and excellent trails,
Old Sean
Written January 13th, 2024
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