“Time is the least consistent and most fickle imposition on folks. It defines us in a way nothing else can. And I suspect that we, as a species, perceive it incorrectly.” – Old Sean
Yearly Finale
Following a supremely busy holiday week partaking in local festival event in Riyadh, I made the beleaguered choice to visit Jeddah over the weekend.
To be frank, this was probably unwise. I was wrung out and tired. Work had been elevated in difficulty this past month due to staffing problems. As such, I went on vacation with low energy in my mental meter.
But regardless, the tickets were bought and I had a bag packed from a previous trip. It was time to make good on another adventure.
The Aquatic Tower
Objectively, I think the Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz International Airport is a solid piece of design and engineering. Subjectively, I think the airport is one of my favorites in the Middle East. Harkening to its Red Sea heritage, Jeddah’s airport is home to a giant cylinder aquarium with legions of fish rotating peacefully through the water. It’s a touch of serenity in a bustling airport.
As I gazed at the aquarium and did my very best to walk away from hawkers offering taxis, I pulled up addresses on my phone. As always, I loath taxi drivers. For myself, airport buzzard taxi drivers are extra hated. Truthfully, I think loitering taxi drivers at airport terminals should be illegal, or at least generally discouraged. I make a special point of exhausting every other possible transportation option before accepting any pushy ride offers.
As such, I managed to nab a ride share heading to my home away from home. My friend Mohammed has a free apartment in the north of Jeddah. Though I didn’t get to see Mohammed during this trip, as he’s on vacation in Cairo, he offered his home to me once again.
Mohammed is good people.
I arrived at the borrowed apartment and immediately passed out after doing a little overdue online work.
Morning Munching
The following morning, my exhaustion was still apparent. I woke up quite late and lounged in bed for far too long. But eventually, the world came calling. My friend Ahmed invited me to breakfast with his sister, niece and nephew. I eagerly accepted, throwing on some crumpled clothes and catching a ride south.
Breakfast was lovely. We ate a meal of traditional foods capping it off with maple syrup hazelnut fluffed pancakes at a restaurant called Sorrel at Pleo سورل.
At this point, Ahmed and his family left for a family gathering event. I asked to be dropped off at the coast, where I would have the chance to do some personal exploring.
Gauntlet Walk
Ahmed drove me to the Jeddah Corniche, a massive walking route following the entirety of Jeddah’s coast. I bid farewell to Ahmed and began my incidental afternoon hike.
Corniche is beautiful. It’s filled with unique geometric artworks, leaning palm trees and long, clean views of the shoreline. When morning transitions into afternoon, large groups of Saudi Arabian families picnic along the coast, spreading out traditional blankets along the numerous parks. With gentle patterns and wind from the sea causing the fabric to ripple, it often looks like an armada of magic carpets are about to take flight over the swells of water.
There are also numerous cats which prowl about, looking for friendly handouts. Children kick soccer balls over grass and concrete alike. Numerous shops and stalls sell ice cream, coffee and snacks for any coast visitors. I enjoyed an ice cream and latte during my slow, northern ramble.
Shop’o’mallic
While walking along the coast, I eventually reached the Red Sea Mall, a highly popular shopping area in Jeddah.
Currently, I’m looking to buy a new pair of sunglasses. My last supremely cheap pair finally broke, the hinges and miniture screws simply bending off my ears. I’ve spent a lot of my time in Saudi browsing for another pair of sunglasses, but my requirements have made the hunt difficult.
In particular, I have three requirements when getting sunglasses. Firstly, they need to be cheap. I live an active life and often visit impoverished countries. Overdressed or wearing clearly upscale accessories simply isn’t wise. Secondly, I need sunglasses which are reflective, obscuring the eyes. This ensures that eyes are difficult to see and accidental eye contact with hawkers and salesmen is limited. And thirdly, glasses need to be mildly durable. I don’t mind if they break, but I generally need my sunglasses to survive at least six months of hanging off the front of my shirt.
Saudi Arabia, which places a strong emphasis on upscale accessories, generally only sells too-expensive sunglasses rather than my semi-disposable preference.
But that didn’t stop me from looking around. I got myself a second coffee, enjoyed the interior fountains and generally rotated through the entire mall while listening to messages from friends.
However, my hunt was fruitless. The Red Sea Mall was simply too nice for my trashy purposes.
Unperturbed, I exited the mall and continued my walk.
The Floating Mosque
Following my time at the mall, I gradually worked my way back towards the coast.
During my walk I saw several men garbed in the unique attire of Islamic pilgrims. These men, who are always uncommonly delightful to speak with, are usually en route to Ka’abah in Mecca, Saudi Arabian undergoing this personal pilgrimage are required to wear a specific type of garment called an ihram. The ihram consists of two unsewn white cloths, which are worn to symbolize equality and humility before God. I often see them at the Jeddah airport and it was somehow relaxing to see small groups of them walking or driving on their way to Mecca.
Aside from these groups of people and other locals, I spotted numerous seabirds wheeling about overhead. I also passed the large amusement park local to Jeddah known as City Walk. The large shopping and entertainment park is a rough equivalent to Riyadh’s Riyadh Boulevard . Considering my excessive week in entertainment districts, I opted to bypass this.
I soon passed a range of wall mosaics showcasing birds until I reached the Corniche walking area once again. A setting sun had blared over the sky, causing the sea to morph into a lava-like orange.
My peaceful walk brought me past further artworks, all showcasing unique geometric sculptures with Arabic script carved into the metal. I also passed a massive eagle statue with its wings outstretched over the sea. With the air cooling, the crowd of weekend locals quickly grew to impressive proportions.
I veered away from the bulk of people and delved towards Al Rahmah Mosque, a pure white building directly constructed over rolling waves.
I spent some time admiring and exploring the mosque before finally seating myself at a stupidly expensive cafe called Leo. Here, I watched humorous anime clips until Ahmed and his sister drove by and gave me a lift.
Goofy Game
For evening activities, Ahmed and I has scored a couple of tickets to a local soccer game. We dropped off Ahmed’s sister and scooted over to the recently renovated Prince Abdullah AlFaisal Stadium. The stadium’s exterior is unique for it’s 360 degree screens blaring bright lights in the night. I find the outside a bit tacky, but the interior is gorgeous and well-designed for spectator sports. Overall, I’d say the renovations were excellent.
Now, I’m not a fan of soccer or international football. Technically, I’m not an avid follower of any sport. But I love the atmosphere of a live game. The ambiance, the food, the energy and the commitment of fans is almost impossible not to get swept up in. I don’t have the patience to enjoy sports on television, but in stadiums, they grab my attention entirely.
However, football (soccer) is a special case. I have other reasons for being entertained.
The thing I truly enjoy about going to an international soccer game in person is the twenty percent comedic value of the event. Players taking dives, fans groaning dejected, teams throwing tantrums and the chants half speckled with curses makes me laugh endlessly.
Yes, I know athletes are true professionals, putting their bodies and wills on the line for their livelihood and reputation, seizing glory through long hours of diligence. And yes, I know that there are serious injuries and risks in the sport. But watching a bearded, grown man roll off his feet to turtle on his back with anguish on his face after slipping on someone else’s foot is just amusing to me. And in this game, there was an excessive amount of that.
I enjoyed the game a lot. It gave me a chance to cheer and boo in equal measures. But as I mentioned, I’m not actually a fan, just an appreciator. If someone snuck up behind my keyboard right now and put a gun to my head, ordering me to name the team I had just watched, my answer would’ve been “The green one.”
Anyway, the game didn’t showcase too much impressive skill from the home team. The entire event plodded into overtime, at which point a somewhat undeserved penalty shot successfully earned one point, cementing a victory for the green team. Everyone cheered and whooped, stadium exploding into positive energy. It was an entertaining contrast since the audience was clearly growing increasingly frustrated with their team prior to that moment.
I was happy to see the game end on a mildly high note. But I don’t actually think the team deserved the win.
That’s fine though. If playing the video game Elder Scrolls: Oblivion has taught me anything, it’s that luck is a skill too.
After the game, Ahmed and I got a quick dinner of sandwiches and called it a night. I returned home and slumped into sleep.
Alrighty Whoops
I’ve said it a thousand times and it bears repeating; traveling intelligently requires sleep. A healthy amount of sleep. Sleep deprivation while traversing the world is the bane of smooth journeys.
That was proven true again when I woke up the following morning and learned my flight had departed at 2 AM instead of 2 PM like I had expected.
I didn’t feel too dejected though. I had been pushing myself fairly hard for the last month of 2023. I knew something like this would happen eventually.
I went online and bought a new one way flight back to Riyadh for 8 PM. It costed a bit more than I would like, but that’s just the way things roll sometimes.
Live and learn. And relearn. I like to think that lessons forgotten are a tonic of humility.
Loiter Unlikablilty
With nothing to do for the morning of my day, I took a car to a district I planned on visiting in the afternoon, Al Faisaliyyah District. This neighborhood is home to a highly recommended museum known as Al Taybat International Museum of Jeddah.
I decided to head that direction and hang out in the various cafe and restaurants in the district, killing time until my museum reservation slot was ready.
This proved to be a bit of an ill advised move. The neighborhood was super boring with scant dining options. What food options did exist were staffed by dejected employees, minimal seating and cash only counters. Most of the cafes doubled as hookah lounges, making comfy shops densely smelling enclosed space.
I was happy when my museum ticket reservation finally drew near. Leaving a cloying cafe, I scuffed down the street feeling a bit sluggish.
Art of Rawasheen
Al Taybat International Museum quickly turned itself into one of my favorite things in all of Jeddah. Frankly, it’s one of the best museums I’ve been in, with heavy references to elementary and advanced information regarding Saudi and ancient Arabian influence.
The exterior of the museum is actually more of a compound, with white buildings and intricate woodwork designs. Walls are encased in rawasheen, wooden latticed privacy screen windows that have delicate patterns crossing their surfaces. Towers stand pure white in sunset and doors are graced with whirls and etchings, an Arabian take on Indian styled patterns. Soft lanterns hung down narrow alleys and tiny potted plant splashed color around the bases of walls. Even the minor construction scaffolding couldn’t detract from the obvious and enduring beauty.
One of my enduring critiques about Saudi Arabia is its bulk architecture. Much of the country’s residential areas are a bit drab, with flat walls and blunt house fronts. They’re good for ensuring privacy, but they’re not visually appealing to wander around.
The tragedy is slightly more acute while visiting Al Taybat International Museum or the Old Town of Al Balad. If all of Jeddah had structured their modern buildings in this style, the city would be universally hailed as one of the most gorgeous architectural marvels and legacies on the planet.
Alas, our world of modern excess trends towards function rather than art in most places. I dream of a future where that shifts, but for now, I’ll continue to fall in love with astonishing architectural pockets rather than sweeping urban spaces.
Overstimulate
The interior of the museum is equally impressive to the outside. The entire display is four stories either artifacts and information hailing from every portion of the world, all linked to how they influenced the Arabian Peninsula. There are Chinese ivory sculptures, Indian platters, African designs, scientific posters, displays of weaponry and unique modern surrealist paintings.
The museum is densely packed and extremely overwhelming with its in depth information. In a span of minutes, my brain was swamped with new information.
It’s worth mentioning that the museum needs to be experienced carefully and slowly. Rooms are absolutely crammed with things to see and the layers of informational text are dense. Simply diving in and wandering around results in a lot of things missed. It’s worth looking at the model map at the museum’s entrance to fully access each and every wing.
Semi-Studious
While speaking with the museum staff, I learned about the makeup of Jeddah’s most famed building material, blocks of petrified coral carved from seastone quarries. I learned that doors in the Al Balad neighborhood were indicative of a family’s personal wealth, with more intricate patterns indicating fortune. I learned that the museum had been recreated in the Al Balad style, but on a modern square grid, rather than the wavy wind-inducing streets of Jeddah’s historic city center.
I also discovered of the history of the establishment of Islamic currency following the downfall of the Sasanian Empire. Rivalries with the Byzantine influences to the north required Islamic states to create coins with religious texts imprinted upon them, rather than the face stamps preferred by European nations. Anti-Idolatry sentiments, or the ban of worshipping false idols through imagery, caused the emerging Islamic powers to utilize calligraphy, patterns and Arabic text while forbidding human centric imagery.
Also interesting were the vast number of weapons throughout the museum. Islamic weapons, usually characterized by folding, interlocking patterns and decorations, were wildly interesting to gaze upon. While some were clearly ceremonial, there were muskets, swords, knifes, shields, axes and helps decorated in drawings of foiled plants. Nearby were inscriptions which read “Against them make ready your strength to the utmost of your power,”
Other walls were covered in information about Jeddah’s architecture. Most famous is the aforementioned rawasheen. These are wooden, patterned screens which are hung in front of windows and balconies. Their design, aside from being extremely visually pleasing, allows people to stare outside while staying unobserved. Traditionally, these are constructed from the wood of palm trees, laid over seastone walls. It’s important to note that Saudi Arabians in general place a strong value on personal privacy.
Other posters held information about the early development of the nation, including the establishment of the Bedouin people. Bedouin is an umbrella term referring to the semi-nomadic desert tribes which dominated the Arabian Peninsula and surrounding lands for thousands of years. Arabian histories also cover the Proto-Bedouin phase, which are referenced on Mesopotamia cuneiform tablets. Though information is scanty, these records touch on the legendary camel caravans, traders and cavalry warriors which crossed the heartland deserts of the Arabian Peninsula during a wetter period of the territory. Modern archeologists have uncovered rounded semi circular stone wind bracers, thought to be ancient campsite waystations nearby convenient, but now dry, water sources.
The histories extend back even further, touching on the first traders of the Peninsula. Artifacts from other cultures, such as carved volcanic glass, appear across extended trade routes that existed and disappeared throughout history.
Most interesting to me, personally, were the intricate displays summarizing the Rock Artworks found throughout Saudi Arabia. After recently visiting the Rock Artworks of Jubbah, I had a special interest in further insights. Diagrams revealed dozens of distinct designs and petroglyph symbols, including Thamudic alphabet symbols, early stick figured humans, Chalcolithic schematic humanoids, Late Neolithic figures with distinct genders and clothing and far older Neolithic, naturalistic figures.
The Thousand Lands of Painting
While the historic and educational strength of the museum captured my attention for a long time, I would be remiss not to mention the artwork scattered throughout the museum. Four stories were dedicated to rooms absolutely packed with paintings, sculptures, relics, reliefs, designs, rock artwork, metalwork, clothing and more. Many of these were divided by region which traded with Arabian nations at some point in history.
I spent hours gradually blurring my mind’s coherency with beauty. There was far more than I could reasonably see in my dedicated time slot. My special love during my indoor wanders were for the semi-third-dimensional artworks which blended sea colors, soft paint-depth and attatched, physical objects to creature truly 3D wall artwork.
I didn’t have nearly enough time in the museum. After my two hours were up, I needed to rush to the airport to catch my new flight.
Currently, I’m on my plane back home, jostled by turbulence as the lights go dim for landing. The man next to me is an extreme example of lacking class, coughing, chewing his nails and farting at impressively equal intervals. I’m, frankly, a bit disgusted and have pulled a mask over my face. I thank all aviation engineering diligence that this flight is barely an hour.
So ends another adventure with work rising again in the morning. Time to disembark.
And Ode to Fleeing Moments
Before finishing this post, i want to touch on a reality Earth is bracing for. Tomorrow is the last day of 2023.
As is the custom of this blog, I wish to touch on the adventures I’ve managed to cram into a single year.
I ushered in the New Year of 2023 with fireworks over the Hudson, staring across Manhattan from the Ritz-Carlton. Afterwards, I enjoyed family January celebrations, embarked on a Midwestern journey to Chicago and Mattoon, hunkered down in Dallas for a time, rescued dogs and cats, and brushed by Frankfurt, Germany on my way to the Middle East. There, I established myself in Riyadh of Saudi Arabia and sought out various cities and adventures in the nation, spanning from Al Hofuf to Al Kharj to Diriyah to Hail to Jubbah to Jeddah to Buraydah.
Internationally, I flung myself out on occasion. I was graced by time near Giza’s Pyramids and Cairo’s Old City. I marveled at life in Kuwait City and whittled down days in Abu Dhabi. There were hours exploring Bahrain and moments with a black cat named Mr. Mischief, pulled from the streets. Winter vacation brought me to Italy where I found time well spent in Rome, Naples, Sorrento, Portici and Pompeii. I sought out witching hours in Budapest and whirlwind tours of Istanbul. I returned to Riyadh for Riyadh Season, bright festivals and meals showcasing arts throughout the planet.
And now what else can be said? The year is done. I used it as best I could, which is perhaps not as well as I would have liked. But I cannot fault life lived for exceptional memories keep me fond of Earth.
The years are growing faster and more fraught. The only tool I have to make them seem longer is by filling my life with excitement and adventure. It’s a desperate, inverse struggle. All my time is taken up by the joy of travel. All my travels give the illusion of more time existing in life.
I imagine the duality of that perception will strike again soon.
Farewell, 2023, my Middle East Year. It’s time for a fresh hit of modern splendor, wonder, dystopia, irony, love, joy, sorrow and survival. See you, fickle, fascinating world, in 2024.
Until then, best regards and excellent trails,
Old Sean
Written Saturday December 30th, 2023
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