RIYADH

My late afternoon flight from Sofia in Bulgaria surprisingly saw only 27 passengers on a plane that could accommodate 237 persons. On arrival at Riyadh airport mid evening, I had all the usual feelings when travelling to new destinations - excitement, anticipation, hopes and some trepidation. I still had my visa to obtain and as usual I was hoping that I had understood and fulfilled all the requirements needed to obtain it and be able to enter the country.

I had been anticipating a possible long wait for my visa but felt some relief when I was dealt with immediately. To lighten my concerns I had my ‘Two Ronnies’ moment where instead of ‘fork handles’ and ‘four candles’ script - I once got it wrong going into Cambodia when I thought he told me ‘fore finger’ whereas he instructed ‘four finger’ and I couldn’t control my laughter!

There was little for me to do, no form filling or prerequisite to handover. My photograph was taken - besides the scan of my 4 fingers (well, 8 actually plus two thumbs). The worst part being the payment of 480 SAR (a little over £100) and a wait of 5-10 minutes (maybe to justify the payment!). After that it was just a stamp in my passport and a bit of Arabic writing and I was warmly welcomed.

So as I walked through customs etc., I was beginning to realise I was in Saudi Arabia (country 142 for me) after years of wondering if I’d ever be able to enter.

The airport was like many others - with official and unofficial taxi drivers all approaching me for my custom - and all duly ignored (not rudely!).

After selecting my mode of transport I was soon on my way to my hotel. As the journey began, the driver asked where I was from. After answering Leeds in England he responded that he knew of Leeds as he was fan of Leeds United. He named current players and players from 20 years ago! Was this going to be home from home??

As the journey progressed and he told me many things about Saudi, I became aware of what a large city Riyadh was - and I was liking the look of it.

Around 40 minutes later, I arrived at my hotel, checked in, was shown my room and…. Just couldn’t wait to get outside and have my first walk round the area.

The first thing that was so noticeable was the temperature. Yes, it was warm - but a very dry heat and I felt quite at home in it at around 40C. I enjoyed my first walk and had food and drink before heading to bed - feeling a bit like a kid on Christmas Eve!

Over the next several days, there were sights I wanted to see but my plans had been fairly relaxed as I was unsure about restrictions I could face and how the heat could impact on those plans.

My first full day saw me walking around many areas, seeing the large buildings, shopping malls, several mosques and generally getting a feeling for the place. I did stop on several occasions for cooling drinks and to watch the locals go about their normal business. Generally I felt relaxed about the culture but also aware of the expectations of me as a visitor.

When I left my hotel the next morning, I headed for one of the large mosques in Riyadh which was supposed to be quite an attraction for visitors. The first thing I noticed leaving the hotel was the roads were extremely quiet and then I remembered that Friday and Saturday in Saudi were regarded as the weekend. I walked in the heat for several kilometres - taking some photographs - and eventually reaching the mosque I wanted to see. As I approached, the area was fairly deserted and I took a picture from a distance before proceeding to the area around the mosque. I was a little surprised to see a couple of police vehicles around and I did ask if I could take photographs of the mosque but I appeared to get a negative response from the police officer (who who spoke little English). I did however, ask one of the worshippers I saw approaching the mosque and he was quite firm that I should not take photographs if I was not Muslim. This I found very disappointing - but something I should accept. After looking around the mosque from a distance, I headed back to wards where my hotel was and beyond again taking photographs of the city.

The evening saw me visit one of the the popular shopping malls - where I enjoyed a Yemeni meal, whilst many locals queued at McDonalds! Again, it was interesting watching the locals go about their leisurely activities.

My last full day in Riyadh saw me using the local transport system and catching a bus to travel several miles to another part of the city. Whilst some of it was still attractive to take photographs of, some of the area was the older town area and possibly old city before Riyadh was developed as it is now. I did enjoy seeing how the locals lived and it was a good experience.

Early evening saw me visiting one of my expected highlights of my visit to Riyadh - the Kingdom Centre Sky Bridge and to go up to the top. Despite the fact that I don't like heights, I continue to visit these type of attractions when I visit new countries and cities but the views are always spectacular. Of course I took many photographs there and stayed during sunset taking pictures until the darkness set in.

Overall, the city is a mixture of old and new. - similar to Dubai in many ways, with the new areas having large modern hotels and cooling shopping malls along wide roads. The old areas are very small with compact buildings cramped into narrow streets with small local shops selling anything and everything.

It was clear that the heat the city has to endure, has a major impact on the way people live. The temperature was usually around 43 degrees centigrade (in the shade) during the afternoon but my trusty thermometer showed 46C one afternoon when I was sitting in the shade - although this depended very much on the heat being radiated from adjacent buildings, pathways etc.

The locals adapt to these conditions where 2am or 3am in the morning sees roads equally or more busy than 2pm or 3pm in an afternoon as most stores open until 1 or 2 in the morning but are closed for long periods during the day.

I was aware of some cultural differences… ‘family’ entrances and ‘single’ entrances on some establishments, 'women' entrances on others Also the wearing of shorts would be frowned upon by most. Restrictions on what I could/should photograph was also something I needed to be fully aware of.

Overall, it was a very positive city to visit.

MEDINA

Firstly, apologies in advance (particularly to my Muslim friends), if any of my observations/actions have been incorrect or improper.

The background to my visit to this city probably had its roots in Jordan some years earlier when I watched Hajj being broadcast live on TV from Makkah (Mecca) - and the sight increased my wishes to travel to Saudi Arabia and in particular Mecca - to one of the top places I wanted to visit.

As I looked at the possibility of travelling there, it became obvious that I would not be allowed to visit Saudi Arabia and so for some years since that time I realised that I would never be able to visit Mecca (and still cannot).

Fortunately, in recent years Saudi Arabia had made significant changes to some of its regulations and attitudes and had become more open and welcoming to visitors. This, therefore gave me the opportunity to visit, albeit with some restrictions on my activities.

I also became aware that besides the Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca, many pilgrims also travelled to Medina to visit the Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (Prophet's Mosque).

As I progressed my plans to visit Medina, I was never totally convinced I would be allowed there as it appeared there could be controls on who could travel to the area when many pilgrims were visiting. I had my flight from Riyadh to Medina booked and was just hoping all would go well.

When I travel, I always believe I am a guest of that country and should obey the standards expected of me. I try to fully abide by the wishes of the locals as regards their culture, religion, customs etc. However, I do also on occasions, have conflicts within myself - as I have this almost insatiable hunger for travel adventure and experiences and this can - on very few occasions - contradict those standards. This was certainly one of those occasions.

My main purpose of visiting Medina was to see the Al-Masjid an-Nabawi, but I knew I could not visit within the area, although I believed I could see it from outside the boundary. Obviously I wanted to take photographs too but realised that this may cause offence - although it was broadcast live on TV each night (as was Mecca).

I have to confess, I did (very discreetly) take a few photographs from a distance, trusting (and from how I interpreted items I had read) I would not offend anyone and hoping that they would understand that by showing my pictures to others it would show the beauty and love of their religion .

I had flown from Riyadh to Medina late morning (a good way to keep cool) and whilst travelling to my hotel, the taxi had to cope with a number of diversions due to closed roads. On arrival at my hotel - which was around 2km from the mosque - I decided I would walk towards the centre of the city to see what the situation would be for me trying to get near the area. I could soon see the mosque from a distance and I took a couple of photographs.

As I continued to walk, I followed the directions shown to the pilgrims - although the route was almost deserted. Once I got nearer to the centre of Medina, I could see the large hotels that surround the area of the mosque to cater for the pilgrims. The crowds were slowly starting to build up - and there were a number of coaches parked up too. Many of the pilgrims had their nationality showing in some form and it was fascinating to see the countries they had travelled from.

It would have been so difficult to turn round and walk away and I wanted to experience the pilgrims attending the mosque. There were many small shops around selling cold drinks - which I badly needed. I was also overjoyed to see souvenir type shops - a few with fridge magnets too (which I’d not seen in Riyadh - even at the airport). My purchases were quickly made.

I found a discreet but good viewing point where I could sit and watch and as I sat there and a little time passed, I guess I had long decided that this was what I wanted to experience and I almost felt a part of it.

As the evening darkness began to surround the area I walked round the perimeter and the majestic sight was accompanied by the call to prayer and the sight of pilgrims praying.

This was certainly one of those ‘pinching myself’ moments - that I wasn’t dreaming. I was really experiencing it.

Internally, I was overjoyed - but at all times I kept a solemn attitude externally and to be honest few people appeared to notice me in any way.

I was intending to leave before the pilgrims, but I was a little surprised how quickly it ended and so I watched the crowds leaving before joining those that wanted refreshments - allowing the crowds to return to their hotels or to disperse.

Several people had spoken to me asking where I was from - and when I told them, I confessed I was not a muslim too - but wanted to witness events from a distance - to which none appeared offended. In fact, I was greeted very warmly by several worshippers - with one kissing me on both cheeks through his thick beard!

Eventually, I slowly made my way back to my hotel - stopping on the way back for food and drink and reflecting on all I had witnessed.

Again, I knew it had been one of those travel experiences that I would treasure and be so thankful that I made the decisions that I had.

Wanting to experience such things is normal for me and I have been very fortunate to visit many of the important holy places around the world of various religions - Western Wall, Golden Temple, Church of Nativity, Temple of the Tooth and many, many more. To add Al-Masjid an-Nabawi to that list was very humbling.

The following morning, I had originally planned to try to visit the mosque again, but because of the wonderful experience the previous night decided against it knowing another visit would fall far short of the previous evening. I strolled around the area of the city near my hotel taking in a few cooling drinks. As the heat increased, the city became very quiet again.

Early afternoon saw me getting a taxi to the railway station for the next and final leg of my travels in Saudi. As I arrived at the station, to say I was impressed would be an understatement and after checking I could take photographs, I did so.

This leg of the journey in Medina was certainly something I had been looking forward to - although with some uncertainty as to what I would achieve.

As the train departed Medina, my hunger for those travel experiences I have always yearned, had indeed been satisfied.

JEDDAH

After what appeared to have been a very sobering (but exciting) experience in Madinah, I travelled by train from Madinah to Jeddah. The station and train were of the highest and most modern standards. The train maintained a constant speed of 300kph (186mph) for most of the journey and was the smoothest train journey I have experienced. As expected, the scenery was nothing special. In fact, most of it was barren land but there were mountains in the distance in some areas.

On arrival in Jeddah - at a very similar railway station to Madinah - it appeared to be a couple of degrees cooler but much more humid being by the sea. After checking in to my hotel and setting off for a walk towards the corniche, it also appeared to have a more relaxed feel to it and it seemed to be more acceptable to wearing knee length shorts. I was staying a short walk from the corniche and enjoyed a late afternoon walk along the waterfront, which was a very pleasant area.

After a couple of hours the area became very popular. Families strolled as the evening sunset progressed Many were busy watching and photographing the huge water fountain (that dominated the bay) and their family groups. There were also areas where many offered their prayers in large groups and each evening large prayer mats were rolled out for the worshippers.

As my hotel was in this popular area, there were many eating places and I soon decided to select a local dish before heading back to my hotel.

The following morning I headed back to the corniche, however it was strange to see it almost deserted. Clearly, the locals avoided the build up of the strong sun and heat.

After lunch - which was basically a couple of cooling drinks - I decided to walk along the waterway in the opposite direction towards the old part of Jeddah. There was a large beach area that strangely had a mosque in the centre.

Continuing my walk, I realised I was not going to reach the old town area (which was probably 7-8kms away) as the sun and heat made conditions difficult for long walks. Again, cooling drinks were very welcome as I returned to my hotel.

The family atmosphere of the corniche again attracted me to visit in the evening and as on the previous evening - like many families - I took photographs of the area and in particular, the huge fountain. Strange then, that I was approached and stopped by the police who questioned me about the photographs I had taken and wanting to see them. Holding my camera securely (with the wrist band wrapped tightly round my wrist) I showed them my recent photographs and eventually all appeared acceptable - even the silhouette of a mosque minaret in the late evening sun. I accepted it - as I had experienced similar situations in several other countries on previous travels.

On my final full day, I decided I must visit the old town with options of walking or taxi. I started off walking knowing that there was a shopping mall en route where I could have refreshments. Whilst there, I decided as I would be walking a lot around the old own I would get a taxi the remainder of the journey especially with the heat starting to build.

Once I arrived near the old town I was pleasantly surprised to see a green area by a modern lake - with an opportunity to take photographs. I soon moved on towards the old area and the landscape certainly changed. It felt like I had entered a time warp as the old buildings came into view.

This old historical area of the city was a treasure to see. There were various sights within the area and there was a large restoration programme ongoing and I was thrilled to be able to take many pictures.

I continued to an adjacent busy area - full of locals visiting local shops and markets. I asked a few of the stall holders if I could take pictures and they were happy for me to do so.

As I was fast moving towards the end of my travels in Saudi Arabia and after a busy schedule, I started taking it a little easier, enjoying sitting - often outside coffee shop or on a bench with cold drinks - watching the locals go about their business.

Again, during my last evening, I had enjoyed local food - as I always had done when travelling.

On my last morning, I had a stroll along the nearby corniche once again - reflecting on my travels in Saudi Arabia. It was a special feeling - as I really felt I was back to doing what is surely one of the best things in life - experiencing new cultures, traditions and lives etc of other countries.

As I had been getting my ideas together for this trip, I wasn’t planning on it ending in Saudi Arabia but was looking at visiting Sudan - possibly travelling across the Red Sea. However, events in Sudan had taken a sudden turn for the worse and made that option no longer possible - but I had visited Saudi Arabia - something I thought I would never be able to do.