Our final day on the bus was relatively short—just over six hours from Al Bahah to Jeddah. I calculated the road distance between the cities that we visited from Riyadh to Jeddah at around 2000 kilometers. Adding in all the side trips and back-and-forths, the driver said he actually drove nearly 3500 KM. That’s almost 2200 miles in less than two weeks!
We arrived in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia’s second largest city, just before four yesterday afternoon, dropped off our luggage and set out with Lynn to stretch our legs along the corniche. We weren’t alone. Young couples and Saudi families spread out their carpets, unfolded beach chairs and laid out picnics on the grass while kids cavorted on the jungle gyms. As we were on our way to McDonalds for Double Cheeseburgers and Fries—pathetic, isn’t it—King Fahad Fountain across the bay began shooting water more than 1000 feet into the air making for a great sunset photo.
This morning we joined a local guide on a sightseeing ride around Jeddah, ending at the Central Fish Market. While the guide pointed out this building and that hotel most of us were busy taking photos of the sculptures in the roundabouts, something we’ve noticed throughout the Gulf Countries.
While the Central Fish Market is busy every day, the Muslim holy day of Friday is especially chaotic. Friday is fish night and everyone wants the freshest. I could identify tuna, grouper, parrot fish, sardines and some others along with tons of shrimp, squid and even crabs. In one section workers—expats with curved knives—gutted, filleted and sliced the catch; even the heads and guts are saved for chowder. Surprisingly, there was no fishy smell, attesting to the freshness of the seafood.
Many sites in Saudi Arabia have a thing against “professional cameras,” basically anything other than a cell phone, so I didn’t bother going into the Floating Mosque which seems to float only at high tide. Instead I drooled over the boats docked at the Jeddah Yacht Club.
Following an afternoon break at the hotel we picked up another guide for a stroll on the corniche and a walking tour of Jeddah’s Old Town. Through the haze we could see Jeddah Tower which will be the tallest building in the world when finished in 2028. Towering more than a kilometer, it will be two football fields taller than Burj Khalifa in Dubai.
Our first stop in Old Town was the brand new Red Sea Museum, nicely done but a little short on exhibits. Once through “Bab Makkah”, the Mecca Gate, Old Jeddah was crowded—remember, it’s Friday—and was pretty much what we expected. One surprise was that our guide used to live there with her grandparents. Their house is still standing, barely, but is on the Tourism Board’s list of those to be restored.
After the requisite coffee stop and 40 minutes for shopping we, too, went out for a Friday fish dinner on the corniche. We shared grouper, sea bass, prawns, pita and fries served family-style—careful to avoid fish bones. It must have been a good meal—no one even hesitated at Baskin-Robbins for ice cream on the walk back to the hotel.
