Random things I saw in Jeddah

This might be more than usually random, but I have nothing to add.

Opening up to the tourist trade

Nothing remarkable about this picture, but it makes me smile. All of the tour guides in Saudi Arabia were charming, and so eager to show us their country even as they struggled to figure out this whole “tourism” thing.

Where was I again?

I'm laid up with a nasty cold, so maybe I can actually finish up with Saudi Arabia in this decade. Yesterday I was wishing for death; today if I'm lying down watching television I don't feel terrible, but the minute I do something strenuous—like walking to the kitchen—I urgently need a nap.

Here's an interesting juxtaposition of the three stages of building repair in old town Jeddah.

Sunday bird blogging

Here's an unimpressive picture of an impressive bird: a Eurasian hoopoe I saw near my hotel in Aqaba.

Saturday reflections

I have no idea what this building in Jeddah is (though I do like the marching camels), but there's the Arabian sky, reflected, so here it is.

The Sauds

Versions of this sign, depicting the founding father and first king, Abdulaziz ibn Saud, the current king, Salman, and the Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, were everywhere.

Lest you forget that Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy, and is in fact named for the royal family.

Urban poetry

King Faud's Fountain, seen in the distance the night we left Jeddah. It's the tallest water fountain in the world, because of course it is.

Sunday bird blogging

Pigeons on a building in Jeddah. With reflections, so two birds with one photo, so to speak.

This wasn't a fun week. I've been having laptop issues for the past few weeks, so I've had multiple visits to the Apple store, and had to work around all of this to try to get all of my class materials done. There has been a certain amount of yelling and cursing, and I have to admit it was not always directed at inanimate objects.

The laptop is still on life support, despite paying $250 dollars and three days downtime for a new battery, but I'll scream about that next week.

On the streets of Al Balad

Is it obvious that classes have started again? I will post the remaining Jeddah pictures, but the pictures that haven't been processed yet (Knossos, Ephesus, Yanbu) will have to wait a while.

Urban poetry

I think this counts as urban poetry: the outdoor seating area of a cafe in Jeddah honoring Muhammad Ali.

As a world-famous Muslim, Ali was very popular in Saudi Arabia. He visited many times, first making the Hajj in 1972.

Minaret

I couldn't decide which of these photos of the minaret of the Al Shafi mosque in Jeddah I liked better—the one with more detail? Or the one with more context? So I'm posting both.

The mosque is the oldest in Jeddah, dating from the 13th century, though it has undergone extensive renovations.

Saturday reflections

The courtyard of the Al Shafi mosque in Jeddah.