OK.... well actually we are no longer in Saudi.... and are now in Kuwait. But... as these pics are from Saudi I wanted them to come under the Saudi section here on Travelblog. The tour is over... and we are now on our way home. From Jeddah we went to Dubai... had two nights there... and then 1.5 days here in Kuwait. We fly out in 3 hours. Everything went by so fast. Jeddah was great... and so liberal compared to the rest of the Kingdom. Hell... women can actually walk outside of the hotel without a man at their side!! [View Full Entry]

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Here in Abha.... and getting reading to set off for Najran tomorrow morning. Had a great day exploring old mud-brick villages and taking cable car rides down the edge of the escarpment. The city here is typically unattractive... but the sights in the area are great. All seem to be having a fun time... tough most have just sussed out that the tour is coming to an end soon. Just a few nights left. Staying here at the 5star Abha Palace has been great... and a nice upgrade. But, the location is a bit away from the center and the prices [View Full Entry]

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Well... we are now about 500km south of Jeddah. Had a great time in the city.... and surely could have used another day there (but without the group). It is the only city in the Kingdom that has somehow managed to retain some of the old architecture. Everywhere else in Arabia they knock the old down to build new. But Jeddah has kept a few gems. The heat and humidity were high there... being on the Red Sea. But not overwhelming at this time of year. Nothing killer like southeast Asia. Had a couple of great meals out ... and the [View Full Entry]

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OK... well, I have tagged this as 'Jeddah'.. though we are not there yet. So much has happened since my last post... and there is so much to tell. Sorry... but this may be kind of random. Right now we are in Al Ula... a stunning little oasis town in the northwest.. and gateway to Mada'in Salah. Mada'in Salah was the southern capital of the Nabateans (those who built Petra in Jordan)... and so is considered the Petra of Saudi. We spent 4 hours at the sight this morning... walking through the sand and admiring the magnificent tombs cut into the [View Full Entry]

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at last....here are some pics. A bit of everything [View Full Entry]

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OK... I continue to try and add pics here.... but all attempts ahve failed. Quick update. Great train ride from Riyadh to Hofuf. Giant train station.... empty. Strange 'first class' lounge with free fresh arabic coffee and dates. Plasma tvs... internet access... and a Sony Playstation??. After 3.5 hours of driving across the worlds most uninspiring landscape we were there. Oh... Tom & Jerry Cartoons and Mr Bean played on the video in our train car to help pass the time.... and more dates were passed around. Balance of the day was spent trying to make the most out of our [View Full Entry]

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Yes... we are in Saudi Arabia. Crap... I can't beleive it. This tour has been a long time in the works.... and I truly am finding it hard to believe that we are really here. WOW WOW WOW. I have had a tour to Saudi planned in my head for ages.... and finally got it rolling a year ago. All the planning and plotting... staring at the map... reading ... and now I am in Riyadh. Chilled in Dubai for the morning... including the always mandatory mall visit... and then headed out. Met with the group for an orientation meeting before [View Full Entry]

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Well.... no photos yet but just a quick note to say hello. Will try to update this from Saudi if possible... but who knows. All has been uneventful so far.... as we have just had the first day here in Dubai. Flights were uneventful... with a short delay leaving Vancouver as someone was determined to be too drunk to fly (at 3pm??), so they had to offload his luggage. Frankfurt... well... the armpit of airports really... but nice bratwurst. Nice flight down here... with me reading all night as Toddy watched movies and slept. I am a wee bit jealous. Scaffolding [View Full Entry]

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Well.... this is it... the last blog. The rain has started to pour down here in Tamarindo (aka Tamagringo).... so no better time than now to duck in here and sign off. Hard to believe that our 35 day escape is about to come to an end!! It has been a while since my last blog (and i have received a few complaints... so my apologies). When I last blogged we were in Granda, Nicaragua and enjoying our four nights there. We hiked volcanos, enjoyed boat trips on the lake, watched the parade, took a carriage ride around the town... and [View Full Entry]

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Here we are in the heart of Granada, Nicaragua..... and having a great time as always. What a great city this is, and when I say that we are in the heart I really mean it. Our hotel is on the main square.... facing the central park and Cathedral. We are staying for 4 nights at the lovely Hotel Plaza Colon.... and it has now taken me over an hour to upload these 14 pics... so I am done for the night and will keep this short. Everyone said that we would love this town, and I can see why. Granada [View Full Entry]

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