A Day at the Beach on the Persian Gulf

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April 2, 2010
Today was the second day of the weekend and the rest of the group arrives tomorrow. I didn’t have any plans, so I mostly spent the day at the beach, which is only a couple of hundred feet from where I am staying.

And what a beach it was! I’m right on the Persian Gulf, or as they refer to it here in Saudi Arabia, the Arabian Gulf. It was 90 degrees, cloudless, with a gentle breeze blowing off the Gulf. As you can see, I was the only one in sight on the beach. It’s hard to believe that no one else was around and I had it all to myself.

I also walked to the grocery store, which is about 20 minutes away. I was inside when the lights started to dim and someone on the loudspeaker started talking in Arabic. I saw shoppers start to move really quickly because that was the signal that they were about to close for another prayer break. As you probably know, there are five prayer breaks a day. (It’s about 6:00 pm as I’m writing this and in fact, I can hear the call to prayer over the loudspeaker right now.)

So I grabbed a bottle of water and a bag of M&M’s (that’s SO me!), paid my Riyahls, and I headed back.

Tomorrow the rest of the gang arrives, so it will seem a little more social. The first assessment center starts on Easter Sunday. I’ve smuggled in yellow birdie marshmallow peeps and pink bunny peeps for the occasion.

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Photos

Arabian (Persian) Gulf
90 degrees F., sunny sky, blue green water, white sand -- and nobody on the beach but me!

Off-Shore Drilling
If you double-click this photo, you will see the off-shore platforms and tanker ship.

Gas Refinery
You can see the flame of the gas refinery

Al Jazzera Guest House
Where I'm staying

To my left...
Miles of empty beach

To my right...
Miles of empty beach

The Ugly and the Beautiful
The razor wire at the end of the property constrasts with the beauty of the Gulf

Comments

[Ellen]

Beach
A long way to go to get some private beach, but what a beach. Awesome Ted! Happy Good Friday -- lol. I am sure you will "miss" Easter this year. Ellen

[eve]

Gorgeous beach! Can you go snorkeling there if you want (and have the time.... and the inclination... and won't get run over by an oil tanker... )??

[TedTravel]

Snorkeling
I assume you can go snokeling, but I've never seen anyone do it. Of course, I've never seen anyone period, so who knows. Yes, you don't want to be run over by a tanker because that would be a major ouchie.