Saudi Arabia finally started issuing tourist visas in September 2019, so I rushed on in...
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View from Dammam Corniche
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Train for Riyadh
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88 miles SW of Dammam
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98 miles East of Riyadh
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71 miles East of Riyadh
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Ministry of the Interior (Or perhaps a landing craft from a Culture GCU)
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Kingdom Tower
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Kingdom Tower
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Kingdom Tower Sky Bridge
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View from Kingdom Tower (looking North)
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View from Kingdom Tower (looking South)
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Segregated Starbucks
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"Singles" entrance
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"Family" entrance Note the frosted glass on this side
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Unexpected sign on a dull office building "General Presidency of the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vices"
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Masmarak Fortress
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Masmarak Fortress
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Masmarak Fortress
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Fortress gate famously forced by Abdulaziz Al Saud
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Inset Gate
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Masmarak Fortress: Storming by Abdulaziz Al Saud
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Masmarak Fortress interior
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Masmarak Fortress interior
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View near Masmarak Fortress
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The National Museum is well organized and has very tactful signage.
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"The Glory of His Creation"
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"Continents Move... by the will of God"
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"Different Times ... Different Animals and Plants"
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Extract from Civilization Timeline
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Extract from Civilization Timeline
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Replica of Lion Tomb at Dadan
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Replica of Madain SalehTomb
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"Treasure of Thaj" 1st c BC to 1st c AD
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Animal powered millstone
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Symbol of the Snake god Wed (2nd c AD)
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Replica of the Al-Muwaylih Fort
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Model of the Great Mosque at Mecca
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26 miles North of Riyadh
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28 miles North of Riyadh
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73 miles East of Buraidah
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72 miles East of Buraidah
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62 miles East of Buraidah
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"Date City" out of season.
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"Date City" out of season.
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Date palms, near Date City
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View to Buraidah
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Another segregated Starbucks
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Segregated Burger King
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Segregated Texas Chicken
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Segregated Buffalo Wild Wings
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Bank "Ladies Branch"
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20 miles NW of Buraidah
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73 miles NW of Buraidah
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Ha'il: Qishlah Fortress
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Qishlah Fortress
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Qishlah Fortress: Main Gate
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Qishlah Fortress: Interior closed for restoration
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A'arif Fort
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Ha'il from A'arif Fort
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Pre-islamic statue, Ha'il Regional Museum
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Towers from (demolished) Barzan castle
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The Local Heritage Museum is a rather eccentric but amusing private museum of "old" Ha'il
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Hail Local Heritage Museum
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1918 Egyptian passport
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Camel crossing, 68 miles West of Ha'il
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93 miles West of Ha'il
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117 miles East of Madain Saleh
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48 miles East of Madain Saleh
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Rock spires, 15 miles East of Madain Saleh
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This is the most importand archeological site in Saudi Arabia, an ancient Nabatean City.
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Our tour guide
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Welcoming coffee and dates!
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Jabal Ithlib
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Jabal Ithlib
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Jabal Ithlib: Al Diwan, a rock-carved meeting room(?)
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Jabal Ithlib: Siq
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Jabal Ithlib: Siq
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Jabal Ithlib: View down to green farmland
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Qasr Al Bint
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Qasr Al Bint
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Qasr Al Bint: Common tomb decorations
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Qasr Al Bint
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Qasr Al Bint
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Qasr Al Bint
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Qasr Al Bint
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Qasr Al Bint
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Qasr Al Bint
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Jabal Al Ahmar
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Jabal Al Ahmar: Our esteemed guide
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Jabal Al Ahmar
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Jabal Al Ahmar
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Jabal Al Ahmar
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Jabal Al Ahmar
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Qasr Al Farid
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Qasr Al Farid
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Scotsman at Qasr Al Farid
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The immersive play was unexpectedly interesting, as traders welcomed us as exotic strangers...
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The traders welcome exotic strangers!
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The King's son is dead!
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Funerary preparations
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The body is taken into the Tomb
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The End
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Hejaz Railway Station
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Hejaz Railway Station
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Hejaz Railway Station
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I was in Al Ula for the Winter at Tantora festival, as right now that is the only way to visit Madein Saleh.
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Mosque of the Bones
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Al Ula Castle
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Al Ula Castle
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Winter Park holds the HQ for the Winter at tantora Festival
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Winter at Tantora HQ
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Dadan is an ancient Lihyan city.
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Very distant view to Lion Tombs
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Zoomed distant view to Lion Tombs
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View from rocky Dadan to green plam trees
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Rocky spires near Dadan
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A very craggy landscape.
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Elephant Rock
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Elephant Rock
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View from Al Ula Overview point
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View from Al Ula Overview point
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Yanbu Historic District (under development)
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Yanbu Historic District (under development)
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Charming "fish in a basket" sculpture
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View to sadly non-operating King Fahd Fountain
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Bab Jadid Gate
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Historic Al Naseef House The tree was once "the only tree in Jeddah"
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Historic Al Naseef House
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Al Shafee mosque minaret
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"Bedouin Market"
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"Bedouin Market"
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Baab Makkah (Mecca Gate)
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An only nominally segregated coffee shop
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Jeddah Tower Intended to be 1km high. Construction is frozen, alas.
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Jeddah Tower
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I transited through Bahrain on my way to Dammam.
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HM the King
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Bab al-Bahrain Gate (1949)
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Exotic twisted tower
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The Two Towers
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