Jeddah: Man's Head Wrap

While Saudi men most often wear the headscarf hanging down, sometimes they like to wrap it around their heads like this.

SkyWatch: Morning Mosque

Many mosques in Saudi Arabia feature domes and minarets topped with a crescent moon.



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Jeddah: Al Balad Hanging Lamps

The old historic town of Jeddah, called Al Balad, continues to undergo massive efforts to revitalize this part of the city.  Just since I arrived 10 years ago, the evolution has been quite remarkable and encouraging.  Many of the old salvageable buildings have been brought back to their former glory, carefully maintaining the integrity of their era.  Several old family residences are now open to the public for visitation and are chock full of relics from the past.  These buildings are known by the names of the families who built and resided in them for many years.

Jeddah: Decorative Chest

An original furnishing of one of the old residences in Al Balad, the oldest part of Jeddah.

Our World: Religious Pilgrims

The city of Jeddah is the major gateway to two of the holiest cities of Islam, Mecca and Medina. Consequently, millions of religious pilgrims travel into Jeddah each year.

Religious pilgrims are easily identifiable by their garb - unsewn white pieces of cloth wrapped around their lower and upper bodies.  Many male pilgrims also shave their heads when they perform the rituals of the pilgrimage.

Pilgrims can make their way to Mecca by car, bus, or hi-speed rail.

They travel to Saudi Arabia from countries all over the world.  Some have to save all their lives in order to perform Hajj, to complete this pillar of Islam.  Hajj happens once every year at a specific time and the number of the highly valued visas issued by Saudi Arabia is limited.

When the pilgrimage is performed other times of the year besides Hajj, it is called Omra.  Omra does not fulfill the Islamic requirement of performing Hajj.



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Saudi Emblem Car Decal

The symbol of the palm tree above two crossed swords became the national emblem of Saudi Arabia in 1950.  

The date palm tree is a dynamic resource of the country. The edible date portion supplies a valuable source of nutrition. The rest of the tree provides value as well in the making of functional objects like, baskets and rope. 

The crossed swords on the emblem represent the unification of the Hejaz and Najd areas by Ibn Saud, which along with the tribes of the eastern and southern regions, all came together in 1932 to become the country of Saudi Arabia.  

Jeddah: Group Tour in Al Balad

One evening while my friends and I were walking around the old part of Jeddah called Al Balad (which means "the city" in Arabic), we came upon this handsome group of local men who were also enjoying the visual delights of the old city.  I love seeing a large majority of Saudi men dressed in their traditional garb. I guess you could call it their uniform.