Al Ula has always piqued my interest. It is the site of one of the world's most ancient civilizations. However, the history is rather complex. As it sits on a significant amount of water, this oasis city was founded about 8,000 years ago (really!) and served as a trading hub, transport hub, and even a capital city for various kingdoms. From my understanding, the bulk of the tombs and inscriptions were a result of the Nabataeans over 2,000 years ago or more.
I was fortunate to have a short, 2 day trip paid for by the local government's tourism office. Me and 5 other Saudis were flown out to do a photo shoot to promote the area.
After arriving, I was itching to go check out the surrounding area. I bumped into the hotel manager on my way out and struck up a conversation. He was a nice dude and offered to take me out for the afternoon after he ran some errands. I jumped in his car and joined him.
This was just off the road. We pulled over, I ran up a short hill and, boom. There it was.
Near the bottom of the picture above are some small squares serving as entrances to burial sites. Many of these were fenced off and being researched for the first time (literally).
And after finishing up some of his hotel chores, we swapped cars and grabbed a 4x4. Homie took me out to climb some rocks and find rock art.
I was flabbergasted by the amazing condition and diversity of this art. It reminded me of a different version of the Pueblo rock art Ben and I explored. Camels, ibexes, horses, cattle, and ostriches filled the walls of these Arabian rock faces.
We proceeded to head back down. It should be worth noting that a likely contributor to the immaculate preservation of this rock art is the difficulty in accessing these rock walls. It involved a rather treacherous and steep climb.
After scrambling back to the 4x4, we take a quick stop to look at some Arabic inscriptions.
Most inscriptions contain prayers, requests for blessings, tributes to the dead, or messages to other travelers. Near the bottom left, one inscription just says "Ahmed is a poop face". Hooligans!
No, but seriously. It is worth respecting Arabic for being an alphabetic language with such longevity. Many (but not all) words & letters are recognizable today.
Then a drive through old town.
To be frank, I feel very lucky this guy offered to take me around. It was a great way to spend the day.
That evening, I wandered downstairs and found some dudes chatting, playing strings, and smoking hashish. I was happy to join them in the smoking and chatting part.
Turns out, they were here for the exact same reason I was. I was the fourth performer in their string quartet.
We had a lot of fun the next day. We were taken out to Al Gharameel to shoot a picnic scene where we serenade two attractive young couples. Everything about it was fun.
They had to teach me how to old the instruments. I think I ended up playing cello during most of the shoot.
The night ended with star gazing and BBQ dinner. A fun experience all around.
It was invigorating to see a blast of history on rock walls. From exploring the remnants of an ancient city to observing the origins of an iconic language, Al Ula seemed primed for exploration. Like most places in Arabia, I can't wait to go back.