30 September 2020 I arrived in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Refreshed and rejuvenated from finally sleeping at night, I began exploring my new town. I began with a short visit to Al-Balad (old town) and was greeted with historic mud-brick and stone buildings, mosques, tea houses, and small shops.
Prayer time and we had the streets to ourselves for a bit.
As we left a tea house, I had the pleasure of meeting and photographing Muhammed. He is the owner of this shop and invited me to stay a bit longer. Ah, wish I could, but my friend was waiting. Much to see...
We made one last stop at a historic tea house, now used more like a museum, of sorts. It offered a glimpse into life in 1980's Jeddah.
The next day I took a stroll down to the corniche waterfront where I got my first real glimpse of the Red Sea and the sun setting over Sudan and the Sahara desert.
Early October, 2020.
The warm, salt-scented air made for a spectacular evening.
After visiting some more local spots, I started itching to head east and check out the Arabian desert. Al Wahbah crater kept popping up as a cool place to camp, so over Thanksgiving break I jumped in with a little crew driving out to spend a few nights.
People originally thought the crater was formed by a meteorite, but recent analysis suggests it is a maar, forming as a result of a super-heated magma instantaneously evaporating an underground water table, leading to a phreatic eruption. A layer of salt is left behind on the crater floor.
A nice day hike in and a photograph by my buddy Aaron.
Moving closer to winter season, another group of friends and I drove a bit down south for a night of music, BBQ, stargazing, and drinks. I grabbed a buddy and we went snorkeling out to the ship before the sun set. It was treacherous, but we crushed it. A lovely night at the Lost Ship Suhaiba.
