Central & Eastern Regions
THE NAJD (CENTRAL REGION): The Najd is a stony desert plateau at the heart of Saudi Arabia, somewhat isolated from the rest of the peninsula. It was from here that Ibn Saud led his tribe of nomads out to create a new kingdom through conquest. Despite oil wealth, some Najdis still lead a semi-nomadic life, tending camels and sheep, but many have settled in the same towns they once milked for tribute with threats of violence. Watchtowers, standing guard on all the high points in Najd, are a reminder of this age-old conflict between nomad and farmer.
Riyadh: The royal capital, Riyadh (Ryad), is a modern city built on the site of the first town captured by Ibn Saud, when he stormed the Musmat Fort in 1902 (a spearhead embedded in the main door is said to be the one with which Ibn Saud killed the Turkish governor). Apart from the fort and a few traditional Najdi palaces near Deera Square, little trace of the old town remains. The King’s Camel Races are held near the city in April or May.
Other places of interest in Najd are Diriya, Wadi Hanifa, Shaib Awsat, Shaib Laha, Al-Hair, Wadi-al-Jafi, Tumair, Towqr, Aneyzah, Qassim and Hail.
HASA (EASTERN REGION): Fertile lowland coastal plains inhabited by the kingdom’s Shia minority, who have traditionally lived by fishing, diving for pearls, raising date palms and trading abroad and with the interior. All of Saudi Arabia’s vast stocks of oil lie under Hasa or beneath the Gulf, and the locals are now outnumbered by foreign oil-workers from all over the world.
Places retaining some flavour of old Hasa include Hofuf, a lively oasis with Turkish influence and a camel market; Jebel-al-Qara, where the potteries have been worked by eight generations of the same family; Abqaiq, which has a 5000-year-old saltmine, still in operation; the ruined customs house at Uqair, once an important Portuguese port and caravan terminus; and Tarut Island, site of the oldest town on the peninsula, now a picturesque settlement of fishermen and weavers.
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