A Short Trip to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia:

Old Jeddah, Al Ula, and Medain Saleh
(January 2008)

In January 2008, I did a business trip to Saudi Arabia. This gave me the opportunity to visit Jeddah and Medain Saleh. The following are photos of the old town of Jeddah, the oasis of Al Ula (a few kilometers south of Medain Saleh), and Medain Saleh.

Like Petra in Jordan, Medain Saleh is a Nabatean city built about 2000 years ago. It is located 400 km north of Medina and over 300 km south of Petra. It contains more than one hundred tombs carved into sandstone rock and spread over several kilometers. The tomb facades display decorations elements with Egyptian, Greek, and Roman influences. The site is surrounded by stunning sandstone walls and formations.

To reach Medain Saleh I flew from Jeddah to Medina. From Medina a car drove me to Medain Saleh. I was very fortunate to be able to visit this site without being part of an organized group. Amazingly, there was nobody else on the site. I had it all for myself.

Old Jeddah

Along the road from Medina to Al Ula

Al Ula

Sandstone formations around Al Ula and Medain Saleh

Tombs in Medain Saleh

Qasr Al Sani

Al Khuraymat

Qasr Al Bint

Qasr Al Farid