KSA - Part 2

The rest of the stay in Saudi Arabia went quite well.

I did manage to go out of the Hotel the following day and all seemed to be "less frightning" than what I had imagined...

Apparently, Jeddah is more open than Rhiyad, so foreigners are allowed to do things that would have been completely forbidden in the capital.

In Jeddah, I could easily walk around without covering my hair and I could also have my male colleagues around me with no type of problem... not only in the hotel, but also in the car, restaurants, etc...

With regards to the city, it seems to be the typical Gulf City, with beige/white low rise type of buildings and narrow main streets. Its more like Fujairah or RAK if we want to compare it with the UAE... with plenty of villas and shops and shopping malls but nothing as big or glittery as Dubai.

It is also beautifully located by the Red Sea and it has a really pretty corniche area, with a couple of restaurants and hotels along it (also where my hotel was). Most of the time, I would think how great it would be to dive there! All the beauty of the Red Sea minus the hundreds of divers in the water (as in Egypt).

Overall, I have to admit that I really thought it was going to be a much "harder" city.. I almost felt a bit disappointed... I was prepared for the worst, but I ended up leaving it feeling it was actually a nice place... Eventhough KSA is a muslim country and quite strict in what it comes to ensure all goes by the "rules" but that "stereotype" just doesnt seem to glue completely with my experience in Jeddah, which is a good thing. I think. Definitely planning to go back! :)