Dec 31 - Rain is a great thing to wake up to at home, especially on the weekend when I don’t have plans to do anything outside. But it is one of the last things I like to wake up to while traveling. Today I was expecting a continuation of yesterday afternoon, but the sun is out and drying up the ponds that had collected everywhere on the streets.
I go out to run some errands, and stop by the Shubra Palace. It is now a museum, but has been closed for some time. I just walked by and had a look at it.
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We head out of town east to Saiysad National Park. As usual, the route is confusing, with places where rather than just turning left at an intersection, it is necessary to keep going straight, do a U-turn 500 meters up the road, and then turn right when back at the intersection again.
It is a good time of year to visit, as the rains have brought forth some seasonal vegetation. There was an old dam here from Umayyad times, but I did not see any place that they’ve preserved evidence of it. There are many picnic areas and playgrounds, but one thing they don’t have here are hiking trails. We park at the end of the road, by a small modern dam, and make our own trail into the hills.
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From here we go back through the north part of town and on to the main highway toward Mecca. Before reaching the escarpment, we turn off in the town of Jiruba and visit the Ta’if Bird Park (بيرد بارك).
I had read about this place and it seemed like a worthwhile trip since we are in the area. It turned out to be really fun. The place is small but the birds have a lot of space to fly around in. For 5 riyals you can get a cup full of seeds to feed them. They keep the place very clean, constantly sweeping up the seed shells that fall everywhere.
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There were some non-bird residents here as well, such as squirrels, Patagonian maras, and rabbits. Mind you, none of these animals are native to the Arabian Peninsula, but we rarely pass up the opportunity to see some animals on this trip.
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Its New Year’s Eve! Turns out about as quiet as Christmas was. No alcohol here, so the usual tradition to toast midnight did not happen. We did stay up until then, and watched the video of proceedings at the Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai.
Saudi Arabia