Saudi Arabia Visit – Exploring Beautiful Riyadh City and its environ

Saudi Arabia Visit – Exploring Beautiful Riyadh City and its environ 

About three years ago, the Saudi government decided to open its borders to visitors and in the process enable the issuance of visas to be easy with most people able to get this done online in less than five minutes through the website visa.visitsaudi.com.

My colleagues from the University of Oxford Said Business School/Nuffield Department Primary Care Health Sciences Masters in Global Healthcare Leadership program were invited to visit Riyadh by one of us Marwan Albalawi who served excellently as the chief host. Four of us took up Marwan’s offer, Chantelle Fatania, Ivan Duskov, Jae Kullar, and I, with Aarti Gudka (Chantelle’s friend) also joining us. 

I arrived in Riyadh on February 3, 2024, circa 11.30 pm, and left on February 11, 2024, at about 1 am making my fruitful days to be February 4-10, 2024. 

I arrived with a visa that was received through the online application and the process of going through the immigration and customs was smooth and seamless with the need to do some fingerprinting as the requirement for entry as would have happened if I had gone to an embassy to get the visa. I was received at the airport by Marwan and Chantelle(who had arrived a few hours earlier). I was taken to my hotel located in the Granada district of Riyadh which is the same hotel where Chantelle is staying and in which the others will be joining us. This hotel was picked for us by Marwan because of its good rate and location along with the fact that the new metro was to have a station nearby. Unfortunately, the metro was yet to open during our stay in Riyadh but this created the opportunity to walk around or to take an Uber and experience the traffic of Riyadh. 

February 4 - The first day of exploration – Granada Mall and Boulevard World

The first day was spent exploring the Granada area of Riyadh, visiting the local restaurants and the local Granada Mall. The Granada Mall (https://www.ksa.directory/granada-mall/i/1077 ) is located in a large expanse of land and a walking distance from the hotel. It is similar to any big mall located in the US with its varieties of British and US stores, cafes, and restaurants. Chantelle and I being the only two around, were able to explore the stores and ended up in a local exquisite café. My introduction to Arabian tea and dates started on this day with my developing a special taste for both. Being an avid coffee drinker, I was going through a process of a change to drinking tea and sucking on dates for the next few days.

Later in the day, Marwan picked up Chantelle and I, and we drove to the Boulevard World (https://welcomesaudi.com/activity/boulevard-world-riyadh ) on the outskirts of Riyadh. This is an expansive conglomerate of different things with country themes that allows for the exploration of different cultures in one place and a journey to countries including the USA, Mexico, Egypt, Spain, India, Japan, China, Morocco, Italy, Greece, France, UK, and Thailand with each depicting an iconic image for each country like the pyramid/sphinx for Egypt and the Eiffel Tower for France. Our first stop was in the local stores nearby where we had a taste of camel milk. That was my first experience of drinking camel milk which was smooth in taste. I was able to visit a store called Minimi, a miniature store where 3-D technology is used to convert a series of pictures taken into a mini stature. I opted to pose for one.

From there, we moved to other parts of the Boulevard World where we explored each country which entailed walking around and enjoying the tremendous scenery. I expressed my disappointment that there was no African country represented and with the hope of making inquiries if a space could be bought in the future for Nigeria, to showcase Nigerian culture. After a few hours, we opted to have dinner in a nice Egyptian restaurant called Tante(https://tanterestaurant.com/Menu/Tante_Riyadh.pdf).

In the end, we opted to end the day and return to the hotel. I looked at my iWatch and saw that I had spent the day walking 10.6 miles with 22,394 steps with a sense of achievement not just the walking but the first day exploring Riyadh.

February 5 - The second day of exploration – Al-Masmak Fortress and Al-Najd Village 

With Marwan busy at work during the day and mainly available in the evening after work, Chantelle and I opted to follow our morning routine of patronizing a restaurant next door to our hotel. The hotel serves a great breakfast that includes French toast like no other. I used this opportunity to get enough calories for the early part of the day knowing that there would be a lot of hiking, especially after the previous day's experience of walking almost 11 miles.

After leaving the restaurant, our next stop was a visit to Old Riyadh which is stated to be the first part of Riyadh in the first Saudi state. We could not visit the stores as most of them were closed for the afternoon prayer but we were lucky to find a café opened near the Al-Masmak Fortress which was the first palace but now a museum.

Later in the day, we were picked up by Marwan who took us to an exquisite traditional restaurant, the Al-Najd Village restaurant (www.najdvillage.com ). We had an opportunity to eat in a traditional setting, sitting on a carpet and cross-legged with food consisting of varieties. I had the opportunity to eat a meal made of lamb and another made of camel meat, and in comparison, I did not taste any difference between the two. I realized that I was getting into the rhythm of drinking camel milk and eating camel meat with a new palate for both.

We returned to the hotel, bellyful, and needed to go to bed early because the following day was going to be a very long day starting at 6 am.

February 6 - The third day of exploration – Edge of the World

The day started with the plan to join a tour group that was to take us to the Edge of the World.

The Edge of the World is located about 62 miles northwest of Riyadh and is the name of a cliff that is about 3700 feet tall and located at the end of the Tuwaik Mountain range which in itself is about 500 miles long. It is well known as an ideal destination for its spectacular view, mountain climbing, and hiking. Chantelle thinks it is an ideal place for a romantic honeymoon while Jae on our Whatsapp platform thinks the same and as ladies know better, that may be a clue for those on a romantic adventure to consider visiting this place.

There was a huge expectation for the views and hiking. As early as 6.30 am, we set off to the meeting point with an expected departure of 7.30 am. We met other hikers and we were divided into two SUVs each with six tourists. We were warned that the roads are rough and bumpy, that the cellular network may not work and to wear proper dress and shoes. I missed these warnings.  Chantelle and I were in the same group with three Germans and an Ethiopian American and we all got along very quickly and were very supportive of each other. After an hour's drive, we stopped in an old enclave before continuing to the Edge. The road was partly sandy in some areas and also rocky in others and it took us about another 90 minutes to get there. We had to park far away from it and walked, hiking towards the edge on a very rough rocky road that was demanding in terms of the terrain and the needed endurance.  I was able to climb to one of the cliffs and abandoned the option to try the second cliff despite encouragement from the German trio who have now turned out to be close friends. Seeing two young men trying to climb the cliff that I just climbed and seeing them struggling and then abandoning any further attempt gave me a sense of achievement that an old pal like me did it!!!

We returned to the van with the plan to return to the base where we were going to have dinner but on the way opted to stop and explore a cave where bats live. I was worried about going into the cave because I am claustrophobic but I was encouraged by one of the Germans to join the team and this led Chantelle to follow as she couldn’t be left by herself outside the cave. We were able to see bats deep inside the cave. In the end, we felt it was a good experience exploring the cave.

We continued to the campsite where dinner was waiting for us. We had a second experience of sitting cross-legged on a carpet and eating rice with stew and chicken while also being served Arabian tea. While I was filled with the food, I wasn’t satiated because of the taste and I planned to get real tasty food on getting to the hotel. At the end of the meal, we drove back to the hotel, tired and ready to go to bed. And looking forward to the next day and hoping that Aarti and Jae will be arriving the following day.

February 7 - The fourth day of exploration – Riyadh, Royal Front, Kingdom Towers, Skyline, more malls, and restaurants.

Chantelle and I started the day as usual and decided to explore breakfast elsewhere. Our going to the restaurant next door for breakfast was because it was next door to the hotel and for its special French toasts laced with chocolate drips and the omelets (no guilt feeling on my part as the walking requires a bit of daily caloric intake). At the recommendation of Marwan, we decided to explore the Riyadh Front(https://roshnfront.sa ) which is part of the Roshn real estate empire (it was bought from the Riyadh Front Company, this creates confusion about the place being called its old name vs its new name, or combined the Roshn Front). It is part of the Saudi Vision2030 (https://www.vision2030.gov.sa/en/ ) and Public Investment Fund (https://www.pif.gov.sa ). 

The Riyadh Front is a mall that spans over 80,000 sq. meters and has many stores including Amazon, Magic Planet, Vox Cinemas, KPMG, Deloitte, Huawei, Alfa Foods, and many restaurants. After walking around looking at different restaurants, we opted for Jamie Oliver Italian restaurant and the food was excellent, opting for a lamb chop. We were later joined by Marwan at this restaurant for breakfast, but more like a brunch as it was afternoon.

This is an excellent mall with all the great stores mentioned above but finding a restroom after we had breakfast was an expedition by itself as there are only two main restrooms in the entire mall, one for men and the other for women, and separated by some walking distance. The idea of finding a restroom became a common theme I learned to first ask for where the restroom is when I go to a place where I am likely to spend hours just in case there is an urgent need.

After breakfast, Marwan took us on a desert sand ride in his car. It is like driving on snow. What I learned from this was the need to deflate the tires to a certain low pressure to enable the car to drive well on the sand. After an initial failed attempt without deflated tires, we were able to climb the dunes with ease after the tires were deflated. It was a huge sense of achievement to be able to get to the top of one of the dunes and we stayed on top of it savoring the atmosphere and the experience including taking off our shoes to get the natural feel of the sand.

We departed from this end to explore different camel ranches nearby. This allowed us to be introduced to three different types of camel that were the Arabian Camel with a single hump with white hide and no dark top, the Mauritanian Camel with a single hump with dark/black top hide, and the Australian Camel with double humps. We returned to the hotel to take a brief break.

Later in the evening based on Marwan's advice, we decided to explore the Kingdom Centre Tower (https://kingdomcentre.com.sa ). This is a big shopping complex in Riyadh consisting of malls, hotels, luxury apartments, restaurants, and the Sky Bridge. On arrival at the Centre, we opted to explore the Sky Bridge first at a modest fee. This sky bridge allowed us to be at the top of the tower and get the experience of seeing the entire city of Riyadh from the tower. It is stated to weigh 300 tons and top of the 300-meter high tower. To allow easy movement of tourists, there are two elevators with the first taking us to the transfer level at about 180 meters in about 50 seconds from where we paid and then entering the second elevator to take us to the final destination of the sky bridge in about 40 seconds. Our stay there was very brief with the opportunity to see the entire Riyadh spectacularly at night. From the tower, we decided to explore the rest of the kingdom Centre and settled at the Al-Mamlaka Social Dining (https://almamlakasocialdining.com ).

The Al-Mamlaka Social Dining is a unique experience in itself with 21 restaurants serving different types of food. It was launched in September 2023 and therefore our visit was within six months of its existence. It is modeled as a luxury food hall like the Depachka in the United Arab Emirates and allows space to socialize and people can come into that space to sit and eat without being bogged down to a single menu. In our case, Chantelle and I walked around unable to make up our minds about what to eat. I saw an Indian restaurant and my mind was already thinking about Chicken Tikka Masala or a Lamb Curry but we continued to walk around and ultimately settled down at an exclusive London/Turkish restaurant called Lilly’s Café (https://lillys-cafe.com ) because it had its own space and seats and it was also close to the musician so that we could listen to the music. The food was amazing and the price was reasonable.

After the meal, we returned to the hotel. We were expecting Jae and Aarti to arrive later that night and Jae had already texted through our Saudi Trip WhatsApp platform, “Better take a nap today @Segun Toyin Dawodu, @Chantelle Fatania, @Marwan Albalawi, Party starts at midnight, LOL”. I paid attention to what Jae said and went to bed very early knowing that the real exploration of Riyadh would begin with the arrival of Jae and Aarti. We knew that Ivan would be arriving very early the day after.

February 8 - The fifth day of exploration – Healthcare System in Saudi Arabia with a visit to LEAP (Marwan’s Company)

I have been in the healthcare domain for more than 40 years, in clinical informatics for more than 25 years, and deeply in the business of medicine and medico-legal issues for the same period. Therefore my interest in the healthcare system of Saudi Arabia was from all these perspectives and to see how innovation in the healthcare ecosystem has impacted healthcare delivery in the country.

So I was excited when Marwan sent a text a day earlier that he was coming at 10.30 am to pick us up and pay a visit to his office. Jae had already sent a message to us that morning that she was at the hotel lobby if anyone was ready for coffee. At the lobby, I met Jae, Chantelle, and Marwan, and also for the first time I met Aarti who is now also a friend. At 10.30 am we left the hotel for Marwan’s office.

Marwan works for Lean Business Services - LEAN (www.lean.sa ) which is a company that through numerous initiatives and digital products develops and empowers the health sector in Saudi Arabia intending to improve healthcare. This visit got me excited from the point of view of seeing things that many of us in the clinical informatics ecosystem have discussed for decades in bringing data to the fore in driving and developing healthcare initiatives, and it was also emotional for me because seeing the ease in which this was implemented at a national level, I asked myself why is it that difficult for countries like UK, USA, and Nigeria lagging in doing this. While LEAN is a private company, it works under the Saudi Ministry of Health as part of the Public Investment Fund (PIF) in alignment with the kingdom’s Vision 2030. According to its website, “its work is specialized in providing online health services, including data analysis, enhancing the procedures of digital health services in particular and e-services in general to improve the efforts made in the sector.” Its themes are premised on BUSINESS SOLUTIONS through the offer of smart automated digital solutions, POPULATION HEALTH through data-empowered solutions in making more enlightened solutions for improving general health, HEALTHCARE through provision with access to healthcare at any place and time through preventable and directive solutions, and SYSTEM INTEGRATION through the development of an ecosystem to achieve full integration between various services and establish centralized data sources.

We were introduced to some senior members of the LEAN as Marwan’s friends and classmates from the University of Oxford and then took a tour of the complex in which LEAN is located. We had the opportunity to do the traditional thing by drinking Arabian tea and sucking on Arabian dates before we were ushered to a room and listened to a presentation by Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Alsheikh on “Using Digital Transformation To Realize Population Health Management”. I hope to dwell more on this visit and Dr. Alsheikh’s presentation in a separate and second article looking at it from a subject-matter expert view as a clinical informatician over almost 25 years and a physician of more than 40 years.

The five of us departed from the LEAN office complex which is located opposite the Ministry of Health and went to a local food stall to take a bite and drink more Arabian tea. 

We returned to the hotel with a plan to meet later in the evening.

Our evening exploration started with a visit to Key Café Al-Ammariyah Club located in Al-Ammariyah, on the outskirts of Riyadh with the plan to have dinner there. It offers two types of seating, the first is a tent, very cozy with transparent anti-insect curtain and fireplace for warmth, and the second is a regular seating area which is also cozy. Marwan arranged for us to start at the tent where we had some snacks with Arabian tea and Arabian dates, later we moved to the open seat where Marwan and I decided to go for the hamburgers and the ladies for Pizza. The heavy caloric intake was well deserved with the amount of hiking we had daily and in the absence of any alcoholic drink. Next to the Key Club is another club within the same shared space mainly for younger people and we visited this place briefly and took pictures before we departed for the hotel. 

We decided to go to bed early knowing that we would be waking up very early the next morning to travel to another city, Al-Ahsa. We opted for Al-Ahsa as against going to Al-Ula (an ancient historical city) because of the paucity of flights to Al-Ula from Riyadh while Al-Ahsa is a 2.5-hour train ride from Riyadh (about 310 km). Our train departure time was 7.02 am and Ivan was to land early at 1 am with a few hours for him to rest. 

February 9 - The sixth day of exploration – Al-Ahsa, on a day trip.

We were picked up very early in the morning by Marwan to get to the train station early. Ivan arrived that morning and barely checked in before we left the hotel. It was nice to see him and I was hoping he could catch some sleep on the train after such a hectic flight from Prague.

We arrived at the Riyadh train station and we were able to get a few bites and passed through security to enter the train without any hassle. The train departed on time at 7.02 am. We were seated separately due to buying the tickets late and therefore we could not change the tickets to enable us to sit together. This provided a unique experience for us. I sat with some school boys going on holiday and playing with their iPads and we were able to discuss briefly their interests. Jae later told us that she sat with three young girls who were going on a trip by themselves. We arrived at Al-Ahsa at the right time 9.31 am and we were met by our tour guide for the day. 

Our first stop was a local farm where we met the farmer whose family has been farming for generations on the land that is well irrigated despite the area being desert. We were able to see some of the irrigation systems that allowed such a level of farming. From there we drove to a local pottery owned by a famous Saudi potter who was able to show us some of the skills he uses in pottery and also share old pictures he took abroad with many distinguished guests. 

After that, we moved to Al-Qara Hill with caves. We were able to explore the caves and took pictures inside the cave. A section of the cave that was very narrow was explored by the others while I stayed behind due to my being claustrophobic and my size. Marwan said later that it was a good idea that I didn’t come along as I could have been stuck inside!!! The hill is made of limestone rocks and it is said that a long time ago, it was probably undersea and once inside the temperature is colder during summer and warmer during winter. On our way out, we bought some dates and Arabian tea from the local store, and also Marwan paid for one of the pictures of all of us taken inside the cave and engraved on a board to be given to each of us with mine currently displayed on my desk. A reminder of my great time in Riyadh.

From the Al-Qara Hill, we moved to the Al-Ahsa National Museum located in the Al-Hafof part of Al-Ahsa, which was built in 1983 and opened to visitors in 1987 in which we found valuable collections from different historical periods including pottery, furniture, weapons, fabrics, and some historical information reflecting the rich and colorful cultural history of Saudi Arabia. We were able to take some pictures and I took one with the Saudi Arabia flag. We were presented with some souvenirs that included a copy of the Quran and some historical information.

From the Museum, we drove into the desert in two special SUVs to see the dunes where the white sands separated from the yellow sands. We took pictures of each person on top of the sand and one of the drivers showcased his ability to drive at high speed around the side of the dune without the vehicle flipping over or getting stuck. My knowledge of physics and mechanics was suddenly alerted to the possibility of centrifugal forces making the vehicle tumble down on its side. Luckily, everything went well and there was a big applause from us for a job well done by the driver.

We continued the trip from the desert to the Asfar Lake (Yellow Lake) which is an oasis amid a desert. The road there as it is in most places towards the desert was bumpy but easy for our 4-wheel drive SUV. The lake itself is picturesque surrounded by the desert and lush greenery in pari-passu. We spent some time there resting and served Arabian tea and cookies. We felt that we had accomplished enough for that day's sightseeing and decided to return to the city. We went shopping at the local market where I bought full traditional wear that I promised Marwan to don on a special Saudi day. I plan to do this as promised. From there we went to a restaurant where we had a good meal after which we went back to the Al-Ahsa train station and took the last train back to Riyadh. While on the train, Marwan could not find his car key and we concluded that it probably fell off while walking on the dunes. Marwan as a great host that he is, got Uber to take us back to the hotel. After such a long day trip, we were all tired and went to bed with a plan to reconvene the following morning at about 11 am for a later breakfast or brunch with Marwan planning to pick us up at 2 pm.

February 10 - The seventh and last day of exploration – Addiriyah Museum

We started the day at about 11.30 am at the “usual” next-door restaurant. This was an opportunity to introduce Jae and Ivan to the special French toasts laced with chocolate.

Today is technically the last day for Jae, Ivan, and I because we need to check in later tonight for our flights departing at 1 am. Jae and I will be on the same British Airways going to London while Ivan’s flight to Prague via Dubai will be an hour or so later after ours. Chantelle and Aarti planned to spend an extra day. I had accumulated extra stuff from buying dates, sweets, and Saudi clothing thereby creating a need for an extra bag. Jae, Chantelle, and Aarti planned to go to the Granada Mall and Jae gladly agreed to help with getting that extra bag that I needed which she did. I packed my luggage knowing that we would be returning late from today’s exploration of Riyadh and making sure that I would be ready to check out without delay.

Marwan came to pick us up at about 2 pm. We stopped at his house to say hello to his family and we showed our appreciation for all that he did hosting us so benevolently and excellently. From his house, he took us to the Al-Diriyah Museum sometimes called Addiriyah Museum or Diriyah Museum (https://www.visitsaudi.com/en/see-do/destinations/diriyah/explore-the-museums-of-diriyah ). The site of the museum includes an ancient historical site with an old palace, and many stores and restaurants.  It shows four sections focused on the era of the first Saudi state with its mud houses, construction tools, and tools which is now a standard in the design of modern architecture in Saudi. The traditional architecture in the Najd region was also showcased along with relevant pictures in the use of clay. The Museum of Treasury also showed evidence of the economic system in the first Saudi state with its various currencies, trade methods, and types of endowments. The section on the Military Museum showed stories of war and defense of the Diriyah during the first Saudi state with the display of war weapons, etc. The horse museum showed varieties of Arabian horses along with their origins and breeding. 

We started by looking at the display of historical events that started in 400 AD and up to the moment. Ivan took pictures of the displays which I converted to PDF and some of these pictures are shared in this article without copyright infringement and solely for educational purposes. Later our tour guide who was arranged by Marwan joined us and took us on a tour of all the elements of the museum stated above. Our tour of the museum showed the resilience of a nation under great leadership that has been able to withstand turmoil and continues to progress. As a history buff and a political analyst, I did a quick mental analysis of Saudi Arabia and the Benin Empire (where my grandparents were born) and saw the difference in how one has emancipated itself under great leadership and the other destroyed and no longer in existence limited only to its capital city, Benin-city. After the tour, our tour guide departed and we continued to explore the museum and its environment by ourselves. We explored more cafes drinking Arabian tea and eating Arabian dates and cookies. We ended the tour by having our last meal together in Riyadh at a great restaurant on the Museum premises (one of many restaurants, with a long waiting period). The meal was excellent and sumptuous.

Before we departed for the hotel, Marwan asked us to pick where we had the best experience of our visit. We all agreed that the Diriyah Museum was the best and closely followed by the Edge of the World for its unique experience. We expressed our deep appreciation to Marwan for his great hospitality that made it easy for us to come to Saudi Arabia and explore part of the country.

We all agreed that we would return soon to visit looking for any excuse including any international meeting. The option of even buying a house was brought up as Saudi is opening its borders to foreigners to invest and live in Saudi. Riyadh is growing very fast with new investments and the need for people to work which comes with other infrastructures. There is an opportunity lurking for real estate investment and also in hospitality worth exploration.

We have encouraged Marwan to use the experience gained from organizing such a good tour to start a tourist company!!! His presence in most of the explorations helped us to understand what was going on while his absence at the Edge of the World tour was glaring as our tour guide and drivers could not speak English, showing that there was room for business in that area.

We drove back to the hotel and gave a final goodbye and thanks to Marwan. We also hugged each other as three of us will be leaving that night for the airport. Jae and I left for the airport at the same time since we were taking the same British Airways flight and getting through the British Airways check-in was a breeze and then the immigration was also very quick. We spent the remaining time in Riyadh at the Park Lounge which serves British Airway passengers.

We departed Riyadh on time. Ivan later also departed the same day. Chantelle and Aarti left the following day around the same time. We continued our discussion on our WhatsApp platform reminiscing how much we are missing Riyadh. I have reverted to drinking my coffee and missing the Arabian tea and dates. I hope to return later in the year or in February next year to attend a global health conference or the LEAP technology conference, depending on my interest by June this year.