"Learning to love Bahrain" Manama by mikey_e

I cannot say that I expected much from Manama, or from Bahrain as a whole, before arriving in Saudi Arabia. I knew that my work would take me there at one point, but most of what I had heard about the city and the country was from thirsty expats who looked to the Kingdom as a source of distraction from the restrictions of Saudi Arabia. It had an air of being a bit sleazy, nothing more than a collection of hotels, restaurants and clubs set up to cater to the desperate and the depressed, with no hint of the beauty or the Gulf mystique I had seen in Kuwait. In truth, this is the impression I received on my first visit to the city in December 2010, on New Year’s Eve. I had come in from Riyadh by car and, whether by poor planning or by luck, ended up going to areas dominated by foreigners. The garish signs and cheap food were enough to keep me away for over two months, when I was forced to return for work.

Protest along the coastal highway

I returned to Bahrain, and Manama, at the beginning of March, as the Arab Spring was causing ripples throughout the region. The fact that this was a work trip meant that I had to plan out my time better, and that I was staying in a much nicer area. The result was a far more favourable impression of the city, as its hotels and business areas afforded a more professional view (if empty because of the protests) and the various appointments and dinners I had allowed me to see parts of the city that I likely would not have visited on my own. At this point, the protests had retained their festive atmosphere and were largely limited to the coastal highway and Lu’lu’a Square, where demonstrators had camped out. There was no sense of danger or urgency, and we enjoyed ourselves greatly in the restaurants and bars that we visited during our stay. This was a markedly different atmosphere than during my next, longer visit, only two weeks later.

Boats near Budaiya - instant roadblocks

I returned to Bahrain in mid-March, at the height of the protests, again for work purposes. Unlike my earlier trip, Manama was largely shut down, and the country appeared to have ground to a halt. Upon arriving at the airport, we attempted to get to our hotel, but roadblocks and debris forced us in the wrong direction, only to end up right next to the Pearl Roundabout. We eventually got out to a different hotel, only hours before the crackdown began. We woke up to the sound of helicopters and the sight of smoke billowing from Pearl Roundabout. For the next week, I spent my time driving around the island, through streets and neighbourhoods off the beaten track but essential for residents. They were dark days for the country, but never would I have come to love this country and its hidden beauty, had it not been for some of those tense drives around the island. I spent a week in Bahrain and now know the island exceptionally well, from the palm-lined beaches near Budaiya to the dusty desert around al-A’ali. While the country is troubled, I can easily say that it is one of my favourite destinations in the region.