"Gateway to the North" Mintaqat Ha'il by mikey_e

Late in December I had an idiotic idea that I could drive to Jordan and back from Riyadh in a long weekend. It turned out to be a distance of 2600km - I must have been feverish. Nevertheless, I did start out on the morning of January 30, driving north of the city, past Buraydah and the heart of Saudi Wahhabism, up to Ha'il, the city at the foot of the mountains that separate the plains and deserts of the Najd from Jordan. I had decided that I would stop in Ha'il because of internet information that extolled the beauty of the many historic buildings and the fort. I had evidently also forgotten that anyone can put anything up on the internet.

The main mosque

As I drove into the city, I accidently passed by the fort and the city museum. The museum was closed, but there were a few old cars and relics outside of it. The fort, which was done in typical Najdi style, had spot lights so it could be lit up in the evening and at night, but it didn't appear to be open to visitors. I drove towards the city itself, only to find that there was little to nothing to be seen or done in. The main central drag was filled with grocery stores and fast food places. The only people about seemed to be taxi drivers offering lifts to Burayda and the capital. The scenery of the mountains was beautiful, but that was about it for attractions in Ha'il.

An old calèche outside the museum

After about 40 minutes in Ha'il, I decided that I would leave and make one last effort to get to Jordan. I hightailed it out of the centre of the city and made towards the highway that went north, into the mountains and out towards the Levant, only to discover that Jordan was another 700 km from Ha'il. That was enough to make me turn around and drive back to Riyadh, saying goodbye to Central Saudi Arabia. While it was not much of an experience, it was at least invaluable in learning what life is like outside of the main cities of Riyadh, Dammam and Jeddah. It is bleak, and this is perhaps the true distinction between Saudi Arabia and its Gulf neighbours.