Best Western Baisan International Hotel Manama

Out of the widow Bahrain looks like lots of dust with skyscrapers on. Inside it is a strange mix of Christmas decorations lots of tour groups who look like they might be going on pilgramage, 25k rolexes in duty free, mcdonalds,costa and free internet to keep us amused. We've got 2hrs to kill - body clocks already out of sink! Am going to try and learn some nepalese from a podcast.

... it was then that I realized: I loved the desert (deep down inside), why then did I not think of making this trip before?! The bus began to accelerate and we were soon on the Riyadh highway. It was all night, and I could see cars zipping ahead. We went on for abot 200 Kms and the driver decided to make a stop at a highway restaurant. All got down, some to stretch their legs, others to grab a bit/a cool drink, or simply to take a walk around.<br><br>Soon, we were back on the ...

17/10<br>Time to be honest. We're heading home.<br>The last country is a stop-over in Bahrain (for 2 hours) as we fly through the night back to England<br>We wanted to surprise a few folks so have sneaked home quietly.<br><br>Never the less, Bahrain International Airport looked very nice at midnight, all lit up. This small island state lies in the Persion Gulf alongside saudi ...

... The airline reps seemed pretty confused about me not having a ticket number, but a nice young girl was helpful in figuring things out.  She had surprisingly good English and was Islamic Arabian, not an Indian like those I normally dealt with.  My bags were checked all the way to Seiyun, but I'd have to get my ticket from Sana'a to Seiyun in Sana'a.  No problem---I had a 6 hour layover.<br><br>Had a lot of time before my flight, so I tried calling and booking a hotel in Seiyun ...

&#1603;&#1575;&#1606;&#1578; &#1587;&#1601;&#1585;&#1578;&#1610; &#1605;&#1593; &#1586;&#1608;&#1580;&#1578;&#1610; &#1608;&#1576;&#1606;&#1578;&#1610; &#1588;&#1607;&#1583; &#1608;&#1605;&#1575;&#1606;&#1610; &#1602;&#1575;&#1583;&#1585; &#1575;&#1608;&#1589;&#1601; &#1604;&#1603;&#1605; &#1580;&#1605;&#1575;&#1604; &#1575;&#1604;&#1576;&#1581;&#1585;&#16 10;&#1606; &#1608;&#1580;&#1605;&#1575;&#1604; &#1575;&#1604;&#1605;&#1606 ...

... too as all the crankiness from fasting all day was lifted. Before I got to the airport I had a few hours to kill so I went to the mall. I can report that a mall is a mall no matter what corner of the earth you are in. A lot of the stores were closed in the afternoon due to Ramadan but I did find a clothing store with some stuff I liked. Prices over here are actually pretty decent, so I grabbed a handful of stuff to try on. While I was ...

... I guess. But that doesn't mean it was unpleasant, by any means. And now I'm finishing this on a turbulent late-night flight to Damascus; I have the last row in the plane, with the guy in front of me leaning back and shifting in his seat every few seconds. I hope the weapons I've armed myself with, including ear plugs, eye shades, and a new one on trial, will help me get a little sleep. And I hope I do okay, despite the complete lack of an on-arrival plan. Sweet dreams, Kevin.

... full of small rooms, cathedral like rooms, and random passage ways. I could have easily spent the day just walking through the fort itself. Unfortunately, this is when my camera's battery decided to die, so the photos I have of the fort are limited. It sat on an oceanside hill that overlooked all of Manama and was truly a great experience. Only a handful of people were there, so I was able to McGuiver my way around the fort, climbing all over the ...

... talk on their mobile phones! - Being able to sit at my desk and be bought Tea, Coffee or Iced Frappe's by our office 'tea boy' (they are so lovely) - Having just about all types of food including Burger King delivered to you desk in the middle of the day! - The fact that I have to apply for an "Alcohol permit" to be able to purchase alcohol from the one bottle shop/distribution centre in Doha (we make it a monthly trip and stock up, it's a bit different to dropping past ...

... and it took a while until the place warmed up again. Clearly, we were the afternoon's entertainment. Besides the (two!) large fish and rice, we had a salad, melon, meat stew, soup, flat bread, and a condiment made of peppers and curry leaf. They kept trying to bring us more, but we finally figured out what was going on and waved each new item away. Most people in the place were eating with their hands, so I did as well. When we paid, we found that the tally (probably with stupid ...