Diplomat Radisson Sas 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.

... lap of the journey was very picturesque, with a totally different desert scenario. It was basically a mountainous desert terrain.The highway took us along myriad ranges, and at one point I even saw a plateau out yonder.<br><br>It was at around 3:30PM that we finally cruised into Jeddah, and I saw Manoj had come to receive me. Well, he and his family looked after me and gave a great time, and Jeddah was a great city................... but that would be another story- a story of a city!

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 ...

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... t know they still made those) and that my seat belt worked. Managed to snap a few pictures of cool-looking building at night. Hit the King Fahd Causeway to Saudi Arabia, but getting to Saudi was a mess. Since it was Friday (the equivalent of Sunday in the Saudi Thurs/Friday weekend), lots of people were returning from enjoying the more liberal atmosphere of Bahrain [apparently the most liberal in the Arabian Peninsula-so says Lonely Planet (LP)]. Traffic was mostly ...

I ventured out yesterday to run a few errands -- namely, the cleaners and the gas station. The woman that works at the front desk of our apartment building gave me great directions to the cleaners. It is so close that had the temperature been 20 degrees lower, I could have walked. Instead I drove my Toyota Yaris hatchback (a great little car) and, trying my best to fit in with the locals, parked on the sidewalk. I basically played a game of ...

... tube rides close to each other. One had four slides going down, two covered, two uncovered, which you could use one or two-man tubes on. The BIG hit, though, was the huge 4-man tube which you rode down. The more people in it, the faster it went, the higher up the curves it went, and the scarier it was! We spent over 4 hours there before hunger started calling us. After showering and heading out, we began to wend our way back to Manama central to find the Country Club, which ...

... see the day light. So that we could hang out a bit longer before we start exploring. I tried to warn Keith - my travel companion, that this hotel might be not as good as the hotel we used to stay previously, as Grand Mercure hotel is located in a new neighborhood. Secondly, although this hotel is part of the Qatar Airways package, as one of the cheapest; no body else had recommended this hotel on any ...

... briefly logged in at the Batelco Internet Center, looked at the outside of the uninteresting Friday mosque, and wandered the King Faisal Corniche seafront, where families of kids and black-draped women were having picnics and playing catch. Having still more time to kill, we walked through the Manama's government center's cluster of ministry buildings and made our way to the Crowne Plaza for a drink and an attempt to resist the pull of jet-lag sleep. Dodging the famously fatal ...

... If you pay attention, there is a treasure trove of history to explore. It is a pleasant mix of ancient architecture and modern world. Be mindful of your surroundings, and be respectful and you should come home with lots of nice stories to share with your friends and neighbors. The next chapter of this travel blog is the last for my 2005 cruise. Sorry there isn't a music video, but if you bother to read the next chapter of this story you will understand why. Fair winds.... Old Salt