We travelled around the Middle East in 1980 and 1981 to the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Sudan, and a few years later, Oman 1980 - 1981, and revisits in 1986 and 1996 Our routes around Saudi Arabia and nearby middle eastern countries. For our travels in Saudi Arabia and our 'drive home' through Jordan, Syria and beyond, see the links at the bottom of this page. United Arab Emirates We visited most of the seven Emirates in June 1980. In Abu Dhabi we went to the fort, apparently the only building in the city more than 20 years old. In Dubai we went to Diera souk .... .... and Dubai creek, still with wooden dhows. In Sharjah they were repairing dhows on the seafront .... .... and shopping in a fancy mall called the 'new souk'. In Ajman we stayed at the Beach hotel .... .... and saw the old fort. Every Emirate has to have one! Umm Al Quaiwain main square, with fort and mosque. Ras Al Khaimah harbour (in March 1986), with wooden fishing boats. In the mountains between Sharjah and Fujaira. Khor Fakkan harbour, in Fujaiera Emirate. The desert - sand dunes between Dubai and Al Ain. Qatar We drove to Qatar in July 1980. For insurance reasons we had to leave the car at the border and there was no onward transport, so a border guard kindly said we could sleep in his guard box. We were just settlng down when a nice expat came through and gave us a lift to Doha, the capital, where he worked in a hotel. We visited Clock Tower square .... .... and saw boats in the harbour. Bahrain by rail and sea One weekend in September 1980 we went from Riyadh to Bahrain by train and boat. On Wednesday we caught the 3pm train from Riyadh railway station to Dammam. The first-class fare was 30 Riyals each (about 7 riyals to the pound), the carriage was air-conditioned and comfortable and there was also a restaurant car. We arrived at Dammam station in the centre of town about 10pm and stayed at the nearby Balamar Hotel, 225 Riyals for a double room. In the morning we got a taxi to Al Khobar seaport (20 Riyals) and got a dhow over to Manama in Bahrain. At that time there was a regular service twice a day, before the causeway from Saudi to Bahrain was opened in 1986. The dhow had an engine, but otherwise was a genuine old-style wooden-built one. It cost 60 Riyals each (we paid the captain on board) and he didn't mind us taking photographs, in fact he wanted to be on one! We saw a car arriving by dhow in Manama seaport. Bab Al Bahrain in Manama. Traffic in Manama city. We stayed at the excellent and central Delmon hotel who did a 'breakaway weekend' deal which was good value. The hotel organised a sightseeing tour of the island and we visited Ain Al Adhari (the Virgin's Pool) where local boys were diving in from a great height .... .... and saw an old-style 'nodding donkey' oil well near Awali. The direct flights back to Riyadh on Fridays were always booked up way in advance so we flew back via Dahran. Kuwait In February 1981 we drove up the gulf coast to Kuwait. We stayed in the 'SS Marriott Hotel', formerly a cruise ship called the SS Santa Paula originally built in 1958 for the Grace Line, then berthed in Kuwait harbour. She was damaged by fire during the Iraqi occupation in 1990 and finally scrapped in 2002. This is a view of the city through our porthole. Exercise facilities aboard the SS Marriott hotel. A closer view of the Kuwait Towers. Magsab Gate standing in splendid isolation with the remains of the city walls. A colourful post box on Fahed Al Salim Street. I revisited Kuwait in August-September 1996 after the 'Desert Storm' conflict, to find the appropriately-named Desert Storm cafe in the souk .... .... and the broken bridge to Bubiyan Island. Muscat, Oman In March 1986 I came back briefly to Riyadh, the Emirates and Oman. This is the fish market in Mutrah near Muscat, Oman. A rather leaky-looking ship at Mutrah harbour! And the royal palace in Muscat. Sudan - Khartoum In March 1981 we flew to Sudan for a weekend in Khartoum and Omdurman and stayed at the Grand Hotel (now the 'Grand Holiday Villa') on the banks of the Blue Nile. Nearby there was a ferry across the Blue Nile. Across the Blue Nile was Tuti Island .... .... and over on the White Nile a car wash was in operation. On Tuti island there were signs of drought. We saw Khartoum University .... .... and visited Khartoum market .... .... where everyone seemed happy to see us. Sudan - Omdurman Across the White Nile in Omdurman we visited the Mahdi's tomb .... .... and another welcoming market. There was a nice sunset across the river at El Nile mosque, Omdurman. If you would like to see our travels around Saudia Arabia, just click the camel. Or if you would like to see our drive home through the middle east, just click the road sign. Or if you would like to see more of our other travels just click the map.