Listly by Joanna James
A grand monarch in the middle east, Saudi Arabia is an interesting place to visit with many things to see and do. The deserts, sand dune, the pieces of history and even the modern architecture here are certainly awe-inspiring! Here are a few facts one might be interested in about Saudi Arabia.
The current king of Suadi Arabia is King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who has ascended the throne in 2015. The true title of the king is said to be "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques."
This land is the largest country in the middle east which covers 83,000 square miles in total. It can be said that the country is one-quarter of the US and about the size of Western Europe.
The Kingdom Tower is deemed to be the upcoming tallest building in the world. Construction on the edifice began in 2014. The planned height of the structure is 3280 ft, which amounts to a kilometre in height and will tower 600 ft over the Burj Khalifa. If you happen to visit when it's all done up, staying at Ascott Sari Jeddah will be a good option.
Suadi Arabia, as mentioned before is the largest country in all of the middle east and considered one of the largest countries in the world as well. But this country is the only largest country in the world without a single river!
Did you know that there are camel markets in Arabia? Riyadh is home to the world's largest camel market in the world and amazingly reaches sales of about 100 camels a day! step out of your Jeddah serviced apartments and check out the place.
Apparently, the Saudi Arabians have invented a new kind of car sport here! Sidewalk Skiing is what it's called. If you are curious about what this is all about, it refers to balancing the car on its side while in motion. Dangerous and daring indeed!
Coffee is one of the most loved drinks in Saudi Arabia and is called gahwa. This word means "that which prevents sleep" when translated. Although the Muslim religion does not permit the followers to drink coffee, some may still drink or even munch on coffee seeds in the mosque.
In Saudi Arabia, weddings are celebrated separately for the bride and the groom. It is after all the celebrations are over that the couple gets together.
The country is ruled by the Al Saud family from its beginning. The family fought true and hard to seize the land from the Al-Rashid family who took over Riyadh in 1893.
Also known as the Bedu, is a tribe of people who have decided to stick to their historic traits and traditions. Some of these traits would be courage, honour, loyalty to family, belief in the desert codes of hospitality, purity of dialect and language, unwilling to bend under the rule of foreign forces and much more. A few tribes also still live a semi-nomadic style here.a