Janadriyah Cultural Festival – Riyadh Saudi-Arabia

Janadriyah Festival is an annual festival held on the outskirts of Saudi-Arabia’s capital city of Riyadh in the town of Janadriyah. The festival showcases the culture of Saudi-Arabia since it was founded in the early 20th century by its founder Kind Abdul-Aziz Al-Saud.

The following pictures depict the various facets of the Saudi culture.

These tools represent the Saudi farmer .

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Janadriya festival Riyadh Saudi-Arabia

The following jars and pots were used to store clean water for drinking and cooking.

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Early Saudi-Arabia – Pots and Pans for drinking water

The following pictures shows the many postage stamps that the Saudis have had in circulation for the past century.

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The many stamps put in circulation through Saudi history

An old Quran from the year 1051 A.H. that corresponds approximately to the early 1630 AD.

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Old copy of a Mushaf Quran in circulation throughout the Arabian Peninsula. Dates to 1051 AH

Another old Quran that was printed around 1780 AD.

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Another old Mushaf Quran from the year 1198 AH. Arabian Peninsula

The following picture shows the weaponry that the early Saudis carried and used during the early to mid twentieth century.

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Common weaponry in the Arabian Peninsula during the early to mid twentieth century. Swords, pistols, and daggers.

More weaponry samples.

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More weaponry from the Arabian Peninsula used during the early to mid twentieth century. Swords, pistols, and daggers.

This picture shows the weaponry as well as the tea and coffee pots that are traditional in the Saudi culture.

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Mix of weaponry and cooking utensils

Islamic calligraphy with the name “Muhammad” carved in stone. The name symbolizes Prophet Muhammad.

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Islamic calligraphy stating “Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, Peace be upon him”

Traditional Saudi Tea pot with small serving cups.

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Saudi tea pot

The picture below shows the traditional tea pot in red (on the left) and a traditional coffee pot in gold / silver color on the right. The small cups are usually used to serve Arabic coffee.

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Saudi coffee and tea pots

The following shows the various currency denominations that Saudis have had in circulation for the past century.

Saudi currency denominations
old Saudi currency. Various denominations

More Saudi currency below.

Saudi currency denominations
old Saudi currency. Various denominations

Below are the traditional pots that were used for eating and drinking.

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More food utensils used in the early to mid twentieth century. These designs are still prevalent today and have come to represent the Saudi culture.

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Old Saudi Pots and Pans

In the festival ground of Janadriyah, structures are built to mimic the forts, houses and other buildings of the early Saudi era and culture. The following is a replica of the actual fort that the founder of Saudi-Arabia conquered before he founded Saudi-Arabia.

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Saudi fort replica erected for the festival in Janadriyah

The black tent below symbolizes the traditional dwelling places that Saudis used when they lived in the deserts of Arabia throughout the Arabian peninsula.

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Saudi tents used in the desert

Below, visitors to the Janadriyah festival take a break to offer the evening Muslim prayers.

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Visitors and artists praying during a break in the Janadriyah Festival

Visitors are shopping for various Saudi cultural artifacts. In the background, the traditional Saudi pots are visible.

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Visitors shopping in the Janadriyah Festival

Below is another picture of the fort during the early days of founding of Saudi-Arabia.

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Large number of visitors during the Janadriyah Festival

The pictures below show the early and present days of the Saudia Airlines and the planes it used to have in service. The first plane was a DC-3.

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Old Saudi Plane
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New models Saudi Plane

The founder of Saudi-Arabia, King Abdul Aziz takes the first plane ride on Saudia’s first airplane.

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King Abdul-Aziz during his first flight on the first Saudia plane

Women visitors in the foreground can be seen in their traditional Abaya dresses shopping for various cultural artifacts.

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Visitors shopping during the Janadriyah Festival

A mill used in the earlier days operated by a camel.

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Camel used to run the mill for grinding sesame seeds

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The exhibits below showcase the city of Jazan, which is located near the south west border of Saudi-Arabia bordering Yemen and the Red Sea.

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Jazan Saudi Arabia
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Boating is quote in Jazan

A cultural folk dance from the area of Jazan in the south west of Saudi-Arabia.

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Jazan folk dance in Saudi-Arabia

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Artifacts from a traditional Saudi sitting for guests. The round mat is used to serve food. People would normally sit around a large plate and share the food that is served on that large plate.

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Saudi traditional sitting

The following show the coins that were used during the early years of Saudi-Arabia. These coins were continuing from the Ottoman period.

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Currency and coins from the Ottoman Empire
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Currency and coins from the Ottoman Empire

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Road Trip between Dubai, Abu-Dhabi UAE and Riyadh

One of the very common road trips through the Arabian deserts is one that takes you from Riyadh, Saudi-Arabia to Abu-Dhabi and Dubai in the UAE. The road trip through Kharj, Saudi-Arabia is an old road that takes through the sand deserts of Saudi-Arabia to the border of the UAE. The following pictures shows some of what you may see on that trip.

Leaving Kharj takes you through these deserts.

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The desert is different from the typical sand dunes that one would expect. This is rock and sand and the landscape is mostly flat.

saudi uae road trip sand dunes

This road from Riyadh through the town of Kharj is the old road but shorter in distance by about 100 kilometers.

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Approaching the town of Batha at the border between Saudi-Arabia and the UAE.

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The following picture is the ‘border area’ between Saudi-Arabia and the UAE.

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As soon as you cross into UAE, you will be required to buy car insurance from this plaza.

saudi dubai uae road trip immigration

 

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Date as a food consumption in the Middle East and Saudi-Arabia

Dates Middle East Eat Saudi Arabia

Dates are one of the primary staple foods of many Middle Eastern countries. Each household almost always carries dates and they are almost always served to the guests of the house along with Arabic coffee. Countries such as Saudi-Arabia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and other Arabian Gulf countries are heavy consumers of dates. Dates are grown extensively n Saudi-Arabia in the areas of Qassim and Madinah.

Saudi Dates Season

In Saudi-Arabia, the date season starts in July when the dates ripen on the trees. It’s normal to see markets get flooded with all types of dates. Merchants from all small towns where dates are grown flock to the main cities to sell their crops. The below pictures provide a sense of the date season in Saudi-Arabia.

Saudi Dates from Al-Qassim region. Also called Sukkary Dates
Saudi Dates from Al-Qassim region. Also called Sukkary Dates
Saudi dates selling in markets
Saudi dates selling in markets
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Saudi traders and merchants selling dates in the dates season
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Saudi market selling dates
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Saudi market with various stalls selling dates