عربی AR

 

The earth has music for those who listen.
Reginald Vincent Holmes

The Arabian Peninsula sits on its own tectonic plate – the Arabian Plate – that broke from the African plate approximately 25 million years ago. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia occupies 80% of the Arabian Peninsula. The rift between the the Arabian Plate and the African Plate created the Red Sea, which forms much of Saudi Arabia’s western border.

Saudi Arabia shares land borders with seven countries: Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Its geography is dominated by Rub’ al Khali (also known as the Empty Quarter), the world’s largest continuous sand desert.

There are no permanent rivers or lakes in the Kingdom. Its population is over 35 million. There is evidence of human habitation on the Arabian Peninsula as far back as 130,000 years ago.

Saudi Arabia’s land area is approximately three times larger than the state of Texas in the United States.

The area of modern-day Saudi Arabia formerly consisted of four distinct historical regions: Hejaz, Najd, Alhasa, and Asir. The Asir Mountain Range runs north and south parallel to the Red Sea on the southwestern coast of Saudi Arabia.

Asir means ‘difficult’ in Arabic, reflecting the challenge involved in crossing the area’s mountains.

Asir has a short border with Yemen and a coastline on the Red Sea. It is the fourth largest region in Saudi Arabia and encompasses four thousand villages. There are more than 2.2 million residents. The Asir Region is the size of Austria.

The Asir Region has the highest average rainfall in Saudi Arabia.

This is the story of Shabana

I had the good fortune of being connected with HRH Prince Turki Bin Talal Al Saud, governor of the Asir Region. He permitted me to travel with him to see this special corner of the Kingdom.

HRH Prince Turki Bin Talal drove the lead car at first. We weaved down and up and around again on small, windy, and steep back roads for hours. When we did come upon straight, flat stretches of pavement, the black SUVs would scramble and change places in the caravan. This was a safety tactic: no one could tell which car the prince was occupying.

Three of my vehicle-mates held PhDs. A remarkable number of Saudi Arabian women have completed advanced educations at colleges and universities in America and beyond. They are now employed in every aspect of the Kingdom’s business and government sectors.

Hamadryas Baboons are a common sight in the mountains in Asir.

They were considered sacred animals by the ancient Egyptians. The Hamadryas Baboon is the only species of baboons in Saudi Arabia. Their population has increased in recent years due to the near extinction of their natural predators, Arabian Leopards.

Some say they are dangerous and wild. Others bring them fresh fruits every day. They are socially sophisticated and have complex family systems.

I am a board member of Catmosphere (catmosphere.org), founded by HRH Princess Reema Bint Bandar Al Saud, Saudi Arabian’s first female Ambassador to the United States. One of my goals is to support this organization that reintroduces cats into their native environments—resetting the ecological balance.

Prince Turki Bin Talal Al Saud: Father of five. Political Science graduate from King Saud University. American-trained fighter pilot. Educated at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the United Kingdom. A Brigadier General in the Royal Saudi Air Force. Governor of the Asir Region. Grandson of King Abdul Aziz Al Saud, also known as “Ibn Saud,” the founder of the modern Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Nephew to King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud. Cousin to Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud.

An elder had contacted Prince Turki’s office to inform him of an elderly woman, Shabana, who was living in deplorable conditions in a remote village. The prince went to see for himself. He found her among rock walls with no ceiling sharing her space with snakes and spiders. Shabana had outlived her relatives. She was alone.

Prince Turki took her to a hospital to be evaluated. Upon her discharge from the hospital he brought her back to his palace. He commissioned a house to be built for her in her village. Shabana returned to her village to live with neighbors while her home was being constructed. The effort took months, with hundreds of workers involved. On her move in day, there was a celebration.

Write the bad things that happen to you in the sand but write the good things that happen to you on a piece of marble.
Arabian proverb

 

Al-Qatt art decorates the walls inside traditional houses in Asir. Mostly women paint these graphic shapes in traditional colors. Each village has its own unique designs. (In 2017, Al-Qatt Al-Asiri was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.) Al-Qatt designs are now on household items as well. Prince Turki told me he had picked out her kitchenware and furnishings himself.

Each man develops his own way to wear a ghutra.

Some wear their ghutra longer than others. Some drape it in front, others down their back. I am told little boys take this manner of dress very seriously in order to find the style that will represent them. Men wear them because the desert sun can bake the back of their neck. They’re also useful to shield your eyes/face during a sandstorm. The head cover also helps to prevent dehydration, which is a real danger in desert climates.

Although Saudi men traditionally wear white thobes, the heavier fabric of the gray thobe – an ankle-length robe with long sleeves – adds warmth during colder months.

After the ceremonies, we feasted on delicious food prepared by the women of the village.

Eventually, all 12 SUVs that had brought us to the celebration of Shabana’s new house took us home. Prince Turki stopped at every turn where there were guards standing at attention and thanked them. I did the same.