Today, we drove to a highly atmospheric site of “beehive tombs” in Al Ayn village. This string of tombs is arranged along a low, russet-colored ridge against Jebel Misht that towers behind. Little is known about the tombs except that they were constructed between 2000 and 3000...
After crossing the border, our first stop was a little sleepy town on Ibri. We parked near the Old Souq and wandered in the heart of town, around the imposing building of Ibri Castle, to explore the ruins of the old town. Then we moved to the enormous Sulaif castle on the edge of Ibri. It...
Our first, and for some time, last destination in UAE was Al Ain. We stopped here for a day on the way to Oman. Fed by natural springs and set amid date palm plantations, Al Ain was once a vital pit-stop on the caravan route between Oman and the Gulf and is the birthplace of the United...
It took us a few hours to explore the really nice newly opened museum of Tatra Trucks in Kopřivnice (🎟️ 220 CZK). It presents a unique collection of 80 TATRA trucks and chassis in more than 5,000 square meters. The core of the collection is the original collection of Jiří Hlach, a...
We spent a few days during our “expedition break” in Mosty u Jablunkova in the Moravian-Silesian Region, about 46 km southeast of Ostrava. It lies in the Jablunkov Pass of the Beskydy Mountains in the historical region of Cieszyn Silesia on the border with Slovakia. The...
We did visit Al-Qarah Mountain because it’s relatively close to Dammam, and it was a nice break to cool down in the caves before the long drive to UAE. Caves near Al Hofuf were formed due to the dissolving process of water-soluble rocks, the collapse of the upper rock layers due to...
We stopped at the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture, known as “Ithra” (‘enrichment’ in Arabic). It opened in 2017 and immediately became an icon and symbol of changes in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. And not only because of its jaw-dropping design, which...
After a great barbecue evening organized by Karel for other Czech / Slovak community members, Martin invited us for another delicious traditional Slovak dinner. We also got many useful contacts and advice from Edo, who recommended us Vendula, the official licensed guide in Bahrain, who...
Al-Muḥarraq lies on the northernmost island of the Bahrain archipelago at its southwest tip. A 2.5 km-long causeway connects it to the capital city of Manama, on Bahrain island. Taken by the Portuguese (1521) and the Persians (1602), Al-Muḥarraq passed to the control of the Āl Khalīfah...
Bahrain’s capital and largest city lies at the northeast tip of Bahrain Island in the Persian Gulf. About one-fifth of the country’s population lives in the city. First mentioned in Islamic chronicles about 1345 CE, it was taken by the Portuguese (1521) and the Persians (1602)...