This is not the Saudi Arabia we grew up with. I heard this repeated over and over again and having made a new friend at a conference in Dubai, I had to see it with my own eyes and it is true.
I have never seen a country step forward into the 21st century with such vengeance, led by the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman al Saud. While some of steps have been questionable, he is generally deeply appreciated, especially by the young people in the country, many of whom I had a chance to interact with directly. They have the will and the resources to modernise their nation, and I believe they will succeed if they stay the course.
Riyadh itself is a bit of an anomaly - it is a metropolis of 7 million people (officially) that is in the middle of a desert, long having surpassed its ability to sustain itself on what used to be an oasis. It is nearly inhospitable (at least to me) between the months of April and October, and I was lucky to visit while it was still relatively cool during the day and quite cold at night.
The energy of the city and the people were inspiring, and I was lucky to hear firsthand their stories and hopes for the future.
While in absolute terms there is still ways to go, relatively speaking it was quite inspiring to see a rise in women's freedoms in particular - lots of female entrepreneurship, no mandatory head covering, and even the shaking of hands, quite commonplace today, would have been unthinkable a decade ago.
There were many activities to do, and the food, both local and international, were great, especially considering how remote the city is. One thing under development is the walkability of the city - everyone drives, and it is actually quite dangerous to try to walk on the street given the lack of sidewalks in many places. A metro is under construction and should be completed by the end of 2023.
Overall, it was a great first experience and next time it would be interesting to visit beyond Riyadh, especially some of the more ancient sites presently not visited much by tourists like Al-'Ula, some of the more temperate cities like Dammam or Jeddah, and the extremely ambitious NEOM sites.
I am deeply grateful to Mo and Fatmah for a wonderful introduction to this country.
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