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precious stones called “Saudi Berlanti stones”, which are
types of quartz stones, small pieces of which are found by
those interested, provided they know where to look for
them and have plenty of time and patience for the arduous
search.
Thus, after hearing a great deal about these rare precious
stones throughout the years I spent in the Kingdom, I
came to the conclusion that one must make a trip to the
desert in search for such stones, particularly in view of
the fact that rumors have it that the Saudi government
would, as of next year, begin to assume the control and
supervision of such search. I had to ask my secretary to
enquire regarding those involved in guiding tourists for
the search of precious stones and received expressions of
appreciation from my group.
On an early morning of May, a group of twenty women
wearing large edged hats accompanied by two men, who
are driven by curiosity, namely the Austrian ambassador
and the British military attaché, who were driving private
cars, arrived at Sahara Hotel, from where the trip must
begin.
Here there was a bus waiting for us and we were given
instructions by the guide, a swarthy youth, and then we
were on the move. The road was a one-way route that
cuts through the verdant areas like an arrow. Apparently
it had rained the day before from a passing cloud. begin
The earth has apparently responded gratefully and was
forthwith transformed into a green carpet adorned with
flowers. On both sides of the route, we could see small
numbers of black camels together with a small number of
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Seen by a Diplomat’s Spouse
she-camels and white camels. In the midst of these, there
were playing around the newly born camels that are as
high as the bellies of their parents from the surface of the
earth. The camels were lazily feeding on the dry herbs.
In a flashback, I should mention that two years before,
two sons of he ambassador of a European country had
come to visit their parents. They all traveled to the western
coast of the Kingdom in order to practice their favorite
hobby – fishing. On their way back, they had a terrible
accident. The driver behind the steering saw a group of
camels on the road. There was no sign warning of the
imminent danger; hence, he did not slow down. Suddenly
one of the camels jumped into the road. The driver tried to
maneuver but could not control the car with the result that
one of the two youths died, while the second was taken to
hospital in a critical condition.
The traffic authorities, whose job it is to supervise and
guard the routes, know very well the disposition of the
“desert ship”. Hence, on both sides of the road between
cities and external lanes there stood special beams and
after each interval along the route tunnels were dug
underground for camels and long horned cattle. Smaller
routes are full of warning signs on which camels are
drawn. Unfortunately, it just so happened that there were
none of those where the tragic accident had taken place.
We are then traveling along a local route. The desert
here is not uniform, as usual and as many think. In some
places, it rises to form low - rising hills containing a kind
of cohesive, precipitated sand; in others, it is transformed
into fields of black lava that extend beyond the horizon,
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or a sand plain covered with short thorny bushes. On rare
occasions, one can see a collection of trees near valleys
(which are the dry course of streams that are formed after
rainfall), close to a black or striped tent of bedouins with
their Nissan or Toyota truck which they use for transporting
their sheep, goats or their children.
A pleasant mood prevails in our bus. Some passengers
try singing but there is no common song that is shared
between them except an English one which begins as
follows: “I wish you health and prosperity”, as the group
comprises women of various nationalities. We split into
groups according to interests and inclinations. Behind
the glass of the windows, the desert begins to change. It
becomes a sea of surging and rough waves of sand, whose
dunes look as though skillfully made of thin layers like a
plate of mashed potatoes served at a fancy restaurant, that
are of orange to red color. But why this color in particular? I
try hard to remember the geographic information I learned
when I was young, but in vain. Even the guide, who is
supposed to know everything, did not know that. But the
view is magnificent. The disk of the sun has not risen
much towards its zenith. The contrast of colors between
the parts of the dunes that are exposed to the rays of the
sun and the shade of the low ground is sharp and is close
to dark grey. According to the guide, by mid-day, twenty
jeeps will arrive here, driven by youths who compete in
a match of ferocious wheels, transforming this beauty
into noise and dust. The roaring engines of their cars will
awaken the desert and disturb its peaceful beauty sleep.
Finally, we reached our destination. Here there is a road
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