Impressions of Tabuk
Tabuk (also “Tabouk”) is a province in the northwest of Saudi Arabia, separated by many hundreds of kilometers of desert and mountains from the largest cities in the kingdom, but bordering Jordan and the coastal city of Acaba. Tabuk City is closer to Damascus than it is to Jeddah.
Tabuk province enjoys the longest coastline in the KSA, along the Red Sea.
I arrived here on a business trip, and unfortunately much of my time was spent in business meetings and at a mediocre, but passable hotel. During the various meetings, and through two tours of city facilitated by our hosts, I was able to develop a reasonable picture of the place.
Based upon the research conducted prior to the trip, I expected to find something more closely resembling Egypt than Saudi Arabia. Its GDP per capita and education rates are significantly below the national average, for instance.
Instead, we encountered in the city of Tabuk the first real “oasis” I would visit in Saudi Arabia. The best analogy is to compare Tabuk to the Midwest of the United States. It is an agricultural area, with a pleasant climate, and a population that enjoys a quieter pace of life. Generally, the quality of life that we witnessed was good, and the people warm, hospitable, and occasionally, quite entrepreneurial.
Plants Rising from the Desert
One of the most shocking impressions that the region left upon me was how agriculture has been successful despite the negligible annual rainfall and sweeping desert sands. As we drove along the highway to visit a large commercial farm, watching the flat sands pass us by on either side of the car, we suddenly came upon life. Tall stalks, like corn (though probably not corn… it’s too water intensive), rose from the desert sand in a tight circle around the rotating irrigation equipment that gave it life.
As we explored the farm, we learned how high water intensity crops like wheat are being substituted for more resilient ones, like olives, and higher value crops, like fruits and vegetables. The water for the crops is drawn from a large aquifer which lies below the valley where Tabuk city is located. How sustainable this is in the long run, is a question to which few appear to have an answer.
Untouched Coastline
While meeting with different business and ministry leaders, we heard them describe the virgin coastline on the Red Sea as a paradise of sand, water, and endless potential. In many ways, they were right. The trick, however, is that a “virgin coastline” might in fact be covered in SUV tracks, littered with garbage and debris ranging from bottles and wrappers to car tires, and in many places completely without trees or other plant life. Nevertheless, sand and water are plentiful, and as far as I can tell, so is business opportunity.
Breathtaking Mountains and Desert
What actually impressed me most about Tabuk and its potential as a future tourist destination was not its coastline, but the desert and mountains which separate the city of Tabuk from the beaches an hour and a half to the west. What starts out looking like the deserts and mountains of Western Colorado and Eastern Utah turns into a terrain altogether unfamiliar. The area’s craggy peaks and jagged rock formations reminded me more of what I expect Tierra del Fuego looks like than anything I expected to find in Saudi Arabia.
Unfortunately, our short visit didn’t afford the opportunity to explore further. We read and heard about archeological sites ranging from castles to old temples similar to those found at Petra in Jordan to the North. Who knows - perhaps I will return one day.
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- Welcome to The Intrepid Mr. Fox
Welcome to the personal weblog of Mitchell W. Fox, a management strategy consultant in Sydney, Australia.The Intrepid Mr. Fox is about my personal life and adventures. It focuses on three main topics: The Good Life (things I enjoy in my leisure time), Travel, and my thoughts and ideas about the world around us.
Hi, I enjoyed reading your description of Tabuk. I work for Tabuk Agriculture Development Company, situated 50km to the north of Tabuk town. Did you manage to see some remnatnts of the old Hijaz railway which ran alongside the current highway to our company? What business were you conducting in tabuk (if you don’t mind me asking)
Would like to hear from you
Best regards,
Kieran Forde