I mentioned that we flew from Dammam to Medinah. Access to most of Medinah is restricted to Muslims only. There is a ring road around the city with arched structures every few hundred feet along the inside of it marking the "haram zone" where infidels are not allowed to enter. The airport and a couple of hotels are outside the haram zone. A non-Muslim who enters the haram zone can be imprisoned and put to death.
Yeah, they are that serious about it.
There was little chance of our group straying into the the haram zone since we had a police escort from the moment we landed in Medinah.
There were anywhere from one to three labeled police cars with flashing lights with us at all times, even in the desert. Particularly out there, the police vehicles would flank our convoy, setting themselves off from us on either side at a distance of about 200 feet (no roads so people drive wherever their vehicles will go).
There were numerous police check points along the road from Medinah to Al Ula. The trip organizer had to obtain advance government approval for everyone going on the trip and these documents were examined at every stop.
None of these measures were in place just a few years ago. However, after the events in Khobar compounds (non-Aramco) and the 2007 shooting of a group of French travelers north of Medinah (a good point to start your research on these events is here), the Saudis have gradually been ramping up security. They actually don't give a rat's ass about us infidels but it makes them look weak if they can't control the militant fringe within their own borders.
That's a fairly ironic situation given that the Saudis provide ideological and financial support to that same militant Islamic fringe--as long as the militants stay outside KSA. Those incidents I mentioned brought the fringe a bit too close to home for the Saudis and they realized they needed to make a more overt effort to at least appear that they care about terrorism.
I mentioned that visiting Medein Saleh was an opportunity of a lifetime. I would have to extend that statement even more. My very participation on the field trip as a single female was unique (although in the US and Europe nobody would have batted an eyelash at the idea). I have a pretty good appreciation of what I managed to get away with during that week. A combination of luck, stubbornness, and good timing, and regular wearing of the hated abaya except on the outcrops. I may not get such an opportunity again.
An aside on the abaya. An American guy told me that he thinks that western women wear the abaya like a bathrobe, something used as a temporary covering. Saudi women actually wear it. I think this is an excellent comparison.
I thought I would close this post with a photo of some very unusual artwork we saw in Al Ula. In Islam, prohibitions against drawing Mohammed are extended to all representations of the human form. Even drawing animals is considered rather edgy by the Saudis. Imagine our surprise to see this odd flagpole sculpture.
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