Tarout Island and Historical Village

I was thinking of a different Friday routine since I usually spend my rest day staying at home, do the laundry, iron clothes and go out with friends at night to have coffee and eat. It has been a practice for about a year and a half now and I want to give my Fridays some twists and meet other people.

I have been a member of couchsurfing for a year now and I have attended some of the gatherings in the previous months and I had an amazing opportunity to meet different people . This community is really wonderful specially you gets the chance to meet and mingle with different nationalities.

Lately I have been organizing events for the group and I was happy to see some old and new members, we had bowling event in the past weeks and last Friday we had this Tarout Island Historical tour.

I have always wanted to go out of my backyard and go to other places here in Saudi but I just don't have the opportunity, plus I don't have my car as well hahaha. The farthest I've been so far is Jubail which is two hours away from Al Khobar and that is to meet my fellow couchsurfers. There have been so many plans before to go to Riyadh and Hofuf but nothing materialize.

Good thing, one member suggested this Tarout Island tour and I got interested on it. So I made an event on couchsurfing and I was happy to see that some members are interested on it too!

With the help of one friend, we created this tour to meet other members and have the chance to bond as well.

At 8 am we gathered at Qatif Central Hospital, and from there we went to a friend's house and had a short breakfast and short tour of his hotel house hehehe. Then afterwards we went straight to Tarout Castle which is approximately 200 meters away from his house.  Since he lived there, he became also our tour guide on that day. 

Tarout Castle

built in 1515 by the Portuguese as protection  from Turkish attacks

The Tarout Castle is located at the center of the Island. It was built sometime 1515 to 1521 by the Portuguese to protect themselves from the Turkish attacks. And why there are Portuguese on the Arabian land? Back in history, if you try to see the dates where the castle was built, it is the time when the Portuguese started their exploration, and since Tarout island is located on the Arabian gulf, there is a trace of history that the island played a significant role in trade activity. So most probably the Portuguese are one of the traders who went on the Island.

After we explored the castle, we went on the nearby village and walk around to see the old houses. The Island includes a number of towns and villages that are spread among the palm trees and along its sand beaches. As we walk on the streets , it is very evident that this place has a historical civilization. It is considered as one of the most ancient sites that were inhabited by humans, as well as one of the oldest areas along the Arabian Peninsula.  Some of the old houses have been neglected already, but still there were a few that has some people on it.

one of the houses that has been neglected

The sun was very hot that day, but who cares? I am learning a lot from this place and since I love history, I was overwhelmed on so many things that was shared by our tour guide. I do really believed that Saudi Arabia, aside from its natural gas and countless deserts, there are many interesting places as well, and I am happy that I was able to visit this place.

Later on that day, we proceeded on a nearby farm and took a quick visit on date farm. Tarout Island has countless date farms that surrounds the whole island. I've seen a lot of dates here but it is my first time to visit a farm like this. We were welcomed by the caretaker and we had the chance to see the whole farm including the livestock.

There we sat for a while under the palm shades and took a moment to chat, the weather is really exhausting so a quick rest is necessary to gather some energy after a tiring and yet fun tour.

Now I am starting to recognize some things about the country where I work, it is interesting to know that there are some places like this in the region and I am happy that I was able to visit one. There are still places on my list which I am planning to take a trip soon.