Where Al Musmak was the familiar and the
falconry display was the exciting, our
weekend trip to Ar Raghbah and Ushayqr was the unexpected. We’d done this road trip three years ago, and
had really happy memories of the day, so decided we’d go again with our son and
a group of friends. There were some certainties to the day: a picnic, a small museum
to explore, desert vistas and an old watch tower to climb. Well, that was the plan. Our first stop was
Ar Raghbah, 120 km northwest of Riaydh. This mud brick village was
established in 1669 and although small and unprepossessing, it’s very
significant historically. It was one of the targets in 1817 during the invasion
of the Najd by Turks under Ibraheem Pasha. I remembered the cylindrical Al Marqab
Tower, with its small slit windows, and the spiral staircase that led to an outlook point so small, two people could barely stand side by side. Sadly I'd not made
it to the top. Only a few steps away, I’d turned back, claustrophia getting the
better of me. But here’s what we remembered. Something
that looked like this.
