What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part Fifteen of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping.
It’s not that difficult to get yourself or for your friends and family something memorable and unique from any country. My list of things to bring from Saudi Arabia is versatile and offers options for any budget.
What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part Fourteen of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping.
From the little and confusing information I’ve been able to find, there are two types of Saudi Arabian daggers: Al-Janbiyah and Al-Khanjar, which are curved and straight types (this is classification described in the book The Traditional Craft in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia). Both are traditionally manufactured mostly in the southern region of the Kingdom.
What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part Thirteen of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping.
Most Arabian bedouin jewelry is fashioned from silver. Whereas standard silver has 925 parts of pure silver mixed with 75 parts of other metal alloy, this ratio greatly varies in the ornaments worn by bedouins, raising questions about whether the silver is “real”. Sterling silver is a soft metal, that’s why silversmiths were adding base metal to the alloy to make the piece durable.
What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part Twelve of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping.
Amber was always an intricate and important part of bedouin jewelry. It used to be collected on the shores of the Arabian Sea. In combination with silver beads and ornamental elements it contributes to beautiful pieces of tribal Saudi jewelry.
What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part Eleven of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping.
Usually coral reefs grow in all the world’s warm oceans where conditions are right – the reefs of the Red Sea are famous for their variety and color since water salinity is not too high and water temperature does not vary too much during the year. Nevertheless large and healthy coral reefs and coral islands are also common in the salty, shallow Arabian Gulf, where conditions are far from ideal for their growth.
What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part Ten of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping.
Pearling was bringing an important input to the Saudi economy for a long time. The old pearling center al-Qatif on the Saudi Arabian coast along with al-Jubail, Darin and al-Khobar was known in the 11th century. Just in the port of Jubail, more than 200 pearling boats were harbored at one time.
What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part Nine of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping.
You might have heard a lot about Saudi souks or souqs, the traditional ambient Arabian markets where all kinds of trinkets, knickknacks, haberdashery and whatnots are sold along with antique jewelry, weapons, furniture, household items and rugs.
What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part Eight of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping.
“Books make great gifts because they have whole worlds inside of them. And it’s much cheaper to buy somebody a book than it is to buy them the whole world!” ― Neil Gaiman
What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part Seven of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping.
The Arabic word “zaatar” is used as either as a name of a wild herb that is a distant cousin of thyme and native to the Middle East, or for a mixture of that herb blended with sesame seeds and other spices.
What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part Six of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping.
A genuine Saudi vintage bronze dallah will make an impressive decoration piece. If you are lucky to find such dallah in the souks of Saudi Arabia, post a photo here so we all would be able to admire your piece of authentic Saudi art. But is it being used in the nowadays Arabian households?