Looking in, Looking out. Ushaiqer heritage village in Saudi Arabia’s Najd desert has been around for 1,500 years.

Before Saudi Arabia’s settlements transformed into steel and glass extravaganzas, they used to be made of mud-brick and rock-shards, built out of the earth they stood on. Not surprising then that very little remains of them. Over time they crumbled back into the alluvial oases or rocky outcrops on which they once stood.

Their styles were regional, with architectural features adapted to climate and available material, stamped with motifs distinctive to the local tribes. Two of the Kingdom’s most picturesque surviving villages [amongst very many] are Thee Ain and Ushaiqer. One is in the Al-Baha mountains, and another in the Najd desert. And they could not be more different from each other! Continue reading →