Trip to Taif

Taif is a city in the Mecca province in Saudi Arabia quite high up in the mountains (1,879 m = 6,165 ft) with over half million inhabitants. Each summer Saudi government moves here from Riyadh.

It was the destination of our trip on Thursday provided by local travel agency.

We visited

• the rose distillery, producing rose water and oil used in cosmetics but also as an ingredient in some sweets and drinks.
• the site where you can see baboons in the nature, they look quite cute though apparently their large numbers are causing some problems too
• the cable car with newly built highway road to Mecca underneath and the swimming pool and other attractions near the bottom station
  

• the city's museum in Shubra palace, the former summer residence of King Abdul Aziz

It was also a nice introduction to the life outside the campus for me and the first time I used the abaya just without the head scarf.

For more photos visit Martin's sites on everytrail (includes the map) and/or rajce.