The next morning we headed out north of Riyadh on our grand tour around the north and west of Saudi Arabia. Our first stop was Ushaiger, a small village that was almost abandoned, but it was decided that it was scenic and architecturally significant, so the government fixed up the outsides of the buildings along the main streets. Since then a number of city people have bought buildings and fixed up the insides as weekend homes. But the areas away from the streets are mainly ruins. The current full time population is quite small.

Our first stop in town was a house museum, a house where the resident showed his collection of historical items. It was the sort of place that my dad would have loved. Significant and insignificant items on every surface.

Then we wandered around the maze of covered streets in an area partially restored.

Colorful doors are popular here. This was a nice example.

We drove through the desert to our next stop in Unayzah.

Dates are a major product of Saudi Arabia, so where there is enough water there will be groves of date palms.

Then we continued to Unayzah to visit a women’s market. It was a small market with a collection of women’s products, mainly sweets and fabrics, and local utensils and “antiques.” The old historic market had been torn down, so one family built a new one in a historic format. It felt more genuine than the reproductions built by the government.

There were more brightly colored doors.

Many of the shops were selling "antiques" that looked like the items in the house museum we had visited.

The market is particularly famous for their special "cookies" baked rolls that puff up and are filled with a kind of date molasses. They were very good, but really sweet.

There was a large sitting room where people can sit, during coffee , and talk. It's a larger version of what people have in their home.

I escaped without any purchases.

By the time we left, the sun was setting.

Then we traveled on to Buraydah a town that has been a center for date and fruit production and trade. After dinner in a local restaurant, we walked through the local souk, small and not particularly interesting to me.