Al-Balad — A trip down memory lane

OVER the weekend, I managed to convince some of my family members to go with me down to Al-Balad, where the annual Ramadan festival is under way.
It was not hard to convince my grandfather, who was proud of having grown up in Al-Balad as a child. When my mother and younger sister heard that a trip was being planned to Al-Balad, they also became interested and tagged along.

The festival held in Al-Balad, the historical part of the city of Jeddah, was incredibly well organized and really helped take us back to that old town feel, especially for my grandfather.

As children played old-school volleyball and a man sat making ice cream in the corner of a street, my grandfather could not help but tell us stories of what Jeddah was like. It was as if every corner of the festival grounds sparked a memory in him.

He told us how a man used to light up the streets of Al-Balad. This man would walk around carrying a rod on his shoulder with five lanterns dangling on each end. As he walked around the city he would start hanging up these lanterns on houses just before the sunset. These lanterns would only burn out by dawn.

Just seeing the smile on my grandfather’s face as he told his stories was priceless and it showed what a great job was done this year by the organizers of the heritage festival to help bring back the spirit of Al-Balad.

The city is able to provide everything from traditional foods such as “baleela” and Arabic sweets to incredible artworks that dictated Saudi culture.

As we walked into one of the art galleries I could tell that my grandfather was mesmerized by the works. He would point to a particular artwork that reminded him of the exact setting he grew up around. One painting that hung on a wall in the gallery depicted boats on the shore of the Red Sea, which reminded him of being around the water with that very view.

Al-Balad’s old buildings are well preserved and walking into them felt like walking into the past. As we made our way through one of the houses, not only my grandfather who continued his stories but even my mother started to recognize a few things that reminded her of her own grandfather.

When we saw a radio between two pillows on top of a bed, my mother said this was exactly how my great grandfather used to place his radio while listening to the news lying down on the bed.

Something as simple as that was enough to flood my mother’s mind with incredible memories of the past. Not only did the festival bring back the past, but it also made us feel united by time. I was able to see how other families lived almost identical lives to that of my family.

Al-Balad gave us some idea as to how our ancestors lived and it managed to bring the entire city of Jeddah together in understanding its history.

Finally, an element of entertainment was added when little girls sang rhymes to grab people’s attention to sell ice cream, while others dressed in traditional clothing handed out candy. At the festival, people had the option of renting out tour guides, but having my grandfather tag along was like having a piece of living history with us.

I would most definitely recommend a visit to Al-Balad for sightseeing as it was not only historically educative, but also an incredible source of entertainment for all age groups.