King Abdullah Economic City is pretty cool. You might even feel like you're not in Saudi Arabia anymore. It is truly a modern city oasis.
I originally went to see the
Salvador Dali exhibition, but before I got to that, the group I was with was given a tour by the community manager, Omar. He showed us around the visitor center, including a PR film, and gave us some fun facts about
King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC). Then I checked out the Dali artwork...
After that, Omar took us to a private beach and then to a row of restaurants along the Red Sea for dinner. The sunset was pretty spectacular, as you'll see below.
I highly recommend visiting KAEC if you can.
Here are some of those fun facts:
- There are only about 3,000 residents so far. I believe Omar said they're shooting for 2 million.
- About 30% of the population is Saudi.
- The port opened in Fall 2013 and is among the top ten biggest in the world.
- The visitor center was the first building built.
- Sustainable design is incorporated throughout, but I don't really see it. No offense.
- All of the water they use is desalinated Red Sea water.
- They have their own generator for the city. They plan on being connected to the national grid by 2018.
- A high-speed train will connect KAEC to Jeddah in 25 minutes. It was also go to Mecca and Medina.
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| I like models. That's the port that is now operating. |
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| It's a big model. |
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| Some pictures from the top of the visitor center... |
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| First floor of the visitor center. |
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| Taking in the sunset at dinner. |
