Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The lanes surrounding Beit Seyadi on Muharraq Island are slowly developing into a
centre for the preservation of traditional arts, crafts and social customs under the patron-
age of the Sheikh Ebrahim bin Mohammed Al Khalifa Centre for Culture and Research.
The best way to find out what's going on where is to consult the listings in
TimeOut
Bahrain
or the English-language newspapers.
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
LOCAL CRAFTS
On the face of it, Bahrain is a modern country that looks forward more often than it looks back. This is changing,
however, and Manama's recent post as Capital of Arab Culture has led to a revival of interest in Bahrain's artistic
heritage. Several cultural centres, such as the Crafts Centre Gallery and Workshop (
Click here
) in central
Manama, and workshops, such as Al-Jasra Handicraft Centre (
Click here
), have been set up to encourage the con-
tinuation of skills. Crafts are generally carried out in cottage industries or co-operatives with people working
from the privacy of their own inner courtyards. If you head out to the following places, especially in the company
of a local guide, however, you may be lucky to see these crafts in progress.
»
Pottery and ceramics
Village of A'Ali.
»
Traditional weaving
Villages of Ad-Diraz and Bani Jamrah.
»
Basket weaving with palm leaves
Village of Karbabad.
»
Pearl jewellery
Gold souq, Manama.
»
Al-Kurar metal thread work
(for decorating ceremonial gowns) Al-Kurar House, Muharraq.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Environment
The Land
Most people think of Bahrain (741 sq km) as a single flat island with a couple of low es-
carpments in the middle of a stony desert and surrounded by a very shallow, calm sea. In
fact, such is the description of Bahrain Island only, which, at 586 sq km, is the largest in
an archipelago of about 33 islands, including the Hawar Islands, and a few specks of sand
that disappear at high tide. When crossing any of the causeways, including the King Fahd
Causeway, which links Bahrain with the Saudi mainland, it is easy to see how the whole
archipelago was once attached to the rest of the continent.
