Fortunately, the airline was pretty good about providing a hotel room, meals, transportation and even the 24-hour visa I needed to get into Bahrain. I had requested that they send my luggage to baggage claim, but it wasn't down there by the time I got through immigration. The woman at the claim desk said it would take over an hour to retrieve it and that it was better to check it on through. I reluctantly agreed to leave the airport without my bag even though it would mean I was without a change of clothes and would have to take out money to buy a toothbrush.
Once I got through customs (sans bag), I joined a group of other stranded passengers in a shuttle bus to the hotel. As we drove through the city to the hotel, we passed by the Persian Gulf, the brand new Bahrain World Trade Center (the kingdom's first "intelligent" building), the Isa Cultural Center and the Grand Mosque. The hotel itself was a short distance from the mosque in a developing residential and commercial area.After checking into the hotel, I walked a short distance down the street to the supermarket (interestingly enough called Al Jazira) to pick up a toothbrush, toothpaste and some other emergency supplies. I was surprised at how many westerners I saw walking around, shopping, but I guess they must all work in the oil industry or have husbands who do. After getting the essentials, I went right back to the hotel, closed the curtains and took a nice long nap in my luxurious twin-sized bed. I then had a buffet lunch downstairs in the hotel before leaving again to take a walk around the area.
I was still feeling rather weak from my food poisoning so I wasn't able to go too far or too fast, but I did get a nice, brief tour of the immediate area. It was certainly nice to be in a warm desert climate after all the cold nights in Nepal and India. I first walked past lots of new hotels and apartment buildings to get to the waterfront, which seemed to be more construction zone than beach at that stage. From there I walked around the cultural center and mosque, but couldn't go inside since it was closed to tourists for the holy day on Friday. I continued walking down the neighborhood's main street, past my hotel until I realized I was starting to get into an older residential area. I decided instead to go back to the water so I could get up close to the Gulf and watch the sunset. It was really pretty to see it setting behind the mosque and reflecting in the water.
For the rest of my night in Bahrain, I just ate dinner in the hotel, took a nice, hot shower and watched American movies on TV. It was definitely a relaxing and low stress way to spend the day. It was also nice to get to stay in an actual hotel instead of a hostel or guesthouse, especially since I didn't have to pay for it. It was interesting to see part of this small Gulf kingdom, which is clearly putting all its oil money to use by building, building, building. The country has only been completely independent from Britain for 40 years (as I learned from a local magazine I read in the hotel) so everyone speaks English and the amenities appear to be very modern. It almost feels like a resort area even though its essentially a desert surrounded by water. The best part of my brief stay in Bahrain, though, is since I actually set foot out of the airport and into the city, I get to count it among the countries I have visited!
