Today we visited Qal'at al-Bahrain, which is also known as the Bahrain Fort or the Portuguese Fort. It was once the capital of the Dilmun civilization and was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005. It is currently under excavation and has over 7 layers of civilizations present. It dates backs to 2300BC. Visiting this old fort, from the location, to the layers and intricacies of the architecture to the pure history of this site was surreal. We walked around the fort, having full access to almost the entire thing. For the most part, we were the only people on the grounds, which made it even more incredible and eerie. This is probably the oldest piece of developed earth I have ever been on.
While we were there, the prayers started to be broadcast over the loudspeakers in the nearby town. From the walls of the fort we were standing on, we could hear the prayers echoing in the distance. This made it all the more significant, and interesting. In Bahrain (and the Muslim faith), prayers are said 6 times a day. In Bahrain, they are broadcast over the loudspeakers during this time and everyone stops what they are doing, faces Mecca and prays. Although we don't participate in those prayers, it was interesting to be walking around a fort that is over 4000 years old during this time. We stood on the fort walls, overlooking the Persian Gulf and took in the significance of this site.
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