The Person Behind the Posts

How I Ended Up Here

The short version: I came for a six-month engineering consultancy contract in late 2021. That was three years ago.

The longer version involves a complicated mix of career restlessness, pandemic-era reevaluation, and the kind of impulsive decision-making that occasionally works out. My background is in civil engineering, specifically infrastructure projects in developing markets. When a Saudi firm needed someone to help with a water treatment facility expansion in the Eastern Province, my name came up through industry contacts.

I said yes mostly because I was curious. Everything I knew about Saudi Arabia came from news headlines and a vague sense that it was "opening up." I figured six months would either confirm or complicate those impressions. It did both.

Why Jeddah Specifically

My initial assignment was in Dammam, on the Gulf coast. Pleasant enough, but corporate. When I got a chance to relocate to Jeddah for a different project, colleagues warned me it would be "more chaotic." They meant it as a caution. I heard it as a promise.

Jeddah delivered. This city has layers that keep revealing themselves. The Red Sea coast. The historic port heritage. The colliding influences of African, Asian, and Middle Eastern cultures that centuries of trade routes deposited here. The fact that millions of pilgrims pass through annually on their way to Mecca, making this one of the most cosmopolitan places I've lived.

My engineering work has taken me across the region, to Riyadh, to NEOM, to smaller towns in the interior. Jeddah remains home base by choice. It has the right balance of energy and calm, history and ambition.

Why This Site Exists

I started writing about Jeddah for selfish reasons. Friends back home kept asking what it was "really like," and I got tired of typing the same long WhatsApp messages. A simple blog seemed more efficient.

Then something unexpected happened. Strangers started emailing. People considering moves to Saudi Arabia for work. Tourists planning their first visits. Expats in other Gulf countries curious about whether the grass was greener. They wanted practical information that wasn't filtered through either government tourism promotion or outdated stereotypes.

I don't pretend to be a comprehensive resource. There are places in Jeddah I still haven't explored, neighborhoods I barely know. What I can offer is three years of accumulated experience, honestly conveyed. The things that surprised me. The places I actually go back to. The frustrations I've learned to navigate.

What You Won't Find Here

No sponsored content. No affiliate links. No hotel partnerships or paid placements. I pay for everything I write about, which keeps me honest. If I recommend a restaurant or a tour, it's because I genuinely think it's good, not because someone compensated me to say so.

I also try to avoid the breathless "hidden gem" language that plagues travel writing. Jeddah isn't a hidden gem. It's a city of four million people that's been an important Red Sea port for centuries. I'm not "discovering" anything. I'm just paying attention and sharing what I notice.

Beyond This Site

My day job remains engineering consultancy, though I've shifted toward advisory roles that allow more flexibility. The writing started as a hobby and has grown into something I take seriously, though not as a business. Photography has become the unexpected obsession, particularly architectural and street photography. The light in this part of the world is extraordinary.

I read constantly, mostly history and long-form journalism. I'm slowly working through Arabic lessons, achieving that particular frustration of understanding more than I can express. I cook Cantonese food badly in my tiny apartment kitchen, a way of staying connected to my heritage while thousands of kilometers from family.

Get In Touch

I welcome emails from fellow travelers, prospective expats, or anyone with questions I might be able to answer. I can't promise immediate responses, life gets busy, but I read everything and try to reply to genuine inquiries. The contact page has details.

If you're passing through Jeddah and want to grab coffee, reach out. I'm always interested in meeting people who are curious about this place.