© Brid Beeler. All rights reserved.
The town of Layla, located some 330 Kilometers south of Riyadh in the Al-Aflaj oasis, is noted today for the enormous sinkholes and caves that dot the surrounding gypsum rock formations. But that was not always the case. Those massive sinkholes once contained water and Layla was one of the few places in the Kingdom where natural surface water could be found year-round. Such was the popularity of the Layla lakes as a tourist attraction that a resort hotel was built there!
© Brid Beeler. All rights reserved.
Recounting his visit to Layla in 1940, Tom Barger describes swimming in the lakes, one of which was three-quarters of a mile long, a quarter-mile wide, and 85 feet deep. He also writes about the several old mud forts, some of them reputed to be of the time of 'Ad, the king of the mythical lost city of Ubar in Ar Rub' al-Khali.
From the lakes, Barger found a series of covered canals leading to the nearby town and into the desert. These canals were marked at intervals with a series of stone manholes, similar to what his ARAMCO team had seen in Qatif. Where the dunes had moved on, the manholes could be seen. Barger said, “standing like a row of chimneys across the desert.’
© Brid Beeler. All rights reserved.
© Brid Beeler. All rights reserved.
When my husband first went to Layla in 1986, he brought home photos of the lakes, the forts, and the nearby oasis. Only four lakes remained at that time, but two of them were of considerable size. In fact, my husband had wanted to go to Layla after seeing a picture at work of someone water-skiing there! The canals and manholes Barger spoke of were dry, crumbling and in very poor repair.
© Brid Beeler. All rights reserved.
When I visited Layla in 1989, arriving there in our trusty Chevy Caprice, only two of the lakes contained any significant amount of water. Our camping group included two veteran birdwatchers, who were delighted to find Glebes and Coots on the lakes and brightly colored Blue Rollers flitting among nearby bushes. Near shore, the waters teamed with small fish. This abundance of birdlife and fish in the middle of such a dry desert plain was a surprise, as was the size of the derelict Layla Lakes Resort, which spoke volumes about the economic impact of the lakes drying up.
© Brid Beeler. All rights reserved.
But Layla is not only famous for its lakes; there is also a romantic tale associated with the place. Lord Byron called the epic poem of Layla and Qays (or Layla and Majnun) the ‘Romeo and Juliet of the East.’ It’s the tale of the 7th-century Najdi poet Qays ibn al-Mulawwah and his beloved Layla bint Mahdi. Their story, which can be found in several versions and languages, was already old when the Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi wrote his account in 1188. In Ganjavi’s version, Layla and Qays live in an obscure village in Arabia called Layla Aflaj. They fall in love when they are young, but when they grow up, Layla’s father refuses to allow them to marry. Qays is devastated and flees into the desert, writing poetry about his lost love in the sand and on cave walls. This erratic behavior earns him the nickname “Majnun” (madman). Layla marries another. When her husband later dies, she hopes to reunite with Qays but fails and dies of a broken heart.
Here’s an excerpt:
Layla, can you see the night sky?
Stars are littered with gold.
It is surreal to watch, like dreams taking flight.
On this full moon night, lamps from heaven are gleaming at me.
Even now I am staring longingly at the moonlit mountains,
Thinking of you.
© Brid Beeler. All rights reserved.
Still powerful. The saga of Layla and Qays has been around in one form or another for over a thousand years. Unlike the lakes themselves, their story has certainly withstood the test of time.
About the Author: Brid Beeler first went to live in Saudi Arabia in 1989 and stayed for a decade. Her career then led her to live and work in Yemen and Oman and work for some of the world’s top travel companies. She currently heads Brid Beeler Travel (www.bridbeelertravel.com) and travels in and out of the Kingdom regularly on tour or collaborating on programs. She has traversed every corner of Arabia and is never happier than delving into the culture and treasures of the peninsula.
Brid began taking American travelers to Saudi Arabia in 1998 and, in addition to operating tours, she has trained guides, worked on award-winning documentaries, and written extensively on the region. In 2015, she was the Tour Director for the Smithsonian tour to Saudi Arabia, Oman and Qatar, which followed their internationally acclaimed Roads of Arabia exhibit.
She has presented papers on eco-tourism in the Middle East region and was one of only a handful of women invited by the National Commission for Wildlife Conservation & Development and the Supreme Commission for Tourism to speak at the first International Conference on Eco-Tourism in Saudi Arabia in 2002. She has written for Foreign Affairs and the Arab British Chamber of Commerce. In addition, she has published travel articles in Middle Eastern newspapers and spoken on Middle Eastern travel at embassy functions in Washington DC. A strong proponent of Middle Eastern art, culture and traditions, she has spoken on the ethnic silver jewelry of the Arabian Peninsula at the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin Castle.
Back home in Ireland, Brid enjoys walks on the beach with her latest saluki, Rishan.