TBK travels to Askar to find out what is there for Miss Andrea!

Back in Feb 26 2021 Jake and I went to Askar and had Samosas on the beach after we had a walk there. So on 3.3. 22 I decided to retrace my steps as part of my 5000 steps / 5 photos challenge. I have to walk 5000 steps in a different location each day and take 5 photos as evidence!

I was telling my former colleague , Miss Andrea, of my plan to visit Askar by What's app and she asked " oh, what's at Askar apart from the BSPCA and a Landfill?" So in this blog I will answer that question for all my readers.

I set off in the car, later than planned, at 3 pm for the long drive south from Hidd to Askar. It's actually about a 30 minute drive and 30 km , which does not seem far to many ( I used to drive 400 km and for 4 hrs. a day in the UK with my work in years gone by) but for us on the small island of Bahrain it's a long journey!

I now live in Hidd which is on Muhurraq island at the top right of the map

So for my many readers not in Bahrain first a little background.

"Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain is a small island country situated near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is an archipelago of 33 islands, the largest being Bahrain Island, at 55 km long by 18 km wide. Saudi Arabia lies to the west and is connected to Bahrain by the King Fahd Causeway. Iran lies 200 km to the north of Bahrain, across the Gulf. The peninsula of Qatar is to the southeast across the Gulf of Bahrain"

"Bahrain (from the Arabic word for "two seas" — itself an inaccurate folk etymology for the much older, Semitic term, Bahran) comprises an archipelago of thirty-three islands in the Persian Gulf, situated close to the shore of the Arabian Peninsula. The islands are about twenty-four kilometers from the east coast of Saudi Arabia and twenty-eight kilometers from Qatar. The total area of the islands is about 691 square kilometers, or about four times the size of the District of Columbia."

Source: https://trip-suggest.com/bahrain/southern-governorate/askar (accessed 4.3.22)

Muhurraq is now connected to Bahrain island by 3 bridges, one of which you can see from the window of my apartment.

One of the three bridges connecting Muhurraq and Bahrain island at Sunset

I then headed down the east coast of Bahrain over the Sitra Causeway and on to the new flyover near Bapco ( Bahrain Petroleum). Here I took the flyover to Askar going past the new Bapco Modernisation Project ( BMP) and past Alba ( Aluminum Bahrain, the second largest Aluminum smelter in the world) and soon after that turned left and took the coast road to Askar. As I entered the village I did a you turn and turned right down to the sea and parked. It was a beautiful sight with fishing boats, fisherman's pots and seagulls everywhere.

So now a little background to Askar itself from our dear friends at Wikipedia:

"Askar (Arabic: عسكر) is a village on the southeastern coast of Bahrain, it is now part of Madinat Khalifa. It is also home to the shrine of Sa'sa'a bin Sohan, a companion of Imam Ali. Inhabitants today include the Al-Buainain, Al-Kaabi, Al-Mansoori, Al-Ghadeer and Al-Azmi tribes. Many of the inhabitants have been living in the village for more than 3/4 generations. The population in the area grew almost double due to the Ministry of Housing's housing project."

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Askar,_Bahrain (accessed 4.3.22)

"Stories, Mr Porter, we want stories not Wiki quotes!"

"Ok, Mr Gregory, keep what little hair you have left , on!"

One of the two big Mosques which dominate the skyline in Askar

So I discovered Askar by chance many years ago, like many expats in Bahrain! I had been to the Tree of Life and on my way back decided to follow the coast road rather than the highway and found this sleepy little fishing village by the sea. One of the first things I noticed was the kids running, walking, cycling and playing in the street. Then I saw Indian men dressed in a Lungi ( or often called dhoti or mundu) , the traditional material wrapped around their legs like a skirt. They all greeted me in Arabic saying "Salaam alaikum" which was amusing, as I was English and they were Mallu!

For those who don't speak Arabic my friend Ash just sent me this quick guide:

That , I think, is what I most liked about Askar, it was so laid back and friendly. Jake and I used to go to a café there and buy freshly cooked samosas and sit by the sea on the blue benches and eat them and people would stop and say hello. Yesterday a man stopped to tell me the torch on my phone was on as I was taking my photos! Sadly the café was closed as I was taking photos but it was open when I returned to the car in the evening.

Baba Botam Cafeteria where Jake and I used to get our hot samosa

The benches opposite the café by the sea

The other thing I noticed in Askar was the pigeons, they are everywhere, and seagulls. Someone has made a water feeder for them and placed it by the sea and on the roof of the building where the café is you will see a big bird aviary and you can hear the birds as you walk by tweeting ( bird noises not sending tweets on Twitter!)

The Aviary on top of the building , the Bahraini's love birds!

The over engineered bird watering device by the sea complete with roof!

Best of all in Askar I just like to wander by the sea, looking at all the boats and the nets - the boats are on the beach and parked down the roads, no one seems to care. The cages ( presumably for crabs and lobsters) are stacked up on boats, in the sea, on the shore and on any spare piece of land and the fishermen bring them down to the boats on trolleys when it is time to set off . Each one has rope, buoys and the fisherman's initials so they known who the catch belongs to.

One set of fisherman's cages ready to go

When I walked to the end of the beach and turned to walk back into town I saw the Red bus arriving and was reminded of another visit to Askar with my friend Carl Max. The bus was sat parked on some vacant land and Carl went over to talk to the driver for 30 mins! When he came back I asked him what he was doing and he said he wanted to find out about the bus routes and how much they cost. I asked why he didn't ask at the Bus terminal and he told me they are always busy there and there is a queue for information, whilst at Askar the driver had plenty of time to talk! It worked well as Carl has been touring Bahrain on the red bus ever since. It's a pity he is not here for our next weeks Friday gang- a day on the busses!

Bus XGA arrives in Askar , and bus 17 and 18 also serve the town

Source: https://moovitapp.com/index/en/public_transit-Askar-Bahrain-site_18458240-3562 (accessed 4.3.22)

Now I am sure you are all wondering what happens to all those fish they catch- well Askar has many fish shops and the fish do not get any fresher! I saw a queue of customers outside one shop.... wait for it Gerda, you will love this pic like Miss A did!

"So what about the Landfill ?", I hear you ask?

Well Bahrain's one and only landfill is at Askar but well out of the sleepy fishing village on the other side of the highway ( that is why you see so many skip lorries and rubbish trucks heading down to Askar ) . It used to be a quarry and then they used it to bury all the rubbish. I remember telling all the Contractors attending my Sunday morning Environmental Awareness sessions as part of the Contractor Inductions at Bapco all about the Landfill. Did you know that " Bahrain generates 1.2 Million tons of solid waste a year which is disposed of in an old quarry at Askar. However it is due to be full soon and a tender was issued in 2021 to build a new landfill in another quarry in the area."

Source: https://www.newsofbahrain.com/bahrain/75287.html (accessed 4.3.22)

There is much work building work going on in the Askar area as I discovered when researching this blog.

"Al Askar IPP is an independent power plant being constructed on a build, own, operate model at the Askar landfill site, in Bahrain’s southern governorate. A consortium led by ACWA Power, Mitsui and Almoayyed Contracting Group WLL submitted the lowest bid of 14.668 Bahraini Dinar /MWh ($39.1) for electricity to be generated by the project. ACWA Power has the majority stake (60%) followed by Mitsui (30%) and Almoayyed Contracting Group WLL (10%).

Considered the country’s first large-scale PV power plant, the project was commissioned to generate 100 MW through solar power, achieving nearly 50% of the target set by the Kingdom’s National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP) - which aims to bring 255 MW of PV capacity online by 2025."

Source:https://www.nomac.com/en/our-operations/nomac-globally/al-askar-ipp/ (accessed 4.3.22)

"The Kingdom of Bahrain is pursuing a policy of energy security by promoting a diversified energy mix focusing on solar energy technologies in order to harness the high solar resource in the country. In January 2017, the National Plan for Renewable Energy was approved that sets the national target of renewable energy in the Kingdom of Bahrain at 5% by 2025 increasing to 10% by 2035. EWA proposes to develop a PV Project, which will be the first solar PV IPP development, with the aim of generating at least 100MW of energy from a solar PV farm.

The project is located on a 4sq.km site at the Askar landfill in the Southern Governorate"

Source:https://www.byrnelooby.com/projects/askar-solar-farm/ (accessed 4.3.22)

Ok so that's the landfill- what about the BSPCA?

As Miss A mentioned Askar is now home to the BSPCA ( The Bahrain Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) AWC ( animal welfare centre)

They are located close to Bapco/ Alba before you get into the village of Askar.

According to their website the BSPCA AWC can be found in:

" the industrial area of Askar. Follow the signs to Sitra, then at the Nuwaidrat (ALBA) roundabout take the road towards Askar/Jau. At the 3rd traffic light turn right onto “Trucks Road”. Drive up the road and at the top of the rise before the road turns to the left (approx. 800 mtrs) you will see a green boundary wall, the BSPCA sign and 2 Bahrain flags. Go into the gates of the AWC.

Telephone: 1759 1231"

Source: https://www.bspca.org/sample-page-2/ (accessed 4.3.22)

The last question from Miss A was " Isn't Askar near to Jaw?"

Indeed it is!

Why does every public walkway in Bahrain start with a notice like this ?

As you drive along the coast from Askar to Jaw you see a beautiful beach on the left but you have to turn into the car park before it to be able to park! Many times I have gone past and then had to do a U turn! They have spent a lot of money building a beach walk and playing area and are currently rebuilding and repainting the shelters ( from the sun) along the walk. My thanks to Rachelle and Gilbert Sallicup for posting videos of their walks there with their boys Shaun and Sam. I went and checked it out and managed to get up to 6,000 steps by the time I got back to my car.

I laughed at the group of men chatting at one shelter while their wives and daughters were at the other and their son was running between the two and their car!

Later I read that back in 2014 they had plans to build a "Women Only" beach but that plan appears not to have come to fruition! Like many plans in Bahrain!

There were big plans for Askar beach in 2014 as I found in the Gulf Daily News Archive :

"It will be located at the southern end of a new public beach currently being developed in Askar.

Guards will be deployed to keep men away, Southern Municipal Council chairman Mohsin Al Bakri told the GDN.

The women's beach is part of a longer stretch of public coastline undergoing a BD1.5 million development.

"The women's section, which will be the southern part of the new Askar coast, will be open at all times - but will be guarded to ensure no males trespass or peep," said Mr Al Bakri.

"We haven't decided yet what types of partitions will be used, but the place will be secure.

"The council and the Municipalities and Urban Planning Affairs Ministry want to provide a suitable environment for women to enjoy their time in line with Islamic values and traditions.

"It is the first coast of its type in Bahrain that is women-only and we want it to come out in the best shape possible, since others could be interested in having one in their governorates."

The Southern Municipal Council said it came up with the idea after women complained that men bothered them whenever they went to a public beach.

It was approved by the Municipalities and Urban Planning Affairs Minister Dr Juma Al Ka'abi.

"Even in public places some privacy is needed, especially when there are parasites searching for entertainment or to hook up with someone," said Mr Al Bakri.

"Women feel offended and they either decide to go when there are few people, or don't go at all and sit at home.

"The new beach will be open daily and women can come at any time with assurances that their privacy will be protected."

Source: https://islam.ru/en/content/story/women-only-beach-open-bahrain (accessed 4.3.22)

If I had more time I would have sat here and watched the Flamingoes and Herons

Eventually I drove further along the coast and arrived at the next village:

"Jaww ( or Jau or Jaw)

Jaww is a village on the south eastern coast of Bahrain, and has traditionally been home to the Al Bu Romaih tribe. One of Bahrain's main prisons is located near the village. Al Sayed a Sunni family is also very much settled in the Jaw & in some parts of Riffa"

Source: https://trip-suggest.com/bahrain/southern-governorate/askar (accessed 4.3.22)

The prison is heavily fortified following a break out in the early hours of New Year's day in 2020. A group of armed prisoners, with outside help, scaled the walls and fled to Iran ( allegedly) in a boat!

Jaw Resort and Spa, not to be confused with Jau prison which is free to Bahrainis

Just before the prison is Jaw Resort and Spa which is a little more expensive than Jau, and only protected by two security guards who made me park outside! I asked about using the beach on a daily basis, which my friends Rachelle an Gilbert had told me about, having seen the promotion on their Instagram page. The male receptionist told me in a Maarte Sosyal voice that the promotion had finished and if I wanted to use their beach I would have to pay 149 Bd which I declined. He then told me if I paid 6 bd per person I could have breakfast and use the beach from 6.30 to 10.30 am. As I was saying to Rachelle last night it is so sad that Bahrain, an Island, has only 3 free beaches ( Karbabad, Askar and Bussatein) and all the others charge admission ( Ritz Carlton, Sofitel, Jaw, Al Jazeira, City Beach, Marisai etc.) .

Jaw Resort and Spa was charging 149 bd plus taxes for a room last night

On the way back from Jaw I visited the new Heritage centre but it was closed due to COV 19 and the guard did not know when it would open. Likewise the Public park in Askar ( Askar Garden) was closed.

By then the sun was setting and the Mosques were calling us to prayer and my stomach was telling me I was very hungry and my fasting app said I should have started fasting! I looked around for somewhere to eat and resisted the temptation to try Askar's newest 24 hour restaurant up by the Alba to Durat Al Bahrain Highway.

The new McDonalds drive through , restaurant and Mc Café that opened since my last visit

The most efficient coffee shop in Askar- with outside seating

Instead I pulled up outside a coffee shop in Askar itself and the Barista came running out to take my order. I told him I had legs and would walk inside ( unlike several Bahrainis who parked on either side of the road outside and tooted their horns demanding to be served immediately) . There he talked me through the impressive display of sweet desserts and I selected Carrot cake, Saffron cake, Honey and cheese Danish and a hot Americano. Then I saw the Biscuit balls and asked him if they tasted nice. When he told me his balls were delicious I could not resist! Before I could stop him it was all packed in a bag , my money taken , and I was bundled out of the shop! I headed for home and arrived back in Hidd at around 7 pm and retired to bed to eat my desserts. However I only managed half the carrot cake and his balls, which were very delicious, before I fell asleep, around 8 pm. Sadly that means I have to fast until 12 noon when the Friday gang will have our Friday Brunch at the Bapco club. I have Corleen the Saffro cake and the rest of the Carrot cake for his breakfast as he forgot to go to Red Croissant in his way here!