Bahrain ( ‏البحرين ). A voyage to Bahrain, Midlle East.

Travel warning: In February 2011, violent political clashes broke out in Bahrain. Check the news and government advisory sites like Safe Travel for updates on the situation.

Bahrain is defined by its relationship with water. Take the country’s name: ‘Two Seas’ in Arabic, the focus is not the island’s minimal landmass, but the water that laps its shores. So shallow is the water lapping Bahrain’s coastline that the inhabitants regularly ‘reclaim’ pieces of land, filling in the gaps between sand bars, as if winning back lost territory. The new Bahrain Financial Harbour of Manama is currently rising like Neptune from such reclaimed land, and its proud buildings, such as the Dual Towers, appear to be holding back the sea. Of course land reclamation in the Gulf has become the fashion.

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