With a name meaning ‘Two Seas' it is little wonder that Bahrain, an archipelago of 33 islands in the Gulf, defines itself in relation to the water that surrounds its shallow shores.
Modern developments
Those shallows once harbored a precious trade in pearls; now the same shallows are being reclaimed for ambitious, high profile developments, such as the twin 50-story towers of Bahrain's World Trade Center and the 2,787,000 sq m (30,000,000 sq ft) horseshoe of man-made islands at the southern tip of the country.
Oil wealth
In the middle of Bahrain, not far
from where the Formula 1 racetrack now draws the crowds, is the point where in 1932 the Arab world first struck gold - black gold, that is - and oil has been the mainstay of the country ever since. As visitors travel the modest length of Bahrain, visiting the ancient burial mounds, forts, craft markets and potteries, they will run into many reminders of this momentous discovery, not least in the relaxed affluence of Bahrain's multicultural residents.
GeographyBahrain is a mostly flat archipelago of desert islands off the east coast of Saudi Arabia. The main island has a supply of fresh water, unique in the region, both on land and offshore. There are extensive date plantations and market gardens near Manama. The strategic 24km- (15-mile-) long King Fahad Causeway links Bahrain with Saudi Arabia and a new causeway will in future link Bahrain with Qatar.
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