As somebody who has spent most of his adult life travelling in search of interesting drinks, Saudi Arabia presented a unique challenge.

The country is famous for many things. Ancient history. Spectacular deserts. Rapid modernisation. Oil wealth. Unfortunately, alcohol is not one of them.

In fact, Saudi Arabia is one of the driest countries on Earth in more ways than one. Not only does much of the country consist of desert but alcohol is prohibited. For a wine merchant who normally judges destinations partly by the quality of their local beer, this felt a bit like sending a vegetarian to review a steakhouse.

Naturally, I was fascinated.

The moment somebody tells me I can't find something somewhere, I immediately want to go and have a look.

Living the Diet Pepsi Lifestyle

One of the first things I noticed after arriving in Riyadh was how much Diet Pepsi I was drinking.

Without local beer, wine or spirits to investigate, soft drinks suddenly became an important part of the travel experience. Restaurants served them. Hotels served them. Cafés served them.

At one point I became concerned that I was slowly turning into a can of Diet Pepsi.

The strange thing is that after a few days, you stop noticing the absence of alcohol. Human beings adapt remarkably quickly. Your brain simply rewrites the rules and moves on.

Instead of wondering which beer to try, I found myself comparing different brands of fizzy drinks with a level of seriousness that would normally be reserved for wine tastings. "This one has excellent carbonation."

I wasn't proud of who I'd become.

The World's Largest Café And The Missing Customers

One afternoon I visited what was supposedly the world's largest café with Guinness World Record to prove it. This sounded promising. I imagined crowds of people, bustling energy and enough coffee to keep a medium-sized nation awake for a week. Instead, I found a gigantic venue that appeared to contain approximately six customers. The place was enormous. It was like somebody had designed a café for an incoming invasion force and then forgotten to tell anyone about it. Tables stretched into the distance. Empty chairs sat patiently waiting for guests who never arrived. The staff outnumbered the customers. At one point I became convinced that I personally represented a significant percentage of the venue's daily revenue. It was one of the strangest hospitality experiences I've ever had.

The Bottle Opener Building

Riyadh's skyline is fascinating. The city contains some genuinely spectacular modern architecture and nowhere demonstrates this better than the famous skyscraper shaped like a giant bottle opener. For a man who spends his life thinking about beverages, this felt encouraging. Finally, I thought. A building speaking my language.

I headed up to the famous Sky Bridge which offers spectacular views across the city. The problem is that once you're standing up there, there is no information telling you what you're looking at. You gaze out across miles of Riyadh. You see highways, towers and endless development. You nod thoughtfully. Then you realise you have absolutely no idea what any of it is. I spent much of my visit pretending I understood the significance of various buildings while secretly inventing explanations. "This one is probably important." I had no evidence for this.

The Anne Summers Discovery

The bottle opener building contained another surprise. An Anne Summers shop. In Saudi Arabia. This felt very unexpected. Walking through the mall, I suddenly found myself staring at a familiar British brand that seemed wildly out of place. Even more surprising were the customers browsing inside while dressed in traditional clothing. Travel occasionally presents moments that force your brain to pause and recalibrate. This was one of them.

The entire scene felt like somebody had accidentally mixed together two completely different countries and forgotten to separate them again.

Saudi Arabia specialises in these moments. It's a place where tradition and modernity constantly collide in fascinating ways.

Portraits, Portraits Everywhere

Another thing that struck me was the number of royal portraits. They were everywhere. Hotels, government buildings, public spaces, shopping centres. The royal family looked down from walls with such consistency that I began recognising faces before I knew their names.

As somebody who had previously travelled through places like North Korea, the experience felt oddly familiar. Obviously the countries are vastly different but there was something amusing about constantly encountering giant portraits wherever you went.

After a while it became a game. How long could I walk without seeing another one? The answer was generally not very long.

The Great Mystery Meat Buffet

Food in Saudi Arabia was truly dreadful and also occasionally mysterious. Buffets seemed particularly fond of presenting dishes without explanations. Trays appeared containing weird-looking food accompanied by labels that either didn't exist or weren't especially informative.

This led to a recurring dining strategy. Point, smile and hope. Most of the time it worked brilliantly. Occasionally I'd find myself halfway through a meal wondering what exactly I was eating. The texture would be unfamiliar and the answer would remain elusive.

Travel broadens the mind. Mystery meat broadens your willingness to take risks.

Riyadh's Other Side

One of the most interesting aspects of Saudi Arabia was seeing the contrast between different parts of the city. Visitors often focus on the skyscrapers, luxury hotels and modern developments. Those certainly exist and are impressive. Yet there are also areas populated largely by foreign workers who help keep the country running.

These neighbourhoods felt completely different. The atmosphere changed. The architecture changed. The pace of life changed. Like many countries, Saudi Arabia contains multiple realities existing side by side. Exploring beyond the obvious landmarks often revealed far more about daily life than the headline attractions. That's usually where the most interesting travel experiences happen.

Breakfast Overlooking Chop Chop Square

One morning I found myself eating breakfast overlooking the square that many visitors know from news reports and documentaries. Historically, it has been associated with public punishments and is often referred to by a nickname that sounds considerably more dramatic than most breakfast locations.

Naturally, nothing was happening. People sometimes imagine foreign travel as a constant stream of dramatic events. The reality is usually much less exciting.

The square looked perfectly ordinary. People went about their business. Traffic moved through the city. Meanwhile, I was eating a weird breakfast burrito and contemplating how strange it was that one of the world's most talked-about locations could appear so completely normal on an average morning.

Travel often teaches that lesson. Places rarely feel like their headlines.

Why Saudi Arabia Fascinated Me

The funny thing is that I thoroughly enjoyed Saudi Arabia. Not because it was easy to understand as it wasn't.

Every day seemed to contain something unexpected. One moment I'd be standing in a giant empty café. The next I'd be looking across Riyadh from a giant bottle opener. Then I'd be eating unidentified buffet food while drinking my fourth Diet Pepsi of the day.

Nothing felt quite like I expected. That's usually a good sign.

The best destinations aren't necessarily the ones that make immediate sense. They're the ones that leave you with questions, stories and a slightly confused expression.

The Driest Adventure I've Ever Had

Looking back, Saudi Arabia remains one of the most unusual destinations I've visited. For somebody whose career revolves around drinks, travelling through a country where alcohol wasn't part of daily life created a fascinating perspective shift. It forced me to focus on different things.

The people.

The culture.

The contrasts.

The giant empty café.

I arrived expecting the absence of alcohol to dominate the experience. Instead, it became one of the least interesting things about the trip.

Although I will admit one thing. By the time I boarded the flight home, I'd consumed enough Diet Pepsi to personally influence the company's quarterly results.

And that's probably the most Saudi Arabian travel story I have.