French couple cycle into Kingdom after 5,000km in the saddle

BEIRUT: A young French couple who are embarking on a yearlong cycling adventure said it was “heartwarming” to arrive in Saudi Arabia after more than four months and 5,000 km in the saddle.
Ariane Prodon, 25, and Leo Fourure, 26, had traveled through eight countries before recently rolling into Tabuk for the ninth stop on their epic trip.
“Being so far from home, it’s such a heartwarming feeling to be here in Saudi Arabia,” Prodon, who works as an animator, told Arab News.
“We’ve been traveling for over four months now, as we started from France and crossed Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Turkiye, Jordan and the Kingdom in more than 5,000 km on our bicycles.
“Through all these countries we felt the importance of hospitality in Islamic cultures, and for travelers like us we feel welcome and safe more than ever here in Saudi Arabia.”
Fourure, a physiotherapist, said: “Because the country pretty much just opened up to tourism, people are very curious about strangers cycling and it creates a lot of sharing opportunities for us. We cannot wait to discover more of this beautiful country and the people who live here.”
When asked why they had set out on such an epic journey, Fourure said they wanted to “discover the world and meet the peoples and cultures that compose it and make it such a nuanced and interesting environment to live in.”
“We’ve decided to use bicycles as we find it is a fair means to cross countries and draw the line of our journey on the map,” he said.
“It allows us to feel the environment we’re evolving through in our skins and minds. We learn a lot by adapting every day, from the people we meet and from the adversity of the terrain.”
Prodon said: “We were building our route along our way, and when we arrived in Turkiye we were confronted by tense geopolitical situations in the country.
“We were also in winter and so it made sense to head south to Jordan and Saudi Arabia where it is safer and warmer weather to feel more comfortable in our minds and bodies.”
The couple crossed into the north of the Kingdom at Haql on the Red Sea coast.
“From the very first day in Saudi Arabia we’ve been amazed by the hospitality and friendliness of Saudis,” Fourure said.
As for where they might head next, Prodon said: “We will try to avoid big and crowded cities … we like to discover the natural areas, mountains and deserts of this country because they are just stunning.
“So, we’ll cross mainly small villages from Tabuk toward Jeddah to stay as long as possible on the mountainous part of Saudi Arabia before we traverse east toward new horizons yet to be defined.”
The couple who are currently at Wadi Al-Disah have a three-month visa in the Kingdom, and “so far we love it here” so they have decided to stay until the end of Ramadan.