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ALKHOBAR: You could feel the electricity in the air, and not just because of Thursday night lightning. During the first Sharqiah season, visitors were found by the thousands all along the east coast, despite the high winds and intermittent rain, and were supported by everything from skateboarders and snowboarders to music, motorcycles , fireworks and concerts the 17-day festival.

Sharqiah Season, which presents more than 80 events in the cities of Eastern Province, is the first of 11 planned festivals for the Kingdom in 2019, organized by the Saudi Commission of Tourism and National Heritage, together with the General Entertainment Authority, the General Culture Authority and the General Sports Authority.

It was impossible to miss the buzz of Alkhobar during the opening night, with spotlights in the sky marking the sites of two large areas installed on the Corniche: one for entertainment, the other for a cultural village.

"What's happening in Sharqiah is gigantic, to be honest, and it's only the first day," said Labeed Assidmi, a vendor located in the crystal market area near the entrance. "Saudi is changing for the better and everyone is very excited."

Assidmi said that he had anticipated major events elsewhere in the Kingdom. "I'm a big fan of music, so when the concerts in Riyadh and Jeddah took place, like those in Formula E, jealous. It's so good that Sharqiah is finally recognized.

While international music groups Pitbull, Akon and DJ Tiesto will perform next weekend, renowned Arab singers Mohammed Abdo and Rashed Al-Majed have entertained the crowds this weekend.In the Dammam Life Park, the troupe Montreal Cirque Eloize played in front of a packed house.

Violent winds put an end to the planned fireworks on the night of the start of the work, but the crowds still enjoyed a light show on the Khobar water castle. Hind Mubarak, who had come to the Corniche with his family, said: "It's a little disappointing, especially for kids, but the light show was fun
watch."

See more photos of the opening weekend of the Sharqiah season here

Those who came to see the fireworks at Al-Ahsa Friday night were not disappointed. Ghuneim Abdelatee, 57, was there with his granddaughter.

"She has never seen fireworks before," he said. "In fact, she lives many firsts in Saudi Arabia. You can say the same thing for me too. Music concerts, cinemas, so much to see and do here now.

"People were going to Bahrain for entertainment. Now, I think they'll go less. "

The FISE "Battle of Champions" also brought together the world's 12 best snowboarders, all in the running for first place.

"To exercise on such a ramp is a dream come true," said 20-year-old Moaiyad Al-Salmi. "We need a real skate park built here, which would bring together the community of Saudi and non-Saudi skaters. If we had events like this on weekends and skate parks everywhere, we would find a Saudi competing for the World Series. "

The Ithra Forum, held in different cities throughout the month, will offer people more intellectual pursuits.

"Curiosity" was the opening

The topic will be discussed at King Abdul Aziz's Center for World Culture in Dhahran, where Faisal Al-Saif, founder of TechPills, filmmaker Hakeem Jomah, and Faris and Sohayb Godus of "Telfaz11" will take part.

Although not all events went as planned, Naseer Shamma's Friday concert at Al-Ahsa's Ibrahim Palace was postponed at the last minute – one thing is for sure. If you are wondering what to do on weekends, the next few weeks will give you a lot of choices.

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The Sharqiah season continues until March 30th. Upcoming weekends are devoted to sporting events such as the Red Bull Air Race and the Formula 1 H20 race, as well as concerts in Dammam with Akon, Deadmau5, Pitbull and French Montana.