I visited Muharraq and its pearling path sites as well as quite a lot of other buildings there(for example all buildings of the sheikh ebrahim foundation,entrance fee for all sites 3 Dinar) on january the 24th.

I took the bus from Manama's central bus station to Muharraq bus terminal( almost every 5 min a bus leaves for Muharraq or the airport). Across the street on the other side of the bus terminal there is the entrance to the pearling path center.

Well,the center is a disappointment and no great help at all. I had a very interesting chat with a guard from kenya there though.I left the center through the second entrance/exit which leads to the al quasariyyah soukh(siyadi shops) . In the morning I had marked all interesting sites in the old Muharraq area on an offline-map of maps.me-whether they were unesco sites or not.I had had the intention to visit all of them.I actually did visit most of them and had a truly great time in doing so.

Lots of renovating and reconstraction is going on in the old Muharraq area. Without any doubt the pearling path unesco sites and the entire old Muharraq area turned out to be the most iinteresting and fascinating visit of all three unesco sites in Bahrain.

I stayed in the old Muharraq area from around 10.00 in the morning till around 19.00 in the late afternoon. I had a coffee in three different old cafes.In two of them for free as I was invited by locals.

After I had a stroll through the siyadi shop area by pure luck I encounted one of the sheikh ebrahim houses.I entered but a guard asked me for my entrance ticket. I didnt have one. I couldnt pay for one as I only had my credit card with me and they only accepted cash.The day before in quite a few places they didnt accept cash( for example the arad fort) . This time they didnt accept a credit card. Luck was on my side again two young and beautifal bahraini ladies insisted on paying the entrance fee for me.

The sheikh ebrahim foundation has around 25 different sites in the old Muharraq area like -for example -the bin matar house(  Bin Matar joined his father’s pearl business and during the late 19th and early 20th centuries became one of the major pearl merchants in the entire Gulf region. Virtually all foreigners, especially French and Indian, relied on his expert advice in matters relating to the purchase of pearls.) or the  Abdullah Al Zayed House for Bahraini Press Heritage(Being the house of the founder of the first weekly newspaper in Bahrain and the Gulf, the house is dedicated to the preservation of Bahrain’s press heritage and at the same time preserves part of the country’s unique architectural traditions).

I got a brochure with a  map at the first site of the foundation of all the other sites which was quite helpful as I hadnt marked some of those buildings on my offline-map.

The sheikh Isa Bin Ali house was being renovated at the time of the visit. Nevertheless, I managed to go inside to have a look inside the yard.

I visited all other unesco sites in the old Muharraq area,too. Some of them were being renovated and some of them had very limited opening hours.

As was the case with the sheikh Isa Bin Ali house I managed to enter most of  the sites under renovation although they were closed to the public.

I didnt have much time to explore the interior of the buildings before I was discovered by guards or suspicious construction workers.However,most of the guards and workers were friendly so that I was able to have at least a short look into those buildings under reconstruction or renovation.

I loved walking around the old Muharraq area for hours and hours. 

Few people(mostly indians)  live there,very few visitors or tourists were there. Quite a few buildings there were being renovated when I visited Muharraq. The entire old Muharraq area has a kind of magic fascination-I had a wonderful and very enjoble day there.

The last site but one of the least interesting ones was the Qala't Bu Mahir fort or better its ruins.

All in all hands down the old Muharraq area is the most interesting area which you can find in the state of Bahrain.Without the hassle of Manama's soukhs and its indian inhabitants who have turned that souhk into a kind of little bombay.

I was quite surprised to meet some native bahraini people who did the same like me......strolling through old Muharraq.

I guess old Muharraq will be one of the most fascinating areas of all gulf states.....more authentic than Dubai's,Abu Dhabi's,Fujairah's or Kuwait's heritage villages,quite walkable,decent cafes with very friendly local bahraini men,and without the hassle of other tourist attractions or soukhs.

Old Muharraq and the pearling path sites are great places to visit,worth a visit,recomendable,enjoyable. I had a wonderful time there.