Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud has begun his historic nine-day visit to Indonesia. The 81-year-old king is reportedly accompanied by 460 tonnes of cargo for the trip.
According to Today Online, the luggage includes two Mercedes-Benz S600 sedans and two electric elevators. The Jakarta post noted that the king will be accompanied by 1500 officials that include 10 ministers, 25 princes, and at least 100 security personnel. He will be visiting the island country in seven aircraft that comprises of six Boeing airliners and a Hercules military transport plane. His cargos will be handled by an Indonesian airfreight team of 572 workers.
BBC reported that "63 tonnes of his luggage would be unloaded in Jakarta and 396 tonnes would be brought to Bali." Interestingly, President Joko Widodo visited the oil nation in 2015 to promote Indonesia as an investment destination and now King Salman is voting the nation to strengthen the ties.
Coming to the stay, he will be exploring four most beautiful hotels in the country—The Westin Jakarta, Raffles Hotel Jakarta, Ritz-Carlton Jakarta Mega Kuningan and JW Marriott. It is reported that the king's team has booked more than 200 rooms in these hotels. The king will also visit Bali from March 4 to 9.
Political analysts term King Salman's visit as a historic one, as he is the first Saudi King to make it happen in 46 years. The visit is likely to strengthen the ties between the two Muslim countries. The Indonesian trip is a part of King Salman's six-nation tour that began in Malaysia last week. He will also travel to Japan, China, the Maldives, and Jordan.
King Salman's grandeur trips to countries have always grabbed the headlines. In 2015, he booked the entire 222 rooms at Four Seasons hotel in Washington. In the same year, he was highly criticized for illegally building of a lift connecting his luxury villa and beach at the French Rivera.
