Bahrain map

Courtesy of elbe from postcrossing forum

Bahrain, officially Kingdom of Bahrain (Arabic: مملكة البحرين‎, literally: "Kingdom of the Two Seas"), is a small island country with approximately 800,000 inhabitants (2009), located near the western shores of the Persian Gulf and ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. While Bahrain is an archipelago of thirty-three islands, the largest (Bahrain Island) is 55 km (34 mi) long by 18 km (11 mi) wide.

Saudi Arabia lies to the west and is connected to Bahrain via the King Fahd Causeway, which was officially opened on 25 November 1986. Qatar is to the southeast across the Gulf of Bahrain. The planned Qatar Bahrain Causeway will link Bahrain and Qatar as the longest fixed link in the world.