I Dined With Alwaleed in the Desert Days Before His Arrest

Ten days before he became the most prominent target in Saudi Arabia's anti-corruption crackdown, I spent an evening in the desert with Prince Alwaleed bin Talal.

We sat in the open air against cushions on enormous rugs laid over the sand, talked mostly about tech stocks and U.S. politics, drank Arabic coffee, watched a soccer match on large-screen televisions set up outside, went for a 50-minute walk under the stars and, at about 11 p.m., had dinner. I served myself lamb, shrimp, rice and salad from an enormous buffet with at least two dozen dishes.