A true color image of the street outside my hotel during a sandstorm.
Yes, I know "The Kingdom" is a movie title and somewhat overdramatic name for Saudi, but you have to admit it is cool. And since I plan to talk a bit about the country, I thought maybe it was appropriate.
So..... What the hell is the deal with Saudi Arabia? Well, in many ways it's much better than I expected, in many ways it's worse. But it's entirely different.
The culture here is very restrictive and entirely segregated. Since I arrived here nearly one month ago I have not talked to one woman in this country. I haven't said a word to one, nor heard a word from one, and that includes the occasional western woman I see in the supermarket. In fact it's rare to even see a woman on the street or in a store, let alone her face or hair. It really is... different.
In general the people here are friendly although they are quite distant. I can't help but get the impression that for the most part, they don't particularly wan't foreigners here, and don't particularly want to talk to us. Most of the locals I talk to are other ex-pats, either from another middle eastern country, or from the phillipines.
Saudi's rarely work in the service industry. Instead they hire foreign workers from poor countries that will do the job for very little pay. Every adult male gets a fairly significant annual payment from the government for... well... for being Saudi I guess. About 20,000 USD. Students also get paid by the government to go to university and since all their positions are based on who you know ie. inheriting your father's business (as opposed to WHAT you know, or how capable you are) they have very little motivation to learn or excel. I foresee this being a huge problem for the country as globalization increases and foreign influences exert themselves.
Nonetheless, living here, you can feel the history. Perhaps unsurprisingly, more than any other place I've been too, Saudi Arabia has a distinctive flavour. They're proud of their country and extremly proud of Islam. However, despite their extreme passion for the religion, I would say I have yet to meet anyone I would classify as extremist. For the most part they seem to do an extremely good job of focusing on the positive aspects to the religion. Of course they're extremly uneducated about any other religion or way of thinking and don't welcome other opinions.
One of the first things I was told upon arriving was "don't talk about religion, government, or women. Chances are any positive or negative discussion of any of those subjects will get you fired and sent home." As such, I avoid talking about them.
On the plus side, I have an extremly fortunate opportunity. It is extremly difficult to get a visa to this country, and little about this place is known throughout the world. Especially the western world. I have a great chance to really see one of the last, true, purely independent cultures in the world and that in itself is an exciting prospect.
My room here is far above par, and all of my needs (except food) are covered and for the most part covered well. Money never seems to be an object of debate here, so they are quite happy to provide me with whatever I need. I will talk more about some of the places I've been soon. For now I've included a few pictures of my hotel room, so you can get an idea of my accomodations. Yes I am staying in a hotel. Isn't it expensive you ask? Yes. Yes it is. They why does my company pay it you ask? Because someone with my visa can't live anywhere else.
My hotel lobby
The living area of my hotel room
My bedroom
Kitchen
Bathroom
First payday. Ever seen 9000 in 50's before?
