This week we will have been in KSA for 4 whole weeks. The time has flown and while we are still in
the inevitable ‘honeymoon’ period we are all enjoying our new life. Inspired by posts I have seen other newly
posted expats write, I thought I would
write a post on the things that surprised me about life here. This is probably best done while we still
retain that early posting amazement (‘oh my goodness we are in SAUDI!’) and
before the whole experience becomes humdrum (‘oh yeah Saudi, home, ho hum’).
Firstly I will say that life here is really not what we
expected. I am not sure what I thought
it would be like but not being allowed out of the house and being swathed head
to toe in black were a big part of it together with a lack of leisure
activities leading to a lifestyle devoid of entertainment.
Segregated Life
Saudi law requires that there is strict segregation of the
sexes outside of the family home. While
the rules are observed it is not as strict as I thought it would be. Every café and restaurant has a separate
section for bachelors and for families. Women
must eat in the family section and men are only allowed in there if they are
with their wives or children. Some shops
are also restricted to women and families only, no single men allowed.
Before the children and I arrived in Jeddah Mr EE was
confined to the bachelor sections when he went out. He found them quite dull and felt that he was
being kept away from ordinary life. I
must admit that I have never felt this when I have been out and about on my own
as the family sections are very welcoming.
The male sections do look rather lonely.
Of course there are some places that will only serve men and I am unable
to visit them, we were turned away from a juice bar a few weeks ago as only the
men’s section was open, the family section was upstairs but closed and I would be lying if I did not admit to being frustrated and annoyed at the time and it is an experience that would get old and tired very quickly. We are still trying to work out where Mr EE
should go when he is on his own with the children. We have seen some men with daughters in prams
in the bachelor section. Local friends
have said that the restaurants will probably advise on a case by case basis
depending on which children he has with him.
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| This families only sign made me laugh |
Public Displays Of
Affection
We were initially worried that I would not be able to hold
Master EE’s hand and that Mr EE would not be able to hold Miss EE’s. A quick glance at any local family shows that
we did not have to be worried about this in the slightest. By the time that it would start to become
questionable the children will probably have grown out of it in any event.
One of the things I do find difficult, however, is not being
able to hold Mr EEs hand or give him a kiss when we go our different ways to
run errands in separate shops. We do see
the odd Saudi couple holding hands but it is not common by any means and a kiss
is completely beyond the pale. In 19
years together we have never left each other even for a moment without a kiss
and an ‘I love you’ (I am talking only about a kiss on the cheek by the way, no
inappropriate PDAs). As a result we find
that we have to make a concerted effort not to do this when we part and it
still feels very, very weird!
Opening Times And
Prayers
Shops are open in the morning and then close for midday
prayers. While some of the malls open in
the early afternoon many shops stay closed until about 4 or 5 and then open
again until late (very late). I
understand that during Ramadan the hours shift to much later in the evening and
night. At all times of the year everything closes down for prayers.
There are five prayer times during the day but the ones with
the biggest impact on our day to day life are Dhuhr, ‘Aser, Magrhib and Isha which take place at mid-day, mid-afternoon,
sunset and night. During these times the
shops shut for about half an hour to enable people to complete their
devotions. Public places such as malls,
hospitals and airports etc will have separate prayer rooms available for men and
women. While some people pray during these times many more do not.
Some of the larger shops such as supermarkets allow those
inside during prayers to continue to browse and fill their carts and people who
have been served food, either in a restaurant or fast food outlet in a food
court are permitted to continue to eat.
The malls remain open for people to walk around even though the shops
themselves are closed. We try to time
our trips to the supermarket to coincide with prayer time as much as possible,
by getting in just before we can shop in relative calm and then check out when
the shop is open again. We try and do
the same if we want a coffee or a snack, timing it for just before prayers
means we have something to do in the half hour when we would otherwise be
waiting aimlessly.
I had heard from some expats that prayer time was a massive
inconvenience but we find that with a little planning it can be fine. It is, however, frustrating if you are caught
out and we try to keep a track of closures by using a ‘phone app that tells us
what times prayers are every day so that we can plan around them.
Mosquitos
I did not expect to be plagued by mosquitos in Saudi
Arabia. These little pests are something
that I associate with marshy, swampy or tropical areas. About 10 years ago or so Mr EE and I were
diving in Marsa Alam in Egypt which is just the other side of the Red Sea from
here and there were no mosquitos there.
Jeddah, however, is full of the little blighters and we have sacrificed
an inordinate number of our plug sockets to anti mosquito plug ins that seem to
have very little impact. Luckily the
area is not malarial and dengue is not an issue here but I had hoped to get a
break from bites on this posting at least.
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| Even children wear expensive clothing.... |
Conspicuous
Consumption
To be honest I was not sure what to think about this before
arriving in Jeddah. The Middle East,
Dubai in particular, is well known for its very conspicuous consumption and
people flashing the cash. Saudis abroad
also have this reputation (the press reports of the person bringing gold cars
to London earlier this year is a case in point) but one wonders how much of
that is a show. Turns out not much
really; conspicuous consumption is a normal and accepted way of life here. From gold cars (yes we have seen a few) to
designer clothing (to be worn at home and female only gatherings), expensive
handbags and designer shoes not to mention home décor that can be a little ‘bling’
for our tastes (gold effect wardrobes anyone?) flashing the cash is socially
acceptable here. One need not worry
about inadvertently embarrassing someone by giving a gift that is too
expensive.
Given the economy is in a down turn, suffering from the effects
of the low oil prices I can only imagine what life is like here when things are
going well! Not everyone is wealthy
though and this is even more true when
looking at the income ranges of expatriates.
While we are able to lead a very comfortable life many expatriates here
to work as drivers and maids exist on a pittance and some are treated very
badly. It must be very difficult on a
number of levels to see this world from the inside and yet not be a part of
it.
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| This mall has high end high street alongside designers such as Missoni, Alberta Feretti, D&G and many more |
Clothing
While men can wear whatever they want from traditional thobes to t.shirts (shorts are not acceptable outside the compound) women who venture out of the home must wear an abaya. This does not have to be black and many women sport highly decorated and embroidered examples. Most Saudi women wear a head covering of some sort, ranging from a simple scarf to a full niqab. The head covering is not, however, compulsory, and very few expat women cover although all carry a scarf in case they are asked to.
Children, including pre-teen girls, can wear what they like.
For more posts on life in Saudi click on the picture below
For more posts on life in Saudi click on the picture below
