Saudi Arabia, Part Two - Saudi Harder

Yes, sports fans, it's been a bit longer than I had hoped between updates on this trip. Why? Well, this has been the most challenging program I've worked in a very long time, if not ever. But enough about that, let's chat about some more stuff I found interesting.

- The cars and driving in Saudi Arabia are like nothing else I have ever experienced. I've driven a McLaren-Mercedes SLR, but never have I seen one in public until last night. I've also seen Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, but I've never seen their burned out wreck of a car in real life until today. And my god, the driving! Absolutely the worst I have ever seen in my life. Put any 7 year old with a week of Forza experience and a bad case of ADHD behind the wheel of a car in Jeddah, and he'll blend in just fine. Driver here are aggressive, has zero lane discipline, and absolutely zero respect for driving laws. I actually saw an emergency vehicle with its lights on driving by me in the far left lane GET PASSED by a freaking Camry on the LEFT SHOULDER. I have a feeling that the work of art shown above (located on the Corniche road near my hotel) was inspired by a nightmare the artist had after driving for one week in Jeddah.

- I have been struck by the way everyone in Middle Eastern culture really seems to have a strong sense of family, and respect for other families. On the Saudi Air flight, I couldn't tell who the (hyperactive spoiled) toddler belonged to, as everyone in the entire back section seemed to take a role in helping to talk to/discipline the child. And at our events, parents thought nothing of leaving their 3 or 4 year olds behind with our staff (who they had only met moments ago) while they drove. The staff played with the children lovingly as if they were their own. Yet, why does NO ONE seem to own a child seat, much less use them? I came inches from t-boning a car in a roundabout yesterday that had 2 children jumping up and down in the back seat while a third stood in her mommy's lap in the front seat, hands on the dashboard and howling like a wolf. I couldn't imagine doing this with my own children.

- The Saudi economy is kind of interesting. First, many things are (seemingly) quite inexpensive. I ordered room service tonight and paid only $7 US for a plate of spaghetti bolognese. Hell, that's almost as cheap as Fazoli's (and a lot better). Plus, there seems to be a massive aversion to coins. I have been here a week and have only received 1 coin as change. In fact, one of my purchases rang up to $25.90 cents, and the cashier just gave me a pack of gum in lieu of the coin. Part of this has to do with the fact that there is no sales tax at all (or any other tax in the KSA), and also because items tend to be priced in whole amounts ($8 for a 1 liter bottle of water, $3 for a little chocolate bar). It certainly speeds up transaction time, and is something we could learn from.

- I paid US $5 to fill a 12 gallon tank with gas. 'Nuff said.

- Religion really does pervade every aspect of life here, but not in an annoying way. When the call comes, everything shuts down. But once it is over, life resumes as normal. Though I am someone who has no religious affiliation of any sort (nor any desire to form one), I've nothing but great respect for a people who find that their entire life can be framed by their religion. There is a tremendous amount of bad press that the Muslim people must put up with, and it is a shame. There are bad people all around the world, regardless of their religion. But 99.9% of the people on this earth just want to be happy, find love, and enjoy a few laughs. We far too often forget this and instead withdraw in fear of the unknown or misunderstood. Thankfully, the people I have met have not withdrawn, and have instead greeted me with a smile and as much English as they can muster.

That's it for tonight. I'll try to update once more before I leave. And as much as I have enjoyed myself here, I am certainly ready to get back home.

Saudi Arabia, Part One - What I've Learned In 36 Hours

Yep, it's been a while. I'm sure we'll backtrack to what's gone on since the last (real) post at some point, but not tonight.

I was fortunate enough to travel to Bahrain in early November for business for about a week. 2 months later to the day, I traveled to Saudi Arabia for the same purpose.

When asked what Bahrain was like, I often said "It's like Las Vegas lite." I mean, you could drink, there were prostitutes, there were lots of flashy cars, and everything looked pretty at night, but kinda dusty and dirty in the daytime.

Saudi Arabia is definitely different. First, it's pretty difficult to get in. You need a sponsor in the country to "sponsor" your visa application. Once that's handled, you're off. So let's go a few items I found noteworthy since leaving Dubai for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia:

- The plane I was on was a Boeing 777. Great plane, but MASSIVE overkill for this short 1,000 mile flight. And it was probably only 20% full. Turns out they have 23 (!) of them. Thoughts on this another time.

- Around 25 minutes before landing in Jeddah, several gentlemen who were making the Umrah (pilgrimage to Mecca OUTSIDE of Hajj) began chanting fairly loudly. It was a 15 second long chant, and they repeated it until the plane landed. It wasn't bothersome (indeed, it was somewhat lulling), but I'm curious as to what it was, and if it was something they just DID, or if it was part of the Umrah (perhaps they needed to say it as they arrive in Jeddah).

- By the time I landed, went through customs, and retrieved my rental car, it was nearly midnight. I finally wound my way to the Corniche (beachside road, pictured above) around 12:15, and was AMAZED at the traffic. It was after midnight and the beach/road was PACKED. Not with just young people, but with families, children, etc. This was Thursday night/Friday morning, and Friday is a holiday. Most amazing? Everyone was having fun sans alcohol, as (you probably know) alcohol is strictly forbidden in Saudi Arabia.

- In Bahrain, I rarely heard the Adhan (Muslim call to prayer), except one memorable time in the mall there. Everyone seemed to ignore it. Here........no ignoring it. People stop what they are doing (not immediately, but they finish it up if it's finishable) and go to pray. Yesterday, while trying to buy a Saudi SIM card that would work in my iPhone (no luck), the 6:30 (ish, it's not always the same time) Adhan happened. ALL of the shops in the little mall we were in turned off the lights, the keepers either left the door open (in a restaurant, for instance, so patrons could finish) or locked it up (if they had shooed everyone one). It's pretty amazing that everything just stops. Yes, cars still drive along, it isn't like in Truman Show, but it's a definite pause in life to pray. Interesting to watch

That's enough for now, today was a super long day, and I'm beat. But I will close with this: everyone has been super nice. My spidey sense has not gone off since arriving, and I actually feel very much like an ugly American for not speaking a word of Arabic. Trying to learn some in the next day or two.

If you have a question, ask in the comments, I'll answer if I can.

Lee