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Saudi Arabia
My Partner is concidering working here for 2 years and i would go with him. Could anyone give me an insight of what it is like.
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OK, women in Saudi are not allowed to drive any car. They cannot ride a bicycle. Heads must be covered at all times outdoors and a modest form of dress should be worn. This does apply to foreigners, apparently.
This all comes from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_S audi_Arabia#Women.27s_rights
It looks, albeit a bit exaggerated, to be on the money.
I'm pretty sure that he'd need to be your husband rather than your partner if you want to live together.
The whole place works under Sharia law which would be regarded here as medieval.
Good luck if you decide to go
This all comes from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_S audi_Arabia#Women.27s_rights
It looks, albeit a bit exaggerated, to be on the money.
I'm pretty sure that he'd need to be your husband rather than your partner if you want to live together.
The whole place works under Sharia law which would be regarded here as medieval.
Good luck if you decide to go
I went to Saudi Arabia on business about 5 years ago (I worked for a large international computer company).
First, Saudi Arabia is a difficult country to get in. It has no concept of tourism, so you cannot just book a holiday there and turn up.
For me to go there I needed to be invited by someone already there, get an official letter, then send it to the Embassy here in the UK, then get a visa.
When we arrived at the Saudi Arabia airport there were signs everywhere of what you are NOT allowed to bring in.
Being Muslims this was anything to do with pigs (even toys like Miss Piggy from the muppets), anything with nudity in it (even a book of ancient art like the famous naked statue of David), and of course alcohol and drugs.
more....
First, Saudi Arabia is a difficult country to get in. It has no concept of tourism, so you cannot just book a holiday there and turn up.
For me to go there I needed to be invited by someone already there, get an official letter, then send it to the Embassy here in the UK, then get a visa.
When we arrived at the Saudi Arabia airport there were signs everywhere of what you are NOT allowed to bring in.
Being Muslims this was anything to do with pigs (even toys like Miss Piggy from the muppets), anything with nudity in it (even a book of ancient art like the famous naked statue of David), and of course alcohol and drugs.
more....
Because they dont have any concept of tourism the people at the airport are rude and surly. They treat everyone as though they are a criminal trying to smuggle things into the country.
Because I work in computers I had brought some CDs with me with software on them.
The people at the airport thought that maybe they had pornography on them so I was taken off to a separate room with no explanation and my luggage was searched
and I was questioned.
A colleague who was with me asked politely what was going on and he was taken off to another room and also searched.
After a while we were told we could go, with no explanation or apology.
If I could have turned round and left the country right away I would have done.
more...
Because I work in computers I had brought some CDs with me with software on them.
The people at the airport thought that maybe they had pornography on them so I was taken off to a separate room with no explanation and my luggage was searched
and I was questioned.
A colleague who was with me asked politely what was going on and he was taken off to another room and also searched.
After a while we were told we could go, with no explanation or apology.
If I could have turned round and left the country right away I would have done.
more...
As has been stated, it is a VERY strict Muslim country and they treat women very badly (as has been said, they must dress in Muslim clothes, cannot drive a car, cannot work and so on).
For this reason most of the "western" businesses in Saudi (like UK and USA) have their own complexes behind barbed wire compounds.
For example many US and UK people are there working on military equipment (the Saudi's buy a lot of UK military equipment).
Each company will have their own compound where both the houses AND the factories and offices are behind barbed wire.
The Saudi's rarely go inside these compounds (they turn a blind eye) so they are a bit more relaxed with some alcolhol, cinemas (there are no cinemas in Saudi Arabia) and so on.
If you step outside these compounds then you are at the mercy of the strict Muslim code.
more....
For this reason most of the "western" businesses in Saudi (like UK and USA) have their own complexes behind barbed wire compounds.
For example many US and UK people are there working on military equipment (the Saudi's buy a lot of UK military equipment).
Each company will have their own compound where both the houses AND the factories and offices are behind barbed wire.
The Saudi's rarely go inside these compounds (they turn a blind eye) so they are a bit more relaxed with some alcolhol, cinemas (there are no cinemas in Saudi Arabia) and so on.
If you step outside these compounds then you are at the mercy of the strict Muslim code.
more....
One example of the strict Muslim code..
They have men with sticks, and if a man is walking round with a woman, and the woman is showing too much skin (bare arms for example) then the MAN will get hit with the stick, to tell him to get his woman to "cover up".
The arab men, in their white robes, are unbelieveably arrogant. They walk around looking down at everyone, including women, white men like me, and Asians.
The do import a lot of Asians to do the menial work like sweeping the roads and so on, but they treat them like dogs (worse).
When I was there Asians (men and women) were not allowed to drive a car, although I think that may have been relaxed now.
more...
They have men with sticks, and if a man is walking round with a woman, and the woman is showing too much skin (bare arms for example) then the MAN will get hit with the stick, to tell him to get his woman to "cover up".
The arab men, in their white robes, are unbelieveably arrogant. They walk around looking down at everyone, including women, white men like me, and Asians.
The do import a lot of Asians to do the menial work like sweeping the roads and so on, but they treat them like dogs (worse).
When I was there Asians (men and women) were not allowed to drive a car, although I think that may have been relaxed now.
more...
Every restaurant and cafe and bar is segregated.
They have one area for families, or women with children, or women on their own.
They have another area for us "evil" men, and men on their own are not allowed to go into the family area.
They do have a McDonalds there believe it or not, but there is a barrier all the way down the middle of the restaurant.
The men went in the left door and down the left side of the barrier, the women and families went in the right door and down the right side of the barrier.
We could not see into their area, and they could not see into ours.
more....
They have one area for families, or women with children, or women on their own.
They have another area for us "evil" men, and men on their own are not allowed to go into the family area.
They do have a McDonalds there believe it or not, but there is a barrier all the way down the middle of the restaurant.
The men went in the left door and down the left side of the barrier, the women and families went in the right door and down the right side of the barrier.
We could not see into their area, and they could not see into ours.
more....
It is very difficult for an unaccompanied woman to get into Saudi Arabia.
The company I worked for had many women in senior positions, but they would have not been allowed in the country unless accompanied by their husband, father or brother.
And even if they had got in there and tried to give a presentation to a group of Arab men, they would have not listened and may well have walked out (because it was a woman).
I was presenting at one meeting, and right in the middle of my presenation all the Arab men just got up and walked out without saying a word.
I was told by somene else that it was prayer time.
20 minutes later they came walking back in, again without any comment or apology, and sat down and I carried on with my presentation.
They are so arrogant.
more...
The company I worked for had many women in senior positions, but they would have not been allowed in the country unless accompanied by their husband, father or brother.
And even if they had got in there and tried to give a presentation to a group of Arab men, they would have not listened and may well have walked out (because it was a woman).
I was presenting at one meeting, and right in the middle of my presenation all the Arab men just got up and walked out without saying a word.
I was told by somene else that it was prayer time.
20 minutes later they came walking back in, again without any comment or apology, and sat down and I carried on with my presentation.
They are so arrogant.
more...
I mentioned these business complexes behind barbed wire.
While women in Saudi do not usually work, some women do work in these complexes.
I guess it is done fairly quietly and nobody shouts about it, but I did see some women working in computer jobs when I was there.
Although your partner has a job it may be that you will not be able to get a job.
So it may be 2 years for you without a job, which may sound great, or sound like hell.
more...
While women in Saudi do not usually work, some women do work in these complexes.
I guess it is done fairly quietly and nobody shouts about it, but I did see some women working in computer jobs when I was there.
Although your partner has a job it may be that you will not be able to get a job.
So it may be 2 years for you without a job, which may sound great, or sound like hell.
more...
I was only there a week, and to be honest I could not wait to get out of the country.
It is the only country I have ever been in were I felt it was like a police state.
I sent some postcards home, but was scared to write negative things about the country on the back in case they were read by the police and I was perhaps arrested (you may think that is paranoid but the country gets you like that).
When I got to airport to come home, and they opened the gates, I ran to the desk, and I was first on the plane.
I have never been so relieved to get out a country.
To be honest, 2 years there sound like hell, like a prison sentence.
It is the only country I have ever been in were I felt it was like a police state.
I sent some postcards home, but was scared to write negative things about the country on the back in case they were read by the police and I was perhaps arrested (you may think that is paranoid but the country gets you like that).
When I got to airport to come home, and they opened the gates, I ran to the desk, and I was first on the plane.
I have never been so relieved to get out a country.
To be honest, 2 years there sound like hell, like a prison sentence.
Almost everything I have written up to now has been negative, so only fair to give some positives.
There is no income tax there I believe, so everything you earn you keep.
It is (or was) a fairly cheap country to live in, so your money goes further.
I did meet people there who were doing their "2 years" and at the end of it were going home with a fair bit of money.
more positives...
There is no income tax there I believe, so everything you earn you keep.
It is (or was) a fairly cheap country to live in, so your money goes further.
I did meet people there who were doing their "2 years" and at the end of it were going home with a fair bit of money.
more positives...
More positives...
There is NO alcohol sold anywhere (legally) and you cannot even get a glass of wine in a restaurant.
There is also no drug problem because they come down very hard on illegal drugs.
This makes the streets very safe because you dont meet some drunken or drugged moron who wants to mug you or pick a fight with you, unlike this country.
I think that is one area where we could learn from them.
The roads are fairly quite due to the fact that many people cannot drive or have access to a car.
And I should imagine that if you live and work in one of these complexes that there is a fairly good social life, behind the barbed wire were the Saudi police do not have access.
So your 2 years could be wonderful, or they could be hell.
There is NO alcohol sold anywhere (legally) and you cannot even get a glass of wine in a restaurant.
There is also no drug problem because they come down very hard on illegal drugs.
This makes the streets very safe because you dont meet some drunken or drugged moron who wants to mug you or pick a fight with you, unlike this country.
I think that is one area where we could learn from them.
The roads are fairly quite due to the fact that many people cannot drive or have access to a car.
And I should imagine that if you live and work in one of these complexes that there is a fairly good social life, behind the barbed wire were the Saudi police do not have access.
So your 2 years could be wonderful, or they could be hell.
My partners friend is just waiting for his visa and then he is off with his wife and child. The lure of lots of money for a two year contract looked really good but concidering what you have put I wouldn't last as long as a week. I see red at male chauvinist so imagine it there being so supprest. Thanks for your advice. not for all the money in the world will i go there.
While what has been said about the rules and customs is generally correct, I want to add something that deserves to be said. I have worked on four different jobs in Saudi Arabia, on three of which I was frequently in direct touch with Saudis. My experience is that underneath whatever you see on the surface, they are very much like any other people, albeit with segregation of the sexes always being very evident so that as a male I only once had a face to face conversation with a Saudi female but (eerily) have no idea what she looks like but the conversation was intensely interesting because it gave me such a rare but very limited insight into the female existence and perspective. She was a university student. They treated me with as much respect as I have any right to expect and in one example spanning some weeks they stood up for me when fellow Arabs were being distinctly unhelpful and unfair (work issues). I still maintain a degree of contact with individuals there whom I think of warmly along with those whom I no longer have any contact with. Outside Saudi Arabia, but in another country that regards itself as Arab, people (both sexes) treated me and my family with a level of kindness that I have very rarely if ever experienced in Britain. There, there was a conspicuous example where totally spontaneously and voluntarily they fought for me against my English employer who tried to misrepresent the truth and penalise me for office-political reasons. They guarded my interests for many months. The point I would like to make is: Beware of stereo-typing and instead assume people generally are basically quite nice - this seems to me a basic truth, but exceptions are undeniably found. If abroad, accept that it is not for you to dictate things. If anything fundamental is unattractive then keep out of the way.
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