My First Time In Saudi Arabia (Part 1)

After a month of planning and preparations, my scheduled seminar / workshop in our Head Office in Saudi Arabia have finally pushed through, and it would be my first time in Saudi Arabia.

A month ago, it was postponed due to unavailability of a qualified trainer. And it was actually a blessing in disguise as our visa would have not been ready should the original schedule had push through.

I have been hearing about Saudi Arabia a lot of things, on the positive side as well as the negative side of it. But on my “second-hand” information, mostly are on the negative side. February 6, 2010 would be the day that I would be able to judge it myself.

My colleagues and friends who have been to Saudi Arabia are in chorus swearing that given a choice they will never go back to Saudi Arabia. The one and only reason in going back to the Islamic Country is obviously the economic benefit one can reap.

Stories of rampant arrogance, discrimination and backwardness of the locals are intolerable. If any chance that you find yourself in a police station, whatever the reasons, likely will be your fault, not the locals.

If a car, driven by a local, hit you on the road. Most likely it would be your fault, simply because if you did not come to their country you wouldn’t be run-over by them.

You will earn for yourself a trip, “Go To Jail”, simply by staring a woman or talking to a woman. I read an article about a woman who was jailed because she was caught by the religious police talking to a man, not related to her, over lunch in a public restaurant. Though, the reason for the encounter was to close a business deal over lunch in a “Public” restaurant. Obviously no malice whatsoever was intended, but then the two were jailed.

A camel is more valuable than an expat. To prove this, try to run-over a camel.

No such thing as rape. They called it seduction, so it is the fault of the woman not the man, as the word suggests. How can you argue about it? Unless the woman can bring four male witnesses that she was raped. Thus gives you an idea if “gang-rape” exists in this part of the world.

Stories about males being raped. Stories had it that when in police custody, rapes happen. If it happen to males, what more to a woman? Tell it to the marines.

Blaring calls for prayer is quite usual and the country stand still during this time. Shop is close, office works stops, streets are emptied, and so on…

If caught by the religious police roaming around during prayer time, you will be asked to join in prayer in the mosque or get jailed. Isn’t the religious police should be praying during prayer time? I wonder how he catches somebody roaming around during prayer time.

I was told that they actual search your luggage even it passes through the x-ray machine. I asked myself what’s the use of the x-ray machine after all.

I was also told that taking pictures in public, especially when capturing women in abaya, is prohibited. Abaya, by the way, is the women’s black dress designed to cover a woman and to conceal the woman’s feminine figure in order not to solicit lustful stares from men.

My expectations in Saudi Arabia, putting aside my principal purpose on visiting the desert country, are as follow;

1. I am expecting a desert / rural environment.

2. Strict Islamic Culture

3. Backward mentality

4. Unaccommodating and arrogant Saudis

5. Not seeing a woman for the next seven days

Curious and nervous I am ready to embark and discover what really lies within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.