Posted in Saudi Arabia, Saudi culture, Saudi customs, culture, travel on December 31, 2007 | 26 Comments »
If you are invited to the home of a Saudi for dinner there may be some traditions that are slightly different from coming to a Western home for dinner. To begin with, the invitation may state 8 pm (which is actually pretty early by Saudi standards) or could start at 10 pm (which is [...]
Posted in Saudi Arabia, Saudi culture, Saudi customs, culture, islam, religion, travel on December 30, 2007 | 19 Comments »
Saudi Arabia is clearly a nocturnal society. The reasons for this are varied. One aspect is due to the extreme temperatures during most of the year which prevent individuals from readily going out during the daytime hours. Another aspect can be to the five daily prayers which take place predominantly during the daytime hours. All [...]
Posted in Saudi Arabia, Saudi blogs, Saudi culture, Saudi customs, Uncategorized on December 29, 2007 | 13 Comments »
More on Internet in the Kingdom
The options for internet connectivity in the Kingdom are as follows: dial up; DSL; satellite; or mobile wireless internet. Naturally many of the businesses will have high speed T1 lines and excellent connectivity. But in general, internet in the Kingdom can be compared to the status of internet growth in [...]
Posted in Saudi Arabia, Saudi culture, Saudi customs, culture, islam, politics, religion, travel on December 28, 2007 | 6 Comments »
When one lives in the Kingdom, inevitably the day will be planned and focused around the prayer times whether one is a practicing muslim or not. I say this because all shops, businesses and activities will shut down for 30 minutes during the daily prayers. And one has to particularly watch if going out towards [...]
Posted in America, Saudi Arabia, culture, travel on December 27, 2007 | 8 Comments »
I have always been an advocate and fan of National Public Radio (NPR) (see www.npr.org) and to my delight, NPR is available in the Kingdom! It may not always come in clearly but it is such a joy to hear those favorite shows such as ‘All Things Considered” or “Face the Nation” or the [...]
Posted in Saudi Arabia, horses, pets on December 26, 2007 | 19 Comments »
UPDATE: Aafke was kind enough to provide photos of his gorgeous Arabian horses so now everyone can “virtually” meet ‘The Tarq’ and ‘Rabhar:’
The computer which I use to post does not have arabic fonts set up and as a result, I cannot write in the arabic script. I received the following request from a [...]
Posted in Saudi Arabia, Saudi culture, Saudi customs, culture, politics, travel on December 26, 2007 | 4 Comments »
Similar to the European Union and the Euro there is discussion in the Kingdom and within the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) on further collaboration to include adoption and implementation of a universal currency for use throughout the GCC. So I guess the first point should be identification of the [...]
Posted in America, Saudi Arabia, Saudi culture, Saudi customs, culture on December 26, 2007 | 15 Comments »
Like many places the world over it is traditional to bring a dish when invited to a dinner among good friends and family. It is also typical when having a Saudi family to dinner at your home you naturally want to showcase your best dishes. However be forewarned, many Saudis may not like or have an [...]
Posted in America, Saudi Arabia, Saudi culture, Saudi customs, culture, religion, travel on December 25, 2007 | 17 Comments »
It is Christmas for those who celebrate the birth of Christ. In the Kingdom there are little signs of Christmas unless one is able to go onto a western-only compound. Here, in their own cocoon of privacy, Christians can openly practice their chosen faith. At the western-only compound the villas may be alit with [...]
Posted in Saudi Arabia, Saudi culture, Saudi customs, culture, gender, travel, women driving on December 24, 2007 | 8 Comments »
If you are a woman in the Kingdom you may find yourself lost without a driver. After all the rules and law are such that women cannot drive so they do rely on the services of a driver whether that driver is a husband, son or individual who has been engaged to serve as [...]
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