Impressions of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia- -

This is my 13th day in Riyadh. I have been very busy at work, but from day to day interactions and observations, here are my impressions of Saudi life :
There are many Restrictions ( but only outside your home and outside the "Compounds")

1. All businesses shut down during prayer times. Locals or muslims to not even be seen walking around outside during these times; some leniency exists for outsiders.
2. All saudi women to be covered up fully in black with only a slit for the eyes open. Outsiders (women) also need to be covered up but can keep face visible.
3. No music to be played outdoors, not even by shops selling music ! A society without music- a body without soul !
4. No non-muslim can visit the holy cities of Mecca/madina. How can you block anyone from visiting a place of God ???!! Oh, I love INDIA- I visited the tomb of sufi saint Haji Ali just after visiting the mahalakshmi temple in mumbai .
5. You cant see many people taking photographs although there are the spectacular buildings like Kingdom center here- reason, u never know what may be forbidden to photograph. As I was advised against it, I didnt even bring my camera although I love to take pictures.
6. There are segregated city-like colonies called "compounds" wihch are either owned by someone in the royal family or a rich american company. Inside the compunds you have all restrictions taken off. they even have cinema theatres !

Roads and traffic

1. The roads are excellent- broad and laned with very high speeds possible.
2. Taxis are the only option to travel, very minimal public transport available. Although the good thing is that you can actually bargain the fares in a taxi inspite of all being equipped with meters.
3. The taxi drivers are mostly south asians with saudis being a minority. And the taxi drivers keep scolding the Saudi drivers (not just the ones who ply taxis) about rash driving. And it is true. They are seen to drive at speeds of over 120kmph- INSIDE THE CITY !!! Naturally, the accident statistics are a nightmare for the government. Recently the police has put in place very strict laws against rash driving with heavy fines and punishment, still the accidents continue.
4. The honking situation is slightly better than in India, although some of the junctions resemble indian traffic on weekends.

People and society

1. The impression that I got before I came here was that Saudis are arrogant and aggressive. So far, my co workers at this large bank have not been like that. in fact they are rather nice people.
2. The women are seen to be shown lot of respect, for eg. in shops etc., when one sees women, they move back to give way. But the real truth is that their rights are severely curtailed- the dress code, they are not allowed to drive. They have to be with a male family member and so on. BUT- things are changing..... they are being allowed to work nowadays at least in big cities like Riyadh.
3. There are ladies entrances and ladies/family areas in every building- offices/ hotels. No wonder, I didnt see may women when I was outdoors.
4. I was plesaantly surprised to read articles in the main english daily- Arab news- by 2 lady journalists. Both were quite strong minded and open although mentioning in passing that the society as a whole needs to look up to women and respect them as per ISLAM. But one of the articles was about- hold your breath - Eve teasing ! In which the lady is with her 11 year old daughter near one of the bigger malls and a car with some youths stopped by and they started shouting at her to take down a mobile no. When she cudnt ignore them any more, she walked as if to get inside their car and said" Which one of us do you want- her or me or both of us ?" And they sped away terrified !

Enough for today- have planned to go shopping for the first time since I came here..... Hope I get good stuff to shop! keep coming back !

Till then ..... Khuda hafiz !

The first post- From Riyadh

Hi all,
This is my very first post.. and I am in Riyadh, Saudi arabia. Welcome to my blog. please feel free to comment on any post. Firstly, my preset notions of Saudi as a place to live in lie shattered in pieces. I had heard that its a life full of restrictions and and about racist Saudis at the workplace etc etc. Well, there are some restrictions like all establishments being required to close during the 5 prayer times during the day and also restrictions on practising your faith if you are a non muslim, but one can build a decent life around these restrictions. Of course, its another matter if you are a woman... you ould need to become a 'WIB' (Woman in black), so to say , outside the house. The facilities are all there, the roads are fantastic- you've got to be careful though - the vehicles are driven at very high speeds - upto 150 kmph within the city. Some of the buildings like kingdom towers are unreal in their opulence. So much of glitter and luxury - amazing !
The people that I have worked with so far at the SAMBA bank have been very cooperative and nice to get along with.
I have a stay of about a month here and this is my first weekend here. still settling in so have not gone out much.
More in my next blog