Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Epilog to Saudi Arabia

As it turns out, it was a short passage.  I have returned to the United States.
Saudi Arabia proved a unique experience which I am glad to have had the opportunity to try.  I saw another culture "up close and personal" and met many wonderful people.  Ultimately, however, I was unable to embrace the cultural differences and the loneliness which beset me at KAUST.  I tell myself that, if I were 20 years or so younger, giving up a year wouldn't have mattered. At my age, however, I don't have that many years left to spend one of them unhappily.  I'd like to say I am wiser than I was but I don't suppose I am.  I'd like to say I've learned much about my self but I don't suppose I have.  I do know that I am much happier being with my family and in familiar surroundings.

 Whether with my family in Northern Michigan at my sister's 50th wedding anniversary celebration.....


Sunset over the Gulf at Marathon Key in Florida

Or in the Florida Keys with my family just enjoying the sun......

I find life at home to be more fulfilling and more precious than I did previously.  I left much behind when I went to Saudi Arabia but only in the leaving did I realize just how much.  Now I work at never forgetting.  I hope you enjoyed reading about my experience.  I enjoyed writing it.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Musings from KAUST

Process:  
I have learned that things are rarely done the same way twice in Saudi Arabia.  Take, for example, applying for a Saudi driver's license.  KAUST kindly supplies a Saudi facilitator to help with the process.  My facilitator took 3 of us to Rabigh, about 30km north of KAUST.  I found it interesting that his Toyota Camry was cruising at about 160kmh (that's 100mph) on the way to get a driving license when the speed limit was 120kmh.  He smiled and slowed down a bit when one of the passengers loudly fastened his seat belt.  (Mine was already cutting off my circulation)  In any case we (quickly) visited in turn, a stationer to get a special folder; a medical clinic for blood typing and an eye exam; a police station for another eye exam and application review; a translator to translate our current license to Arabic; and the licensing office to submit all the forms and pay our fees.  While not what I would call simple, the entire process was relatively painless and within a couple of days I had my Saudi driving license.  (which I have yet to need, by the way)

A couple of weeks later the same facilitator took some co-workers for their licenses.  They described a different health clinic, no police station, a different translator, and a different license office.  New license delivery?  About 10 days. 

When I had data center access added to my KAUST badge it required showing my iqama (residency card).  That requirement vanished the next day for a co-worker.  Opening a bank account required the original of my Employment Offer letter.  The next day a black and white copy was fine.  One day getting into the office before 7am required signing in.  The next day it did not.  And on and on and on....

There is always a "new form" which replaces the one you picked up yesterday or a new process which varies with the attendant or official.  The Lesson:  it never pays to be impatient.  You just accept what comes and enjoy those times when anything administrative happens in a single attempt.

People: 
KAUST  is located next to a village named Thuwal.  It was long just a sleepy fishing village but the creation of KAUST and the influx of construction and other workers have increased the pace of life there considerably.  There are small shops of all kinds; bakers, shoe stores, clothing stores, computer shops, grocers, and small shops with miscellany of all sorts.  In the evenings the shopping areas (or "souks") are brightly lit and crowded.  The one glaring omission is women.  The only place (outside of KAUST) where the sight of women is common is in the large shopping malls in Jeddah.

I've read many articles here, including some by women, arguing for the benefits of being a woman in Saudi Arabia.  See this link for an example.    It's not my place to judge in a part of the world where, as opposed to the U.S. concept of separation of Church and State,  the "Church" (Islam) and State are very tightly interwoven.  Most of the cultural norms are driven by an Islamic perspective and a uniquely Saudi one at that.  I can only point out that women cannot drive, (They don't have to drive;  someone else will do the driving for them) they do not work in shops and stores (They don't have to work; they are taken care of), they are not allowed to be in the presence of men other than their husbands or brothers (this relieves them of dealing with uncouth and uncontrolled men), and they must be covered (usually including their face) when in public (they don't have to worry about what they look like under the abaya.  It's very freeing!).    No matter how you spin it, it's a very difficult cultural reality to get used to and one few U.S. women I know would find acceptable.

Place:
I spent last weekend in Dubai at the invitation of an IBM friend living there.  I had a cold beer for the first time in 3 months.  It was great! :-)  Dubai, in the United Arab Emerites (UAE),  houses the worlds tallest building, the Burj Dubai.  It's right next to one of the largest shopping malls in the world and is, indeed, a sight to behold.  Dubai appears to exist only to move money around and is largely populated by expatriates.  It's a very expensive place as I can attest after playing golf and having a couple of meals and a few drinks.  I wouldn't want to live there unless I was very wealthy.  That said, it was a great place to visit.  

This is a view of the Dubai skyline from the Al Badia golf course.   You can see the Burj Dubai tower above the rest of the high rise buildings that populate the city.









"Ski Dubai" is an indoor snow ski hill complete with chair lift.
 The economic downturn has left many unfinished skyscrapers littering the landscape as you can see in the background of this photo.  Dubai is slowly regaining it's normal growth rate.

Dubai is famous for the "palms" built into the sea.  Below is Palm Jumeirah.  There are underwater car tunnels to drive to the outside circle.  


This hotel on the left sits at the top of Palm Jumeirah.  I didn't go inside because there is a charge to sightsee.  The "trunk" of the palm is made up of apartment buildings and the "fronds" contain (expensive) single family homes.  My buddy in Dubai drove me around the palm and it is really an architectural achievement and very beautiful.  Dubai was about a 2 1/2 hour flight from Jeddah and was worth the trip.

Friday, April 9, 2010

What Hath March Wrought?


The answer to the title question, to be brief, is "not much".  I have found myself working long hours and some weekends with a never-ending supply of things to be done.  My personal responsibilities revolve around storage systems, filesystems, backup, and archive.  These all come with their own set of unique requirements, skills, and activities.  Making this stuff available to a community of highly educated researchers requires delving into operating systems, security, policy, procedure, politics, etc. etc..  Having only recently seen some significant utilization on our first compute cluster, we are adding another which is to be operational within a couple of weeks.  I note all this by way of an apology for not being more diligent in my blogging.

I have made a couple of journeys to Jeddah to do some shopping.  There are many "things" I would like to purchase but can't bring myself to do so.  I've looked at vacuum cleaners, ink jet printers, speakers, stereos and the like but I keep asking myself questions like "Do I really need that?" and "What will I do with it when I leave?" and "You came here to save money, remember?".  As a result I have managed to keep my spending to a minimum.

Two of my teammates have acquired vehicles, however.  One purchased a LandRover LE and another a Jaguar XJ.  Both are used but very low milage and in excellent condition.  My buddy from Finland bought the Jag.  The price was close to what a used Jag would cost in the States but 10K-20K Euros less than it would cost in Finland.  His plan is to drive it here for a few years and then take it to Finland and sell it for what he paid for it. 

 The Finnish Jag owner, Olli, is on the left in this photo.  Another teammate, Rashid, is on the right.   Rashid lived in Michigan before coming to KAUST and is anxiously awaiting the arrival of his family next month.   This photo was taken at the "Auto Mall" during evening prayer while we waited for the dealerships to re-open.  There are 10-15 dealers arranged in a semicircular fashion over a city block.  They include everything from Jag to Chevy to boat dealers to used car dealers.  One shop specializes in used Ford Crown Victorias straight from the U.S.   It makes one wonder just what experiences those cars have had on their journey.

  A car is another thing that would be nice just to be able to leave the campus when I wanted.  However, there aren't many places to go, drivers in Saudi Arabia are entirely nuts, and I came here to save money, remember?  I did make a change however.  I traded in one scooter for another.  The first one always felt like it was going to simply disassemble itself with me riding it leaving me skidding down the road on my posterior at 30kph.

This is my new ride.  Simple, slow, but entirely adequate for the grocery store and the golf course.

The KAUST campus is slowly growing......well not really growing but more of it is opening.  In the picture below you can see how little is actually opened compared to what will eventually be occupied.


The areas covered in the brown color are all housing.  The KAUST population is expected to be several thousand eventually which should attract many more shops and activities of all sorts.  The purple line outlines what's currently occupied.  Housing makes up a fairly small part of that.

The "Just Opened" bubble refers to the removal of fencing around the boat harbor area.  It's not actually complete but at least we can access it.  As in many things Saudi, art is a major component.









On the left is a wall of the marina building.  The mural is made entirely of tiles.  On the right is a closeup of part of the wall where you can see the tiles.  This boat is on the lower right of the larger photo on the left.


Jeddah is quite famous for the amount of public art that can be found in roundabouts and along the Corniche which is a road that runs along the Red Sea.  If you are interested, "Susie's Big Adventure" is an amazing blogger who has many photos of sculptures around Jeddah.  See Sculputures of Jeddah.
If you are interested in a much broader view of Saudi Arabia and Jeddah than I can provide, check out her blog at http://susiesbigadventure.blogspot.com/.





 The view on the left is of some of the landscaping at the Marina.  The Boat Harbor is just to the left of this photo. (see below)



I don't know for sure but I believe the boat in the picture belongs to KAUST and is used for taking visiting bigwigs out to the reefs that are the focus of much research at KAUST.  I'm confident this is a close as I will ever get to that boat.


















Above is the marina building from the water side.  The KAUST "beacon" is on the left and is located right across from the marina.  It's still under construction but we will eventually be able to walk out to it.  In the campus picture above where I showed what was open, the red pin points to the beacon.  The picture below give you an idea of its scale.  That's a 6-8' ladder leaning against it.




Lastly, after only two months and a bit, I have business cards!  English on one side; Arabic on the other.  I don't really know what I'll use them for but they sure are pretty :-)

Friday, March 5, 2010

May I See Your ID Please

I made my first trip to KAUST's recently opened beach today.  Much to my surprise, it's a coed beach.  The rules dictate some common sense in choice of apparel but that's about it.  It's located a couple of miles from the main housing area while the beach much closer and directly in front of the seafront homes remains fenced from access.  There are so many things here at KAUST that just don't seem to make much sense.  This is just one more.

My trip to the beach did remind me of something that is ubiquitous at KAUST which is the need for an ID.  To enter the beach area you must show your id, write down your id, sign your name and whether you are a "single" or "family".  Yesterday, to get a mailbox which everyone is supposed to have you must show your id, write down your id, address, mobile number, etc., etc..   To ride the shopping bus to Jeddah, you must show your id.  I guess that's the one facet of living here that causes me to realize just how tenuous KAUST's existence is.....there is constant checking to see if you belong.  (The miles of fencing topped with razor wire could be another clue, I suppose.) (Oh, and the guards with automatic weapons, truck mounted machine guns, and occasional use of a mirror to see the underside of a vehicle are also indicators.)  This radical (for Saudi Arabia) concept of men and women more or less freely mingling engenders its share of ill will among the religious conservatives in the Kingdom so a certain level of caution is to be expected.

 

Back to the beach.  As you can see above, there are kayaks and paddleboats for rent.  There is a refreshment stand with drinks and food for sale.  There are "lifeguards" by the dozens.  They outnumbered the beach goers today, for example.  Whether walking around, sitting in lifeguard chairs, riding 4-wheelers around or sitting offshore in boats, they're everywhere!  There is also, of course, lots of fencing.  As noted, I have to assume it's for our protection but it gets a little stifling after awhile.



This view is looking back at the University and is taken just to the left of the picture above.  The shallow water area in the foreground is a tidal basin and the tide was out when I took this photo. 

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Green Grass in the "Big Tan"

This post will likely only be of interest to any golfers reading it.  I received my "playing" card at Safaa Golf Course here at KAUST today.  I met with one of the Pros on staff who watched me hit for a bit and gave me some excellent tips.  I found out that I'm an "aggressive ball striker"!  He gave me the impression that's a good thing but one never knows.  He could have just been being kind to an old duffer.  Nonetheless, I have my first tee time on Thursday morning (which, you may recall, is my "Saturday") and I can't wait.  Here are a few more pictures I took at the course.

This is the clubhouse as seen from the course side.  It's got a pro shop and a nice restaurant plus men's and women's locker rooms.  Very new and nice inside.  I had a tasty chicken and avocado sandwich, fries, and a diet pepsi for SR28.  (if you've been paying attention, you'll be able to figure that out in American $ :-))

This view is approaching the first tee.  The little hut beyond the golf carts is the starters booth.



This is a view of the first hole from the back tees.  It turns out the course is longer than I thought.  This hole is a 445 yard (black tees) par 4.  The current 9 hole course clocks in at over 3000 yards from the white tees and almost 3600 yards from the black tees.

From behind the first tee you can see the practice greens and chipping area.  I didn't know it when I took this picture but the fellow in the background is the CIO (Chief Information Officer) at KAUST.  My boss reports to him.

This was a relaxing way to spend a couple of hours after a long day at work.  The weather was perfect and I only hurt a little bit.  It's all good.

Monday, March 1, 2010

Going Places

I've joined the ranks of the mobile here at KAUST.  My transportation alternatives have dramatically increased in the past week.  I was limited to two feet but look at me now!

On the right is my Trek bicycle which arrived in my shipment from home along with some clothes, tools, and a bunch of miscellaneous stuff which had me wondering why I packed it.  On the left is my first major purchase in Saudi Arabia and a fine example of Chinese manufacturing it is.  My brand new Banweer Super Classic 110cc scooter will be perfect for those 115F degree days when peddling a bike seems like just too much work.  It's already served it's purpose by getting me and my golf clubs (which were also in the shipment) to the golf course here at KAUST  I only had to do that once because they'll store the clubs for me.  Golf, including rounds, carts, and the driving range are all free for the time being!  I don't know when they'll start charging but I'm going to take advantage of it now.
The 9-hole course is pretty short but very well maintained and under utilized.  I'm looking forward to being a bad golfer on an entirely new continent.  I'll have to learn the appropriate expletives to mutter in Arabic now.  I'm scheduled to meet one of the three PGA golf pros tomorrow to ascertain my "level" of golf and to begin the establishment of a handicap.  (Something we just never got around to in the States).  They are wary of complete novices coming out with no knowledge of the rules of golf or how to hit a ball without tearing up the course.  I, at least, know the rules.  I don't recall being a strict adherent of them.....but I know what they are.  On the other count.....well doesn't everyone take a divot now and then?!? 

Friday, February 26, 2010

News of the Day

This is one article you won't find in the Detroit Free Press or News!
If you just have to see the complete article, look here.  My only encounter with camels so far is seeing 4 or 5 of them being herded through Rabigh when I went to get my driver's license.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Where Cultures Meet

I went shopping in Jeddah a few days ago which revealed more ways in which the American and Middle Eastern cultures are different yet the same.  Four guys from my department took the 90km ride to the Red Sea Mall after work.  The Red Seal Mall is  truly a mall just like you would think of one in the U.S..  It's large, modern, is full of people and has a ton of stores (dominated, of course, by women's clothing).  I lifted the following picture from another blog, jedisinjeddah.blogspot.com.  (Four MBA students from Berkley spent three weeks in the KSA on a consulting gig.  It's a pretty entertaining blog.)
I took the next couple of pictures the night we were shopping.  The first one shows a huge 2 1/2 story "shirt" hanging over where the fountain is in the picture above.  I have no idea why it was there but a few days later it was gone.
The fountain below is outside the entrance to the mall.
The Red Sea Mall has Starbucks, The CheeseCake Factory, Radio Shack, Gucci, Sony, KFC, Hardee's Burger, and many other recognizable and not so recognizable stores.  There are many families shopping there plus lots of teenagers (girls in Abayas, of course).  The stores and Malls in Jeddah don't really get busy until later in the evening.  After 9 pm is when they start to get crowded which, by the way, is after last prayer.  There are 6 prayer times during the day beginning at about 5:30 am with the last prayer at about 8pm  The prayer times vary by a few minutes every day and it's important in Islam to pray at the proper time.  I have an app on my iPhone which tells the daily prayer times and uses the iPhone compass to show the direction to kneel (facing Mecca).  It's helpful to know the times because, if you happen to be in a smaller store,  everyone is shoo'd out shortly before prayer time and the doors/gates are closed.  In the larger department stores,  you may be allowed to keep shopping but the gates to the mall close and the registers are shut down.   Just before prayer, everyone heads for the food court or the coffee shops, gets something to eat or drink, and sits down to wait it out.  The lines get long so knowing the prayer times is useful.  The shopkeepers in the food court push serving to the last second, half closing their gates while still serving food and drink.   The "mutaween" or religious police are on hand to make sure they are closed by the time prayer starts.  There are large prayer rooms available for the men (not women) at the mall.   Prayer usually takes about 30 minutes after which everything opens back up and normal mall activities resume.   It's just life as usual here in Saudi Arabia. 

I read a very interesting article in the Gulf News, a UAE paper, which captures a subtlety of public social life  that I sensed but couldn't put my finger on.  The complete article is an opinion piece by Gautam Raja entitled Of American conviviality.  The gist of the piece is that Americans in social settings talk at length and loudly about what other cultures consider too personal or, in some cases, too obvious to bother with.  It's an interesting commentary worth reading to get an insight into how we are sometimes perceived.  Having read Raja's article I now realize that, even in a busy place like the Red Sea Mall, it's much quieter than a similar venue would be at home.  It's not earth-shattering but it is interesting and is one more difference to file away.

Friday, February 19, 2010

Pictures From KAUST

Here are a few images from KAUST taken Friday, February 19 which is my "Sunday".

A view of my apartment looking at the patio.  I have a table and 6 chairs for sitting out.  The sliding doors on the right open from my main living area.  Those on the left open from the downstairs bedroom.  The buildings are quite tall so I have very high ceilings, (over 20') in the main living area and there are still apartments above mine.



This is the entry to my apartment.  The door on the right is the "maid's" entrance to the little tiny maid's room.  The little sign on my door says "Occupied" which is to keep the many laborers from taking their breaks in an occupied unit.  Yesterday I had several guys lounging on my patio.  We were both surprised to see each other when I slid open the drapes.

These homes are right on the Red Sea.  They are for much higher status folks than me!

This is the Red Sea.  Notice the fence with concertina wire.  We can't get to the beautiful beach.  I assume this is because they don't have controls in place to keep unmarried men and women from mingling which is considered "haraam".  (In Islam , haraam is used to refer to anything that is prohibited by the faith.  See  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haraam)  Eventually they will have a "men's" beach, a "women's" beach, and a "family" beach.  Westernization, even at KAUST,  can only go so far in the Kingdom.  It doesn't reach beaches or health clubs.


 
I took this self-portrait at a nearby park using the camera timer.  It's really beautiful here but hot!  It was about 90F at 11:00am when I took this.  I am  reluctantly anticipating temperatures regularly between 100F and 115F in the summer. 



Thursday, February 18, 2010

Busy Days

Let me tell you about my Tuesday.  The lead-in was on Monday night when, much to my surprise, I received an email from the KAUST housing department informing me that my accommodations were ready for me.  I have been staying in a hotel in Jeddah for two weeks along with other "commuters" who have been there much longer.  Apparently the KAUST leadership has been pushing pretty hard to get people out of Jeddah where they are paying all the bills into on campus housing where the employees start paying  rent and don't get free food.  After spending 3 hours per day on a bus, I wasn't going to turn down the offer.

First, though, Tuesday (and Sunday) are the days to get Saudi Arabian drivers licenses and I had already planned getting my license on Tuesday.  At 9AM I went to the "Government Affairs" office at KAUST.   There I met a Saudi gentleman who took a copy of my passport, visa, and Saudi Iqama and filled out a form.  He did this for two other guys and we all got in his Toyota Camry for a ride to.....where?  Our destination, I discovered,  was Rabigh, about 50KM north of KAUST along Medina Highway.  The  Saudi driver and I were joined by a Palestinian  and a Moroccan with a French Canadian driver's license.  The first is an elementary school teaching assistant at KAUST and the second is doing post doctoral work.  (There are about 75 countries represented by KAUST  students, teaching staff, and employees) 

The first notable consideration on this journey was the highway speed.  It's posted at 120kmh or about 75mph.  It seems a reasonable speed,  if you actually travel that fast.  Unfortunately our driver maintained a steady 140kmh, reaching speeds of 180kmh (~110mph) on many occasions.....and we were being passed by other cars!  Faster traffic would flash their lights, we would slide over about 1/2 a lane, the overtaking vehicle would pass, half in the lane and half on the shoulder, and we slide back into our lane.  (I would discover that these were not unusual speeds on the following day when the driver taking me and my luggage from Jeddah to KAUST drove at similar speeds).  We got to Rabigh rather quickly and proceeded to a stationary shop.  There we each spent 2SR ($ .52) on a file folder with a paper binder attached.  We punched the paperwork we had so far and put it in the binders.  Then we all went a few storefronts down the street and walked into a medical clinic.  At least the lab coats and stethoscopes led me to believe it was a medical clinic.  We walked up to a counter where an Abaya clad and veiled cashier accepted 60SR ($16) from each of us.  From there we went to have our blood typed.  That procedure went pretty quicky because, when I told the "lab" technician I was O+ (actually, I pointed to it on a form on which everything else was in Arabic), he just circled it and stamped it with some official looking stamp.  That was much quicker than drawing blood, that's for sure.  Then it was up 3 flights of stairs to the Optician.  There we looked across a room at different letters on a blurry eye chart projected on a cloth on the wall and received some more official looking stamps on our paperwork.  I was told I needed glasses to drive.  I'm getting used to being referred to as "Mr. William" as in (insert heavy accent) "Mr. William.  You need eyeglasses to drive the car". Back down the 3 flights of stairs to another guy with some stamps; off to another room and yet another guy with some stamps; and out the door.  Whew!  Back in the car and off to a Police Station.  There we turned over our paperwork and sat down in the waiting area.  One by one we were called before an officer with a little eye test machine on his desk which we looked into and told him if the little "E"s were pointing up, down, or sideways.  For this we received another form and some more stamps.  (My form, as interpreted by the Palestinian, said I did not need glasses to drive.  Go figure)

From there we went to what would pass for a small strip mall of shops.  We went to a small coffee shop where there was seated a rather harried looking guy surrounded by paperwork.  This was the guy who was going to, for 40SR each ($10.65), translate our home country drivers licenses into Arabic and for another 20SR, enter the results into the "official" website for the traffic bureau.  All the conversations were being carried out in Arabic.  While my KAUST facilator's English was sketchy at best, both the Palestinian and Moroccan spoke Arabic and their English was slightly better English so  I managed to follow at least part of what was going on.   Apparently, the "translator" felt he was too busy to do the work that day.  After a lot of arguing and cajoling by our KAUST facilitator, he finally agreed to do it.  In the meantime we walked our forms down a few storefronts to the traffic bureau office.  I'm guessing here but the guys behind the windows had uniforms and it looked official.  They looked at our paperwork, looked at our Iqamas, looked at our licenses, and sent us back to the translation guy.  The Moroccan had to translate his own French Canadian license to English so the guy could translate that to Arabic.  My Michigan license ( as you Michiganders will note if you look at your own) does not contain the word "drive" in any form.  It says "Operator's" license.  I had to convince the translator that "Operator" meant that I could do more than just start a car; I could also drive it in traffic.  The cost of the license itself was another 440SR ($117) which, oddly enough, we gave to the translator.  This adventure in Rabigh took about 4 hours and, after a "fast" drive back to KAUST, it was on to my next adventure of the day.

I went to the KAUST housing office which is currently located in a ground floor room at the KAUST Inn, a nice on-campus hotel for visitors.  The staff is young and run ragged trying to move people in to places as they are still being finished.  The folder containing the information  for my unit had a contract for someone else in it.  It took a couple of hours to sort that out and get the right contract.  In the interim, I went to look at the assigned unit to see if it would be acceptable.  The design and style of the housing is absolutely gorgeous but, unfortunately, it's been built by low paid, low skilled imported labor and completed in a very short amount of time.   Everything is still beautiful from a distance but close up the townhouses and apartments are a mess for being virtually brand new.  There are paint splatters everywhere, toilet covers are scratched and dulled from being used as step stools, the appliances are scratched, the tile floors are dirty and the finish has been ruined, the granite countertops  are covered in hardened drops of spilled grout or something, and it just doesn't feel clean in the sense that I am used to clean.  All the surfaces that should be smooth and shiny; granite, wood, glass, chrome, etc. are dulled and/or covered in a filmy residue.   That said, as I looked at my designated townhouse  accepted that everyone was doing the best they could with the resources at their disposal and I was  happy with having gotten a pretty decent place to live.   Certainly it's much better accommodations than the vast majority of people on this planet are blessed with.  Some hard work (and cleaning supplies),  will make it a really great place.  Here is the location on the campus compound relative to my workplace.
I got a really large place for one person because KAUST is still under the impression that my family will be joining me.  That's highly unlikely but, for a small  amount more per month, I have much more room.  It's a two-bedroom townhouse with a bedroom downstairs and a bedroom and office upstairs.
Here's a picture looking down at the main living area from the upstairs.

The units come equipped with a washer and dryer, kitchen appliances, furniture, two TVs, two IP telephones, dishes, flatware, pots & pans, linens, etc..  Unfortunately I have to start cooking for myself and doing my own laundry and cleaning.  Oh well.  Back to reality!  The unit does include  a room about the size of a laundry room with a single bed and a very small bathroom that is for the live-in maid.  Unfortunately a maid would only be allowed if my wife were living here, too.

I've made two walking trips to the supermarket (pointed out in the picture above) and managed to get some of the essentials for cooking and cleaning.  I'm going to get in lots of walking at KAUST by not having an automobile  and the health club (see photo) is also close by.  The health club includes well-equipped workout rooms (separate for men and women), swimming pools (men only, women only, and family), squash courts, racquetball courts, basketball courts,  and a small bowling alley.  I'm hoping the shipment of goods I made before I left the States will arrive next week.  It will include my bicycle so I can explore the area a bit more broadly.  The local bike shop also sells some pretty cheap Chinese knockoffs of Suzuki scooters and motorcycles.  I wonder just how silly I would look on a scooter.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Tea, anyone?

Today is just a random collection of thoughts and observations regarding my stay in the Kingdom.  One of the things I have to get used to is the money.  It's not U.S. greenbacks anymore.  Not only is the money different colors but it's different sizes, too.  Making purchases reminds me of learning a language.  Huh?  You might ask.  The comparison I'm drawing is that, when learning a language, one spends a great deal of time and energy translating from the native language to the new language......you think about what you want to say in English, for example, and then translate the words into Spanish in your head and then speak them.  As your familiarity and comfort with the language increases through repetition and usage you eventually just think in the new language.  Much easier...much faster.

Money is similar.  Today, for example, I went to the store for, among other things, a tube of toothpaste, and saw that it cost 9.75SR or 9.75 Riyals.  I had no idea if that's a lot or a little.  Sounds like a lot.....but is it?  So....let's see....the exchange rate is 3.75:1 so 3.75SR is $1 so 7.50SR is $2 which leaves 2.25SR / 3.75 is about 55 cents so the toothpaste cost about $2.55 or so.  Pretty fair price but it took some thinking to figure that out.  (In my case a lot of thinking!)  Eventually I hope to just know if the tooth paste is overpriced or not in Riyals.  Just to make matters more interesting, they don't do coins here.  My tally at the register today was something like 14.50SR and I gave the cashier 15SR.  My change?  A piece of candy.  Perfectly acceptable here and a nice treat to boot.
You'll note from the picture above that only one side of each note has the value of the bill in English.  With a little memorization, the color of money will come in handy.   To save you the calculation, the  USD value of the 1277SR above is about $340 and a piece of candy by the way.  The exchange rate is fixed so I don't have to worry about that issue in my calculations.

But what about the tea?  That's just another little thing I find interesting.  My hotel room has an electric pot which produces boiling water in a minute or less.  The tea and coffee are not unlike that in any U.S. hotel room.   What's different is that, as with so many things here, English and Arabic coexist.


Finally, a piece from today's "Arab News" states " It’s that time of the year again when the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (Haia) “sees red” at shopkeepers selling Valentine things — or even strawberries on cakes."  This particular commission is affectionately known as the "Religious Police".  The article also states "The Haia editorialists have been out in full force in the days up to the annual holiday, publishing letters in local dailies warning florists, pastry shops, cosmetic stores and gift shops against selling red gift items and red roses for “un-Islamic activities.”  Imagine my surprise when I went to dinner at my hotel and found red tablecloths, low lighting, and a particularly lavish buffet laid out in honor of, you guessed it, Valentine's Day.  Saudi Arabia is just full of contradictions.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

You Are Here

I keep losing track of just where I am in the world.  It's amazing how quickly I've gotten wrapped up in just getting up and going to work every day.  As a reminder of just how far I have traveled, here's a map that provides a pretty good picture.  It's from Google weather but it works.

Thoughts from KSA

As a kid growing up in Alpena, Michigan, diverse meant some notion of "a range of different things".  A couple of examples might be that there wasn't much diversity in things to do for entertainment in Alpena or that  I might have a teacher describe a genus being studied in biology class as diverse.  Now Alpena is a small town on Lake Huron in the northeast section of the lower peninsula of Michigan.  I don't think anyone ever considered applying the term to the population.  There were Poles, Germans, English......a fairly standard mix of caucasian folks and that was about it.  People went to work, went to school, shopped, went to the corner bar, went to church and some had an accent.  Still, just people from different places.  No big deal.

As I grew older, however, I traveled away from Alpena.  I went to college in Kalamazoo, took a job there, took a job in New York,  traveled to various places, and took a job in the Detroit area.  I'm not sure how but over the intervening years, the term diversity took on entirely new and significant connotations.  In the first place, it was supposed to be a good thing.  By inference its lack was a bad thing.  Schools, companies, states, and even nations adopted the term.  And what a term it has become!  It still means a range of different things but now when you think of diversity, the default topic of discussion is people; by nationality, by race, by color, by language, by ethnicity, by sex, by sexual orientation and everything else that makes one person different from another.   Many people in the US and elsewhere embrace diversity while others abhor it.  Wow!  "Diversity" is loaded!  I thought I had a handle on it but, as it turns out, I still thought too narrowly.  To me, in the good old US of A, it meant people that were different from me.  My sheltered world provided an egocentric perspective. The Kingdom has been a revelation.

It turns out that I, too,  represent diversity!  All this time I thought diversity meant I could look around and see some people different than myself with whom I spoke and worked and socialized.  It's finally dawned on me just how big that word really is.  I'm sure most of you already know this but it's sunk in to me just how omni-directional diversity really is.  One fact that has struck me here in Saudi Arabia is first, how many ways there are to pronounce the English language and, second, the fact that I'm hearing how many ways there are to pronounce the English language.  I am having difficulty training my ear to recognize my own native language as spoken by Brits, Aussies, Scots, Lebanese, Czechs, Pakistanis, Saudis, Indians, Thais and others.....  But isn't it amazing that all those people speak at least some English... (Not too much credit to the Brits, here.  They did speak it first :-) )  One thing all these diverse peoples need is a common way to communicate and English is it at KAUST.  Nonetheless, KAUST is a culturally diverse community.  But hold on......just the other day a Vice-President of the University addressed the entire Information Technology staff.  One of his concerns was that he did not see enough women and Saudis represented.  So perhaps KAUST has at once overreached its diversity targets and failed to reach them completely.

All I know is that, as an English speaking American, I am a tiny minority here.  It's humbling and enlightening at the same time.  It's a good place to be.

Monday, February 8, 2010

A "normal" day

A routine, of sorts, has settled in.  I awake at 5AM so that, by 5:30AM, I can talk to my family.  (It's 9:30PM the previous evening in Michigan).  We either Skype with video or I simply dial home using a local number with my Vonage internet phone.  My family sees "Walled Lake" on callerid.  This is so cool!  We talk about the day just past (I've had a night to sleep on it).  At 6AM I got to breakfast.  At 6:35AM the bus leaves the hotel for KAUST.  At 7:45AM or so, we arrive at KAUST.  There is an interesting checkpoint on the hightway just north of Jeddah.  Everyone slows down to a crawl as we pass through narrowed lanes where there are Police? Guards? Military.  I'm not sure.  They just watch the vehicles pass and we haven't actually stopped yet.

Once we reach the entrance to KAUST, however, it's a different story.  We go through three checkpoints within about a mile.   Usually at two of the three, a guard boards the bus and walks the aisle looking at ID badges.  The checkpoints are a bit unnerving because of the discreet but visible automatic weapons and, at one stop, truck-mounted machine gun.  I suppose it will just fade into the scenery eventually.  I certainly have not experienced an ounce of fear or trepidation since I have been in Saudi Arabia.  I think it's just a precaution because one never knows who might take exception to our presence.

Once on the KAUST camput, there are visible guards here and there but no visible weapons.  It looks pretty much like any other campus except everyone has an ID badge.  It reminds me of a corporate campus in many respects.  There are just more "throbes" and "abayas" than you typically see at Michigan State or UM.  :-)  Below is a stock image; this is not KAUST.   The men wear throbes and the women wear abayas.   This dress is very common everywhere I've been.


At work there is much to do.  The computing clusters on which I work were ordered by Saudi Aramco (who built KAUST) before there was a "Research Computing" department (which is where I work).  Now there is a single manager and 3 staff members out of 18 projected.  What's installed is not what any of us would have purchased and much of it does not work according to the requirements that had been given to Saudi Aramco.  As a result, not much works at all.  This is resulting in long days which are made even longer by the roughly 3 hours per day I spend on a bus.

Speaking of the bus, moving to the KAUST campus is a dream for many.  Some have been in hotels in Jeddah for up to 6 months.  Last week a note was sent to a number of people currently in hotels telling them to get ready to move!  They have not heard a single thing since then.  Apparently these "false starts" are not uncommon albeit very frustrating for the long term commuters.  As a result, I am planning for a long stay at the "Habitat" hotel.  On the bright side, I've been supplied with a new KAUST-supplied MacBook Pro and, until a new shipment of iPhones arrive, a loaner Nokia mobile phone.  My desk phone has been installed but I can't call off campus yet.  There's a new form that the administrative assistant didn't know about that must be filled out to allow such calls.  This is a fully modern and high-tech University but it is manned by people who are still married to the paper age.  Thus they go through reams and reams of paper creating forms for every requirement.  To exacerbate the problem, they don't use check boxes to indicate options.  Each option seems to have its own form.  This is a small issue in the light of all that has been accomplished here, though.

Friday, February 5, 2010

The Little Things

I'm beginning to see lots of evidence that Toto and I aren't in Kansas anymore.  When shopping one has to be cognizant of prayer times.  That is so because, when a prayer time arrives, everything stops.  If you happen to be in a store they may just turn off the cash registers or, in small stores, have everyone leave and they lock up.  Then 20 or 30 minutes later, everything starts up again.  It can be a bit disconserting for a novice.  Here's an example of prayer times as published daily in the Arab News.


The schedule of activity here seems to be focused after the final prayer with stores opening at 5pm and closing at midnight.  Some of the heaviest traffic occurs late in the evening as everyone goes to do their shopping. 

It's also surprising how many Arabic signs have English translations underneath them and how many local folks seem to have a basic knowledge of English.  Not everyone, of course, but many.  I'm also struck by the presence of many international icons such as McDonald's, Pizza Hut, and others.  I found a local shop in walking distance from my hotel with the following necessity:

KAUST DAY One

My first day at KAUST was a bit of a blur.  I went to HR and got some paperwork started and was taken to get my ID badge.  That only took 1/2 hour or so.  From there I went to my work location and got reacquainted with my boss whom I worked with when he was at GM and I at IBM.  I was given a desk by his administrative assistant, a small, young Muslim woman wearing a pretty standard burqa and head covering.  She put in a request for my laptop computer, desk phone, and mobile phone.  By the end of the day I had changed desks (it was easier to go to the location of the  new 20" display for my laptop and the desk phone than have them come to me :-) )

I met what co-workers were available.   There are now 4 members on site of 18 projected to be in the department.  Three more are expected to arrive yet this month (February).   Including a services guy from Saudi Business Machines (the local IBM entity), we are a Finn, a Frenchman, an Indian, an American, and a Pole.  It's a great mix of people and cultures.

I went back to HR in late morning to begin the process of getting my iquama which is the Saudi equivalent of a US green card.  It will allow me to get a driver license, open a bank account, and assure any authorities that I am legally in the country.  Unfortunately, though I had been forewarned that I would need passport photos, the ones I brought were too large.  That process will have to continue on Saturday because Thursday and Friday are the weekend.  I did get a cursory health check and some blood drawn in the process, however.  Mobile phones were back-ordered so I received a new SIM for my existing Verizon global phone.  It has not been activated yet so I don't know when it will begin to work.

In speaking to other expats on the bus back to Jeddah, the pace of my processing turns out to be much quicker than most experience.  I was told of having to go back to security for badges multiple times; of hour-long waits; of no desks being available; of office assignments being already occupied.  They are still working out the kinks at KAUST. 

The ride back to Jeddah was about 30 minutes longer than the morning one because of traffic.  Now there is  a life-threatening proposition.  The roads strike me as barely controlled chaos.  Cars race by with inches to spare, cutting in and out.  The lane markers seem be merely suggestions and cars will form 4 lanes where the markings indicate there should be 2.  Defensive driving is critical because it's common for people to drive back in the wrong direction on a divided street, for example, if they missed their turn-off.  Families will drive along with a small 4 or 5-year old in Daddy's lap pretending to steer.  Seatbelts are obviously not a popular accessory.  It reminds me of life in the US when I was a kid climbing over seats and sticking my head out the window while traveling. 

Here are a couple of views from my hotel in Jeddah.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

So It Begins.....

On February 1, 2010 I began my journey to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and KAUST.  Leaving  my family in Michigan was one of the hardest things I have ever done.  I will also chronicle here, my rookie international traveler mistakes.  Going to the airport, I knew my bags were overweight.  What I did not realize was just how expensive overweight bags are to fly.  I wanted to check 3 bags which is one more than is allowed.  Two of the three were overweight.  That added up to 2 @ $150 and 1 @ $250 for a total of $550……..for my luggage!  Fortunately my wife, Cindi, spoke up and said “could he upgrade to business class and get the bags for free?”.  Brilliant!  So for $600 my bags flew free and I got business class to Germany.  It’s economy from Germany to KSA but the bags go all the way on the first ticket.  You might wonder why I would  spend that money when you could just leave stuff behind?  Because I have home in those bags and it was going with me.
The Lufthansa flight to Frankfurt was great….multi-adjustable power seats that lay almost flat; personal video; delicious food….I just wish I could have slept.  Landing in Frankfurt brought another surprise.  They don’t have those nice heated jetways we are so used to in the States.  You park on the tarmac and bus to the terminal.  It’s winter in Germany now, too, so it was a cold ride.  Security at the airport doesn’t seem to care if you are actually boarding a plane.  They don’t check your boarding pass/id at the security line.  They just screen your bags and you. I found out later when they cleared everyone out of the waiting area and made us queue up to get back in that they do check id and boarding passes.  Just at a different time than I am used to.
I also find it a bit intimidating being the foreign person in someone else’s country.  Lot’s of languages are being spoken and English is far from the most common.  It’s a good thing to get out of the cocoon, though.  I’ve always “known” the world was bigger than the USA but never really “knew” it.
 
The flight to Jeddah was uneventful.  The seats were smaller and less luxurious than Business Class but I had a row to myself so I was comfortable enough.  The food in economy cannot be compared to that in business class and there were no free drinks.  Just a way to prepare myself for alcohol-free Saudi Arabia.  When we arrived in Jeddah at King Abdulaziz International Airport, it took about 15 minutes to taxi to our parking spot (again on the tarmac).  Another 10 minute bus ride got us to the terminal.  To my relief, the KAUST desk was clearly visible when I entered the terminal.  

I was greeted by a very cordial young man in Arabic dress whose English was flawless.  Turns out he was born in Chicago, moved to Saudi Arabia when he was 4, and spent the next 17 years living on an English-speaking compound.  His Arabic was just fine, too.  He escorted me and two other KAUST folks to the head of the customs line where I was fingerprinted and photographed.  Then we got our luggage and it was put through an xray machine.  The staff at the machine barely glanced at the screen and we were out of the airport in about 15 minutes.  KAUST definitely gets special treatment!  I spoke to a fellow who arrived when noone was at the KAUST desk and it took him 1 1/2 hours to get through the airport.  After a brief ride to my hotel, the "Habitat", I unpacked just enough to get to bed and sleep.  

At 5:30AM (9:30pm the night before in Detroit), I was back up getting ready for my first day at KAUST.  The breakfast room  was full of expats and consisted of about a 40 foot long spread of everything from scrambled eggs and pancakes to mozarella tomatoes and numerous unidentifiable Saudi dishes.  There was fruit, coffee, and juice so I was happy.

The bus (or motor coach) was about 1/2 full so everyone had their own seats.  We departed from the hotel about 6:35AM and arrived at KAUST 1 hr and 15 minutes later.  The scenery on Medina Highway to KAUST was certainly different.  There was plenty of traffic....trucks and cars alike.  The cars covered the gamut of makes including Toyota, GM, Ford, Mercedes, BMW, Chery Motors, Dihatsu.....they had it all.  The terrain was very flat and, surprise, surprise, "tan".  Not much green stuff in sight except for the occasional stand of trees.  The memorable features of the landscape included incomplete construction, (seemingly abandoned), low concrete walls by the hundreds whose purpose was a mystery, tons of  abandoned tires laying morosely by the road in ones and in small groups along with litter, litter, and more litter.  KAUST appeared at the end of this ride like an oasis.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Getting Ready

It's amazing how much stuff you put off knowing you can get to it "next week".  We've gotten all kinds of things done more quickly than usual in preparation for my departure.  That's been finalized, by the way.  I'll be leaving Detroit on Monday, February 1, taking an 8 hour flight to Frankfurt, Germany, a 3 1/2 hour layover, and then a 5 1/2 hour flight to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.  I'll leave at about 7pm Detroit time on Monday and arrive in Jeddah at 8pm on Tuesday.  The 8 hour time difference will be a challenge.

We've sold one of our three vehicles so my 17 year old daughter and I will be fighting for wheels for the next week and a half.  I'm trying to sort out what to take....not much I can tell you.  I have an air freight shipment being packed up on Friday, 1/22 so I have to get everything I want to ship and everything I want to take with me sorted.....what's going in a suitcase and what's going by air freight.  The air freight should only take a few weeks but who knows.    I will likely be staying in a hotel in Jeddah for a few weeks until on campus housing gets sorted out.  Then I will be moving to the campus compound.  It remains to be seen what I will be able to rent; an apartment? 1 bedroom townhouse? 2 bedroom townhouse?  house?......I just don't know at this point.  I'm taking my bicycle with me for transportation.  I am hoping that between the bus service on campus and the bike I won't need to purchase a vehicle while in Saudi Arabia.

Below is a Google Maps view of KAUST.  If you search for "Thuwal, Saudia Arabia" in Google Maps,  you will see this.  (oddly it won't tell me how to drive to KAUST from Michigan )  The highlighted area below is roughly the campus itself.  I've provided a few pointers for reference.  Jeddah, where I will be staying initially, is about 50 miles south of Thuwal.