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.