Hi Saudi Arabia!

I returned to Bangalore last month after successfully completing one of the exciting assignments in my career. It is really nice to conclude some thing with a great note.

This was my first ever visit to Middle East as well as Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is one of the prominent countries in Middle East and is also known as Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The population is around 3+ crores. The form of government is Monarchy and not democracy like in India. A monarchy is a form of government in which an individual rules as head of state, often for life or until abdication. The person who heads a monarchy is called a monarch. Currently 44 nations in the world have monarchs as heads of state, 16 of which are Commonwealth realms that recognize Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom as head of state.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is being ruled by the members of a Royal family. The brothers will take oath as King in the respective order. Later the sons of eldest brother will become King and then sons of next brother and so on. There is no restrictions on how long will a particular king rules. It is as long as he lives. So every one has to wait till their turn comes. Currently King Abdullah is ruling the country. Before that King Fahad, elder brother of current king Abdullah ruled the country for about 23 years till 2005.

I was staying in a city by name Al-Khobar on the east coast of KSA. Riyadh is the capital city of SA. Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Yembu, Al-khobar, Mecca, Madina are some of the main cities in Saudi. My Place was about 450 Kms from Riyadh (Capital City) and about 1300 Kms from Mecca and Madina. Mecca and Madina are two greatest religion places for Muslim Community in the world. It is presumed or understood that the King is the savior of these two religious places and he needs to implement/follow all the rules of Muslim community in the kingdom and maintain of sanity of the religious places.

When it comes to life style here, it is little restricted compared to neighboring countries like Dubai and Bahrain. The restriction is in the form of policies and a very hot weather.

Couple of observations I made -
1. All the shops and businesses close during prayer time for about 15-20 minutes for five times a day.
There are facilities to do your prayer in all public places for ex: in places like Airport, hotel, offices etc.,
2. Alcohol/Drug are strictly banned here. If you are found to possess drugs, the punishment is death and judgment will be made within a week.
3. All the women irrespective of their community, country or religion must wear burkhas when they step out of the house and women must be accompanied by either their husband or any relative. They should also possess the proof of identity. They cannot go out alone.
4. Women cannot drive any type of vehicles in SA. They cannot work in any public sectors except in jobs like teachers, nurses.
5. Cinema is banned in public, but satellite channels are available and you get some Indian Channels like NDTV Arabia, Zee TV Arabia, Sony Max etc that are aired from Dubai. These channels are approved/censored versions of their Indian counterparts, so the contents sometimes will be little late and obsolete.
6. Life is also restricted by the weather and it makes people sit inside the house or go out only in air-conditioned car. The temperatures are very high here usually above 40 degrees. The peak temperatures at 12noon will be around will go up to 46 to 50 degrees centigrade during noon. And believe me, these construction workers from different countries work in open air at such hot temperatures! All for the love of their loved ones back home in India. It rains once or twice in a year.
7. Life is very restricted, but NOT dangerous. I had heard many stories about this country. But it is that not bad. Life here is just like in India. Only weather is very hot. If you live within your limits without trying any adventures and extra curricular activities, this country is very peaceful.
8. The neighboring countries Dubai and Bahrain are quite different than KSA and encourage a very free life style. Bahrain is just 2 Hrs drive from Saudi Arabia. You have a world-class highway connecting Bahrain and KSA. People quite often drive to this country for entertainment. Tourism is the major industry in Bahrain.
9. There are an estimated 55-lakh immigrants here in KSA, majority of them from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Philippines. Many of the Indians are living here for more than 10-15 years. I met couple of Kannadigas also who have settled here for long time.
10. But the majority of Indian population is from KERALA. It looks like a mini Kerala. Every other guy here is a Keralite!
11. For sight seeing, you can see Sand Racing in the evenings. People drive their car up the hill at high speed over a sand mountain and return at same speed. There will be so many of them trying their skills! In between you will find young kids driving their little bikes run on petrol engines and racing ahead.
12. About beaches, there are two types of beaches family beaches and hidden beaches. Family beaches are strictly for families and hidden beaches are for people from foreign countries like USA, UK..etc.,
13. The local currency is SAUDI RIYALS(SR) and fraction of it is called HALLAL. 100 Hallals are equal to 1 Saudi Riyal.
1 SR = 11.5 INR and 1 USD = 3.75 SR.
14. General food is non-veg. I can say 90% of the hotels provide only non-veg food. But there are many good Indian hotels, which provide both veg and non-veg food.
15. Dates is one of the major products grown here in this country. There are an estimated 500 different types of dates grown here. Just like the bakery shops in Bangalore, you will get too see so many sweet shops which sell variety of sweets, chocolates made of dates.
16. Saudi Arabia’s Economy is very robust for next so many years and they have excess reserve funds in their kitty to plan and implement their vision for the future. Currently the government is building a huge city called King Abdulla city near Jeddah to reduce the population density in Jeddah and provide more and more job opportunities for all. I heard there is requirement for an estimated 12 lakh people over next five years.
17. Usually tourists from outside mainly purchase Gold and Diamond here. This is not for the cheaper price, but for the quality of Gold. You will find authentic gold ornaments made of 24, 22, 20 and 18 carrots. They will even provide you with certificate on authenticity.
18. KSA has got world-class infrastructure as far as Malls and Highways. They are just replica of American highways and malls. You would really love to drive fast cars on these highways. Allowed speed limit is 120Kms per hour, but people drive at speeds of around 180Kms ! The drivers even overtake through shoulders, talk on mobiles, drink water and even take hands off the steering at these speeds! I was just thinking to what amount my company has insured on my life when we were being driven at such speeds!
19. And of course petrol is much much cheaper than water here! 1 Ltr petrol costs you 40 Hallals i.e about Rs.4.50! People have costly cars here, which consume 1 Ltr just if you start the engine! (Our kannada cine star Darshan’s Hummer consumes 1 liter of petrol for every kilometer!)
1 Ltr of water costs you any where between 2 to 5 Saudi Riyals. (Rs.22 to 55)
20. We heard there is a religious police, which strictly maintains all the religious rules. But we never faced any such situation or saw this olice force.
21. Cost of living depends on what kind of accommodation you choose. A typical double bed room would cost you around 1000 to 2000 to 3000 Saudi Riyals based on the locality. There is no advance concept here. You will have to deposit six months rent in advance. Food in Kerala hotels is quite reasonably priced. But Indian hotels in down towns charge heavily on food.
22. All the major Indian Magazines and newspapers are available in Kerala Hotels. I even bought some Kannada Magazines there.
23. There will be dust storms every now and then. The dust storm is not just hard sand, but fine particles of sand. Dust storm looks like a cloud and covers the city for about a day when it comes. It is dangerous to breath such contaminated air.

All in all, I enjoyed my stay in KSA and got a different perspective on the life here than what I had earlier. It was memorable. More later!