You need to understand that time flows differently in the middle east. It's like you have entered a different time space continuum. Your internal clock and timing have to make the adjustments.
I thought I would expand on this a bit because I wasn't posting about the different pace of life here. I've been fortunate to have done a lot of international travel so dealing with different time/cultural flows isn't a big deal. I think I've adjusted quickly to the schedule here on camp.
But consider these two very important facts:
- Saudi Arabia is the only Muslim country in which it is mandated by law that shops must close during all five prayer times.
- Saudi Arabia is the only Muslim country in which is is forbidden by law that women can drive.
I finally arranged to have cable installed in my place. I was setting up my new flat screen TV this morning prior to the arrival of the cable installer--only to discover that the electronics store gave me the 220V model, not the dual-voltage model. Aramco houses are wired for 110V.
Because today is Thursday, the weekend, I might, just might, be able to get a taxi into Khobar to exchange the TV. But I would not be able to ask the taxi to wait because it is a peak business time for them so my return trip might take place hours from when I arrived, even though my only errand was to exchange the TV. I would be stuck at the electronics store, which is out on the edge of town, not near the city center, with a large flat screen TV and no transport.
If I want to reserve a taxi, I need to give them at least 24 hours notice. But even if I reserved a taxi for tomorrow, they still would not be able to wait. Friday is just as busy as Thursday. So the same problem exists for that return trip.
Therefore, I postponed my cable installation until Sunday. I will call tomorrow and reserve a taxi for Saturday night after work, between prayers of course, to take the TV in and exchange it.
My previous post was about the unbelievable PAIN IN THE ASS that this kind of thing represents.
This coming US weekend, every time you get in your car to run a quick errand, to buy an item of food or clothing, to visit a friend, to go to a dog show, I want you to think about what you would do if you could not drive yourself, if you could not get reliable round trip transportation, if you had to plan every one of those trips 1 or 2 days in advance. That kind of logistical fuckwittery has nothing to do with cultural time flow. It has everything to do with Saudi Muslim fundamentalism and its attendant fuckwittery.
1 comment:
Well, but that's the way they live and have done it for hundreds of years.
And yes, I do get the pain of planning the trips. We did that for 5 years. No, I didn't drive and no, my mother did not drive, ever. Had to rely on friends or my dad to take us anywhere, or yes, we did call for cabs. Trips were planned once a week. For daily bread we walked to a nearby store. As a teenager I could never walk alone on the streets, always had to plan to go out with someone, preferably a male entourage for protection against harassment. Yes, even in such developped middle eastern country as Syria. Irak was no different than Saudi Arabia. My mother and I were pretty much prisoners in the house until my dad came back from work. How my mother survived 5 years of that, I still wonder.
I am sorry to say but as much as I feel your pain since you have grown up used to all the fancy amenities that the western world dishes out on a silver plate, I have not and have never taken things like owning my own car and house for granted. To me it still is the greatest luxury that many so accustomed just don't get it. It's a privilege, not a god damn right.
But, that's the way I grew up, where cable TV, radio and phones,chocolate and cigarettes etc. were a true luxury and taxed accordingly.
So even though you are trying to surround yourself by what you consider daily necessities, they are in fact not, in that part of the world and really have no priority as such.
The most unfortunate circumstance however is that you are a woman.
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