We expats have been marveling at the great weather we've had for the last four days: afternoon highs of 105F, humidity around 30%, light breeze.
Starting in late July, around the time I returned from repat, afternoon temperatures shot up to 115F (and higher) and the summer humidity (80-95%) dropped over us like a heavy, hot, wet blanket. I stopped walking the dogs because they simply weren't able to cool themselves; the panting system doesn't work so well in those conditions. This is typical summer weather for the Eastern Province, and it can last for 6 or 8 weeks during August and September.
But to our surprise, we woke up this past Saturday morning to what is ironically referred to here as a cold snap. Yes, we are celebrating daily high temperatures of only 105F. Imagine, when I take the dogs out for their first pee at 4am, it is actually below 90F! (It was about 85F this morning.) But it's all relative, right?
Those of us who are here at work during Ramadan are here for a reason: we can get an astonishing amount of work done. Saudis only work half days. They go home at noon and sleep until sunset when they begin the Ramadan overindulgence of food and drink, feasts that last for hours. This half-day rule of course doesn't apply to the army of small brown guys, nearly all of them Muslim, who pick up the trash, take care of the landscaping, clean the buildings, and so on. I deliberately saved up four big projects to work on during this month. With all the Saudis gone and many expats transiting in and out on leave, we can hunker down in our offices and work all day with no interruptions. No meetings. Can't go anywhere for lunch--all the cafeterias and food kiosks and coffee bars are closed for the month (we can eat in our offices or the sin room but not anywhere in public). Productivity shoots through the roof with 60% of the work force gone. Just another fascinating side to life in the Magic Kingdom.
But despite our good intentions to get stuff done at work, this wonderful weather has made us expats feel a bit twitchy. I hear mutterings of plans to play hooky, to spend the morning at home doing some yard work. We're all hoping the weather holds until this weekend.
Starting in late July, around the time I returned from repat, afternoon temperatures shot up to 115F (and higher) and the summer humidity (80-95%) dropped over us like a heavy, hot, wet blanket. I stopped walking the dogs because they simply weren't able to cool themselves; the panting system doesn't work so well in those conditions. This is typical summer weather for the Eastern Province, and it can last for 6 or 8 weeks during August and September.
But to our surprise, we woke up this past Saturday morning to what is ironically referred to here as a cold snap. Yes, we are celebrating daily high temperatures of only 105F. Imagine, when I take the dogs out for their first pee at 4am, it is actually below 90F! (It was about 85F this morning.) But it's all relative, right?
Those of us who are here at work during Ramadan are here for a reason: we can get an astonishing amount of work done. Saudis only work half days. They go home at noon and sleep until sunset when they begin the Ramadan overindulgence of food and drink, feasts that last for hours. This half-day rule of course doesn't apply to the army of small brown guys, nearly all of them Muslim, who pick up the trash, take care of the landscaping, clean the buildings, and so on. I deliberately saved up four big projects to work on during this month. With all the Saudis gone and many expats transiting in and out on leave, we can hunker down in our offices and work all day with no interruptions. No meetings. Can't go anywhere for lunch--all the cafeterias and food kiosks and coffee bars are closed for the month (we can eat in our offices or the sin room but not anywhere in public). Productivity shoots through the roof with 60% of the work force gone. Just another fascinating side to life in the Magic Kingdom.
But despite our good intentions to get stuff done at work, this wonderful weather has made us expats feel a bit twitchy. I hear mutterings of plans to play hooky, to spend the morning at home doing some yard work. We're all hoping the weather holds until this weekend.
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