Get to Know me - What is life in Saudi like for an Expat? (Part 2)

For some reason when you are living in Saudi and you mention you are British, the Saudi will respect you more and treat you better, had they not known. Another perk of being British is our English language, we hadn't yet learnt the local Arabic dialect but many Arabs know a bit of English to understand you. And as the years have gone by more Arabs are becoming better English speakers and it is a lot easier to communicate in just English whilst living in the Kingdom without ever having to have a conversation in Arabic.

In the Holy City, Makkah

Since Saudi is home to one of the most holiest places on Earth, Makkah and Medina, so one of the blessings to be living here is that we are able to go on a weekend trip to make umrah or visit the Prophet's (salallahu alayhi was salam) mosque. We travel by plane but mostly car, as we enjoy the long 8 hour road trip.

Private Beach in Dammam

You would think that Saudi is just sand and dust, but this country has a lot to offer in terms of touristy destinations. Visit deserts, beaches, beautiful rock formations and caves, go snorkeling and diving, visit museums or conventions they have all year round, there are many more things to do, here is a blog https://exploreriyadh.wordpress.com/ run by a gem in our community, a sister I had the pleasure of meeting, you will find in it things to do in Riyadh. And another blog
http://littleexplorerblog.blogspot.com/ run by a good brother my husband has had the pleasure meeting whilst he worked in King Saud University.

Beautiful creeks in Riaydh

Wooden play area's in Riyadh

At the horse races (no betting of course), an equestrian in Riyadh

Wadi Hanifa in Riyadh

At the beach in Jubail

A treat for the eyes in the outskirts of Riyadh

A strange thing about the lifestyle in Saudi, is that much of the leisurely activities happen during the night. This needed some getting used to, because in England many of the kids would be in their homes before nightfall and most retail shops would be closed by 5pm, but in Saudi this is the time to take your kids out when the sun is at its lowest and the heat of the day has subsided. It would still be sweltering hot during April til September in the evenings but it would be bearable. We would sometimes leave the parks late into the night at 11pm and the park would still be full of families picnicking, having fun, enjoying their food, teas and coffee's, and the atmosphere in the night would be family friendly, safe, comfortable, and very lively.

Living as a woman in Saudi isn't as bad as people make out, I personally feel as though, there are many industries that cater for women and children, to make if more comfortable, enjoyable and appealing to them.

Although I am in Saudi I rarely meet Saudi's to socialize with, the expat community is abundant here, you will find many British, Canadian, American, and Australians to befriend and meet. Which is another reason why I haven't spoken in Arabic whilst living here. I'm nit sure whether that's a good thing or not.

Now in 2018, 7 years on, a lot has changed especially so in the past two years, but I am still grateful to be here and I hope to remain with my family in Saudi upon goodness for as long as Allah wills.