Many people who decided to live in another culture and who have done research on the internet before moving to their new home, may have found that some things ended up being different than expected upon arrival. There are quite some things that appear strange about Saudi Arabia as well. A couple of months ago, I read that smart phones and (Barbie) dolls are banned in the kingdom. Once I found myself…
living in Saudi Arabia
Coffee Mornings, Stroller Tanks and Other Stories
What would your first thought be if you got out of the house, walked up to the street of your compound and saw dozens and I mean dozens of buses standing there neatly along the sidewalk? Mass evacuation? That’s probably what you think but no, that just means that a bunch of women from all over the city have assembled on your compound today because it’s coffee morning time. A coffee morning…
On Prom Dresses and Strange Opening Hours
My grandfather, whom I unfortunately never got to meet personally, always said that you can have several wedding dresses, as you can get married several times, but you will only have one single prom in your life. With that in mind, and because I really needed a reason to leave the house, I found myself at one of Riyadh’s shopping malls, which I usually visit like museums because pretty much everything sold…
Ahlan Wa Sahlan to Riyadh!
It was a chilly day in September and my alarm clock was ringing at quarter to nine. My spacious room in the basement was nearly empty. The one suitcase packed, my almost ancient backpack looking like it would explode from all the things in it and my long, black skirt, that my grandmother sewed for me just for this occasion in one day before I left Belarus, were all lined up along…
Everybody Loves German Tourists
The time has finally come where I got myself to sit down and write about the one road trip I was on in Riyadh, which is now several months back. It was one of those days when we had guests from abroad and as we all know, guests want to be entertained and are all excited about seeing something of the place where they just landed. Even though I have lived in…
The Russian Doll that Lost its Way in Saudi Arabia
So it looks like the famous “matryoshka dolls”, which are originally from Russia, are now all over the souks in Saudi Arabia. And that in its new, local, Saudi appearance. Did I just find a tiny, little piece of home in this country? …
What I Miss About the Balkans: Kosova vs. Saudi Arabia
I have now been living in Saudi Arabia for about four months now and just recently, I unconsciously reminded myself of my time in South East Europe. I originally thought of writing a post on Kosova only for my other blog but then, why not have some parallels drawn to Saudi Arabia? I mean, since I am already there, right? So here a list of things (again) that I started to miss…
You Know You Live in Saudi When…
Just as I was on the plane from Istanbul to Riyadh at the beginning of this week, I started thinking about the things that make this place so…special. Now, I know that every place in the world is special in some way or form. However, I feel like sometimes there are some things here that are just very unique in a sense of getting to know a new culture which is the…
A Day in the Life of a Saudi Arabia Expat
A couple of months ago, I wrote a post on my peace. joy. pancake blog about what a day in my life in Kosova looked like. So, one day I thought to myself: Why not do the same thing for Saudi Arabia, too? As you can tell by the title of this post, I thought that was a great idea, so here you guys go! While other people around the world are still sleeping…
Keep Calm and Hope On. It’s Just the Working Ethics
If you chose to come to Saudi Arabia because of a tempting job offer, you will most likely hear about many awesome things concerning this place from your future colleagues, or former employees that have worked there. You will hear about luxurious compounds to live on, gasoline that is cheaper than water, marvelous travel destinations and, of course, a mouth watering salary. What nobody will probably tell you however is how difficult…