Blue Abaya is one of the InterNations recommended expat blogs and I did a short interview with them some while ago which you can read on the site as well.
- Please
tell us a little bit about yourself. Who you are, where you come from, when you
moved to Saudi Arabia, etc.
I'm
a Finnish medical professional who moved to Saudi-Arabia four years ago for a
position in a large government hospital. Originally the plan was to come for
one year and then go back home, but you never know where life will lead you!
- When
and why did you decide to start blogging about your experiences?
I
actually started a blog about Saudi when I moved but I only wrote a few times
and then deleted it because I simply did not have the time. I started again
after my life had settled a bit from the hectic first two years. After reading
so many negative and biased views from other blogs, I wanted to write about
Saudi in a more light hearted but also realistic perspective and to help expats
find activities around the Kingdom. Having a Saudi husband gives me a special
insight into both the local and the expat life of the Kingdom.
- Do
you have any favorite blog entries of yours?
I like some posts about Saudis as
patients most and then the cultural comparisons of the Finns and the Saudis J
- Tell
us about the ways your new life in Riyadh differs from that back home. Did you
have trouble getting used to the new circumstances? Did you experience culture
shock?
Oh
it differs a lot of course! There are some things that are better now, some
worse like the obvious no driving for women. I find the relaxed pace of life
here is more suitable for my nature and I love the weather (except sandstorms!).
Everyone
experiences culture shock; people just go through it differently. I think I had
an easier time than many because I had previously lived and worked abroad and
was used to scenery changes since childhood.
My culture shock presented itself as an unexplained anxiety and
restlessness which I treated by keeping myself active and making many friends
as well as getting to know and understand the local culture better.
- Do
you think you were fully prepared for what awaited you in Saudi Arabia? If you
could, would you change some decisions/preparations you made?
I
think I was fairly well prepared, but could have read up more on the local
customs and culture and especially religion before coming! I was in the
impression that the hospital's three week orientation program would prepare us
but I was very wrong! Knowing just the basics of Islam I think should be
included in the orientation especially the medical professionals would benefit
from it greatly and it would prevent many misunderstandings from occurring.
- Every
expat knows that expat life comes with some hilarious anecdotes and funny
experiences. Care to share one with us?
Oh
there are so many stories! I think some of the funniest happened with patients
and lack of understandings of each other's cultures. Bedouin patients would be
among the funniest because their style of life is just so different from ours.
I have many such experiences on the blog J
- Which
three tips would you like to give future expats before they embark on their new
life in Saudi Arabia?
-Keep
your mind open, try to take things with a dash of humor and surround yourself
with positive people.
-Try
and find out as much as you can about local customs and culture before you come
and once you're here, ask the locals and get to know them. Don't get stuck in
the closed (minded) expats circles only.
-
Keep in mind that although this is a Muslim country not everything you see
around you is from Islam. Don't judge the book by its covers or the religion by
some of its followers. Always try to find out for yourself and don't listen to or
believe in the rumor mills.
- How
is the expat community in Riyadh? Did you have a hard time finding like-minded
people or fellow expats?
The
expat community is very lively and there are many different nationalities.
Unfortunately some nationalities prefer to only socialize with their "own
kind" and sometimes very tight knit groups form. Saudi has the tendency to
make people very patriotic and unfortunately some become extremely negative of
the host country.
Some
western expats that live in closed compounds hardly ever interact with other
nationalities let alone locals which is a shame.
There
are of course many like-minded expats out there who have no problems making
friends across borders and religions which makes Saudi-Arabia such an amazing
place to make new friends. I have made true friends from around the world here
and am truly grateful for that. It was one of the reasons I came here!
- How
would you summarize your expat life in Saudi Arabia in a single, catchy
sentence?
Life
in the Magic Kingdom is full of surprising adventures and undiscovered beauty
for those who seek them!
2 comments:
Another great post. Thank you Laylah.
Being a Saudi living in the US, I had a similar experience to some of the expats in the beginning. I used to think all Americans are mean to Arabs and that they are waiting for me to slip to put me in jail for life. I even thought that a person cannot walk here without a gun ( American T.V. sucks) and that all children are rude to their parents.
This all changed once I met an American family and we became friends and I got to see real American people.
Unless we encourage ourselves and those around us to break the brier and learn about cultures and meet people, we will continue living in isolation and it will be our loss.
Hi Laylah,
Not sure whether this is normal, but your blog prompts for user id and password from saudilife.net. Will your blog be password protected soon?
Sireh
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