I haven't said too much about what it's like to live here, frankly, it's probably not a good idea to say anything at all. At least that is the feeling |I get. Many of the strangest incidents have happened....more on that later, much later.
On the other hand, many aspects of daily living are indistinquishable from being at home. For example, going to a mall is unique only in that all the women are covered in black and the stores will likely close for prayer quite abruptly in the middle of your shopping. Oh, and making sure you are walking into the family section of a restaurant, and not the men's section. Other than that, same as home, except luxury is more evident. For example, today at the Red Sea mall, there was a huge (many metres wide) tv screen playing "King Fu Panda" in the food court, and a little further on was a corridor with chandeliers that were about 3 metres wide, just two little unexpected visual treats. Some of the homes really resemble castles...and then of course there is a palace for the King, just his Jeddah palace, not his main one. But it takes up many city blocks right on the Red Sea. When a member of the royal family is on the move, traffic can sit at a standstill for up to half an hour. Again, that nervousness about what is appropriate to say or not to say....you see that's the thing about living here, it's the awareness that you are not in a free country that is stifling. It's not the living or working conditions, or the gender segregation (all permeating and annoying though it is) or the abysmal abaya, it's the lack of diversity, the conformity, the control of women by men that is simply not pleasant to be immersed in and surrounded by.
So, in summary, I don't think I had much culture shock, more culture disappointment, and frustration at how inaccessable the culture is. We cannot talk to men, by law. The Saudi women I have met and work with on the other hand are wonderful and warm. All of the teaching assistants are from the Phillipines, many with degrees and even Masters, but they can only be teaching assistants. (!?) There is a definate language barrier, but not all the time, as some English is spoken in most stores. But it's a feeling of exclusion, a fact of exclusion, in too many situations to count, that is wearing. Thank goodness for the relative haven of the compound. 32 more weeks....
