Myth Two: Saudi Houses, Palaces or Tents?

Hi everyone!

So excited for the number of viewers who checked out the first Saudi myth, Myth One: Saudi, the Land Of The Riches. This encouraged me to share another myth sooner than planned!

This second myth is a little bit of a weird one because it touches on two extremes. It is about Saudi housing. Some people come to me and ask "So, do you have an amazing palace back home?" or worse "Aren't you glad to be in the west and live in normal house instead of a tent?" My answer to both is a no.  

News flash, no one in Saudi lives in a tent. In fact, even my great grandparents  never lived in tents because they were born by the seaside and worked as fishermen. They had their little roofless, clay, open houses. These days, the only time that people actually use tents is when they are doing a reenactment, camping trips and decor, never for living.

My fictional tent, source. 

In regards to those fictional palaces and fictional free housing schemes, they don't exist. To be honest, I have never even seen a palace in Saudi. I am sure the king and the royal family live in them, but they are so off limit and they aren't even mentioned in the press unlike Buckingham Palace that you see in the middle of London. I couldn't even find a real one of google! I guess it's a good thing. The king doesn't want to flaunt his wealth.

My fictional palace, source. 

Let me tell you the reality. Saudis live in houses and flats. They either inherit the land from their parents or get to hustle and bustle until they buy their own and build it. These days the minimum price is £200 per meter. Most people aim to buy a 500 square meter land, which makes the price for a land so payment will be around £100000. This is in the much cheaper areas. Of courses prices go up the nicer the area is. By nicer I mean that it has water pipes and electricity all lined up with close by amenities because not every area has those things. That's only the land. Add another £200000 for contractors, designers, building materials, and the furniture. It really costs a fortune these days. A lot of the newlyweds either get a small rented flat of a £5000 a year. For the couples who can't afford it they just live with the husband's family. Keep in mind that the average Saudi income isn't more than £1600 a month. There are some loans, but they are not usually sufficient. I know a lot of shocking numbers. 

One of my friends thought each Saudi gets a free house. Sadly, it's not the case. Believe it or not. There are people in the country who can't even get houses and live on the streets. I know this is a hard fact to swallow. Even some Saudis seem to be oblivious to that fact. A quick look at the local newspaper will prove this tragedy. According to Alwatan local newspaper in the issue dated 24th of November 2010, there are 48 families in the East part of Saudi (where the oil wells and companies are located) living in miserable kinds of houses made of light metal that leaks during winter and gets extremely hot during summer.

Pretty Saudi house

Ok, back to a happier note on the more average side of Saudi housing. Since I am a designer, I will tell you about the houses' designs. Most houses are angular with flat roofs. Houses in Saudi have mixed designs because people build their own places. It sounds like a dream at first, but the long period those houses require to be built and all the crazy paperwork makes it difficult. Also, houses have tough regulations. Even the type of building material is set in Saudi. You can't even be inventive with your own house or even be sustainable, but that's a discussion for another time. Generally, Saudi houses are very spacious, but some of the space is wrongly used. I just sit at my grandparents house *God bless them* and I just think of how I could re-plan the whole house. Every time, I go back to Saudi, I like to go around the city to checkout what's getting built. It's exciting at times.

Hope you know the reality now. Saudi housing is just like any other country where the people have limited options.

Look out for the third myth by next week.

Feel free to comment and share your thoughts :)

More posts from Saudi:

Myth One: Saudi, the Land Of The Riches

Hi everyone!  

Today I want to target the first myth about Saudi. All the stereotypes and ignorant comments really annoys me. When I meet new people whether they are Muslims, None Muslims, from the East or the West. They all think Saudis are LOADED. Like not only rich, but beyond. I even got questions like "do you even need to work when you are back in Saudi?" or "doesn't your government already provide you with income and housing while you sit at home?" I am always surprised by these questions. I think my eyes used to pop out of my head when I heard them, but I am so used to them by now. 

The funniest thing is when I tell people the reality and that I don't have as much money as they think, they would just think I am lying. Plus, last time I checked it's not polite to question people about their bank accounts. 

Lol no that's not my money or my own gas station, Source. 

It is true the country is rich and produces crazy amounts of oil. We all hear about the extra billions Saudi makes every year, but who said that normal citizens get any of that money? I have no idea who started that rumour. Saudis get ZERO of the oil selling money. Well not directly. Some of it goes on scholarships, public education, over crowded public hospitals and other stuff -God knows what, but I am "sure" it's beneficial. 

Surprisingly, Saudis work for their money. OH YAH THEY DO. They aren’t getting any free money, and the jobs don’t pay that much. In fact, a lot of Saudis are moving from high middle class to lower middle class. Especially, after the stock market crisis. All I know about the matter that stock market was growing really fast, and EVERYONE like seriously 98% of the people I know put their money-their lifetime savings- in the stock market. Few months later, the whole thing collapsed, and people lost their money. These days not the only husband works, but the wife does as well to make ends meet. The land of the riches will soon be the land of the “broke” and the “bankrupt”. 

Confused Saudis,  Source. 

Here's a quick snippet of the Saudi reality: A person graduates high school, try to get into a public university, college or an institute. There are 25 public universities across the whole of Saudi in different areas. People tend to stick to what's close to them. In the Eastern province in Saudi for example. There are only three public universities for girls and guys. Getting to those universities is super competitive and when there is no other option the person applies to a private universities, which is one in the Eastern province or go to other areas. Of course there are more in the capital. 

Forward 4-5 years, this person graduates. Then comes the -looking for a job- struggle. It's funny how random none Saudis think, Saudis have their jobs lined up for them. Of course if this person is lucky to have a family business, they will go work there, but that's rarely the case. When a job is secured, comes the low pay which starts from 4-7 grands Saudi Riyals for a BA/BS, which equals 660-1660 GBP. That's it! Now add living, transports, groceries and other expenses. Note that shopping is about the same prices as in London.  Does this struggle sounds familiar? it's happening world wide and Saudis are not above that.  

I know some people see the rich Saudis who travel and spend ridiculous amounts of money, but those super rich ones are a small percentage. Like every society, there is an upper class that controls most of the money. 

closest social hierarchy pyramid I found, Source.

Bottom line is stop the stereotype and know that rich Saudis are a myth! Accept the fact that Saudis are just like any other nationality with so many money problems. 

Please feel free to share your stereotypes and stories in the comments below. Please be respectful to each other! 

Book Review: Contemporary Kingdom, The Saudi Art Scene Now

Happy Saturday all. A while back, I wrote a post about the current artistic scene in Saudi and how it's blooming and getting more appreciation. You can find the post here. I recently purchased Contemporary Kingdom, and I have been reading it on and off, so I thought it's time to review it today.

This is a very good book that highlights the most known Saudi artists and their iconic pieces. It's written in English. The books starts with a collection of essays that talks about Saudi and the development of the arts and designs there. Followed by a chapter on artists that highlights 26 Saudi artists. Ten of them are Saudi females. Then comes a chapter on galleries, another on art and design initiatives, and a final ones on patrons. These three chapters make this book a great resource for starting artists. It's packed full of useful information and important names.

Snaps from the book

Snaps from the book

Snaps from the book

What I love about this book is that it shows you the creative minds in Saudi and give them the recognition they deserve. It shows a colourful and impressive part of the Saudi culture that isn't shared on the media.

Recommended!

You can buy your copy from the publisher online

15 things to know about Ramadan in Saudi

Happy Ramadan everyone! رمضان كريم و مبارك على الكل

No matter where I go in the world, I like to come back to Saudi for the month of Ramadan to spend it with my family. I tried it twice in Arizona and once in Manchester. Those experiences nearly killed me! It's just not the same. So, I made it a point to always return for it. Maybe I will stay in the UK when it becomes a winter Ramadan! If you are not familiar with Ramadan, please check the post below this one:

Ten Facts About The Month Of Ramadan

Ramadan is special in Saudi for many reasons. I highlighted 15!

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One: The month of Ramadan is a family month and since a lot of Saudis are enrolled in the scholarship program abroad, mostly everyone returns home at the same time. It's like a big reunion month for the country!

Two: Before the month starts within few days, all the supermarkets go CRAZY busy! It's like no one ever bought food before. Some people top up three big carts. It's shocking and very wasteful.

Ramadan Grocery Shopping Source

Three: Not everyone wastes, some people buy huge amounts because they cook and share it with the neighbours! That's one of my favourite traditions about the month. Close by neighbours and extended family, send dishes to each other just before the sunset prayer! 

Four: Saudis -ones who are on vacation- flip night and day. Actually, I like this. It's funny how random non muslims who never ever fasted object to this and think it defeats the purpose and that's just because we have to fast we have to suffer not knowing that even sleep is considered worship in Ramadan! WIN WIN. The good thing is not only individuals do this, the whole country does! including shops and restaurants.

Source

Five. Restaurants are closed during the day because the whole country isn't allowed to eat in public including non muslims. SO! they make up for it by opening from sunset to dawn! I love going out for a late dinner (AKA suhoor or sahari) at 1am!

Six. Shops and markets stay open late till after midnight. They are allowed to be open during the day, but since most people do not wake up/or finish work before 3pm, they don't bother.

Seven. After iftar, people start going out and the streets turns to mania! It's like the new rush hour.

The Street before and after Ramadan! Source

Eight. Work and school times change in Saudi for the month of Ramadan. For school and governmental sector jobs it's from 10am to 3pm with a vacation in the last ten days and a week for Eid. Sadly, private sector don't get all these perks. They get Eid break. Luckily, this year Ramadan is during the summer holidays!

Nine. The poor people who are working during the month (in banks or in hospital) are easily irritated and they make you feel like no one ever fasted before them!

Ten. Most summer programs will take a break during Ramadan.

Eleven. The Iftar table usually consists of soup, salad, one extra appetizer, main dish usually something with rice and of course desert! Obviously, everyone end up eating a bite of each and feeling super full! The rest usually ends up getting eaten through out the night or as the later meal that's before dawn prayer.

Twelve. There are two drinks that you will find on almost all Saudi tables this Ramadan! Vimto and Tang. I don't know how this started, but they have been on the tables since before I was born regardless of how unhealthy they are!

Source

Thirteen. For some odd reason, all TV producers have conspired to turn the Month of Ramadan from a worship month into a big TV month, where all Arabian drama start! People get really hooked on the shows timing their whole days around them.

Fourteen. Thankfully, many mosques and Islamic centres try to lessen the affect of TV and keep trying to hold night programs with informative lectures, prayers and recommended worship! These kind of things really bring back the spirituality of the month!

Fifteen. The Saudi cities are decorated with lights and colourful banners to welcome the month!

Hope this brought a smile to your face and inshallah this month will be wonderful for us all and full of good deeds and reflections

Note: Of course this doesn't apply to everyone, so please don't get offended. The purpose of this blog is to know more about the GCC culture. 
Note: These things are shared among the rest of the Arab world in general and the Arabian Gulf in particular. 

Saudi Women's Biggest Issue

Happy International Women's Day gorgeous ladies!

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For this occasion, I dedicate this blog post to Saudi women and discuss their BIGGEST issue. A lot would think it's driving, but it's not. It's bigger than that. It is the male guardian's (AKA Mehram/ محرم/MG) permission. The male guardian is typically the father, the husband, the uncle, the brother and it could even be the son if the above are deceased. If you have a normal understanding MG then your life will be normal, but if you have an uptight MG. Then good luck!

Things Saudi women cannot do without a permission: 

*Education

 To enrol in school or university, your MG must sign a paper approving.

*Scholarships

You can't even get a scholarship abroad without a permission. Your papers won't even get through if you don't have an MG's signature. It doesn't matter if you were the top of your class. No MG no scholarship.

*Employment

A woman can't get a job in Saudi unless her MG signs an approval letter saying he allows her to work. Before I started working as teaching staff in a university in Saudi, my father had to sign a form allowing me to do it. Of course he was glad for me, but not all MGs are normal. There are a lot of cases when Saudi women were not allowed to work by their husbands because they had the MG's power. For example, my cousin graduated from a university with a medical degree. Medical fields in Saudi are mixed in nature. Her husband didn't let her work. It took her few YEARS to convince him! The new thing now is to add this as a premarital condition to the Islamic marriage contract (Nikkah)!  

*Surgeries

Believe it or not. If you are in a governmental hospital, you won't get a surgery unless your MG agrees!

*Marriage

The MG's permission is essential for marriage. Without one a virgin girl (it's ok if she's widowed or divorced) can't get married even if the guy is amazing!

The Saudi Women Revolution Statement

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*Official papers (ID, passport & etc)

When I wanted to get my first ID, I was over 20 and the first thing dad asked why do you even need one? It was really frustrating explaining myself just to get an ID! Of course, I couldn't just go to the IDs place and get one. That would be too normal and regular for Saudi. I had to go there with my dad, where I went to the females sections and he went to the males section. Dad had to sign papers for me and wait for hours! It's the same with all official papers. Including bank accounts, passports and all other official papers. A woman just can't go to the governmental office to get her stuff done. She needs to wait on her MG.  

*Booking a hotel room

When my mom was travelling for a conference in another city in Saudi, she had to get a paper signed from her dad and then taken to our city's mayor to be able to book a room! I think this law has changed now. Although, recently my friend couldn't book a joint room with her brother because they didn't have their dad's family card that listed all the children on it. Keep in mind this lady is over 30 years old and they have the same father's name and last name!

*Travel

For me this one is the worst of them all! I have been living abroad on and off for the past seven years now *mashAllah*, but every single time I go back to Saudi, I have to go beg my dad for a permission before every trip. It used to be a piece of paper, but now with the technology the MG has to sign in and do it electronically. Sometimes the system doesn't work! I was stuck for few hours on Bahrain causeway for my permission to clear! Dad is usually fine when I am travelling for educational purposes, but he doesn't believe in travelling on your own for fun. It is always a battle to convince him. I wanted to go to Dubai to visit my cousin who studies there and he wouldn't give me a permission. Obviously, I couldn't go. As you can see I am still guttered about it. Thankfully, he gave me a permission for my masters. I know some family relatives (and other countless girls in Saudi) who can't even get a permission to go to the capital city to study!

Source

These things are the biggest obstacles for women in Saudi. I know not being able to drive is annoying, but these things are more important. Without the MG's permission a woman is like a captive. She can't really do anything for herself or for her kids. To be honest, this is the reason that holds me back from going back to Saudi.

MG & Islam

The sad part is that the religion of Islam have not imposed these MG rules. Sayedah (Mrs.) Khadijah, the prophet's wife, was a business woman who was in charge of lots of money and male employees. She was the one who even proposed to the prophet! The prophet never told her to stop working or degraded her. He used to work for her. Read more about her as MIIM Designs firm has highlighted her and wrote an article about her for this occasion. Islam values women and gives them some really good rights. It also promotes respect for them. The problem in Saudi is it follows tribal old cultural traditions.

What can we do?

As women now, we can do few things. We can raise awareness and support other women in their growth

Muna Abusulayman has really good ideas on taking a personal responsibility in her article.

If you are interested in reading more about Saudi women rights and Middle Eastern women rights and the changes currently happening, please read the collection of short articles on

MENA Women: Opportunities and Obstacles in 2014 

Note: This post does not intend on hurting anyone's feelings or to shine negative light on the Saudi society. It is just an eye opener of the current situation. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions.

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Feel free to comment and share your personal stories related to the subject. 

More posts from Saudi:

The Artistic Scene in Saudi

Happy Friday everyone! Hope you all have a blessed day :) 

I was speaking to my mom earlier when we embarked on an interesting conversation about the Art scene in Saudi and the changes that happened to it through the years. My mother is a silent artist. She paints and draws, but she just keeps her art at arms length. Not a lot of people get to see her amazing creativity. I was trying to convince her to submit for an exhibit coming up soon in the Gulf through Loud Art exhibit that is sponsored by NTI. I told her the concept was "Executing Cultural Shock." She was surprised and I told her all about the changes that have been happening and what artists have been producing these day. So, this is what I will share with you today!

Few years ago, art in Saudi meant classical paintings and realistic drawings of landscape and animals. With the growth of social media and various design courses, creative minds started reaching out of the norm to put their visions outward in new format.

This month alone, Saudi Arabia has witnessed two of the biggest Art & Design events; The Jeddah Art Week and The

Saudi Design Week in Riyadh. They both included some of the most creative Saudi and Arab artists and designers that brought their point of views into reality. A lot of them reflected on the Arabian gulf and represented it with a unique, thought provoking ways. 

Here are some examples from the Jeddah Art week:

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Source

"I believe I can drive"

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These are only few examples. Sadly, I wasn't able to attend since I am living in London and all, but the pictures on twitter and Instagram made me feel like I was there. Just by searching the hashtags you can find a lot of pictures and some took videos of walk throughs in the exhibition. *I love you social media!* 

The Saudi Design week in Riyadh followed that event and brought amazing creative artists. This event was more educational and eye opening with talks and workshops. 

If you go to the website you can go to each designer's page. 

Can you see how awesome and controversial the new art in Saudi is? The event of LoudArt from last year has been covered in Sketchbook magazine, an online magazine interested in showcasing art and culture. It is based in Bahrain. These are few interesting images from that event:

There are more medias supporting Saudi and Arabian artists and designers such as Edge of Arabia. It is worth taking a look there if you would like to see more from Saudi creatives. 

Saudi Stories, Intro

Saudi is one of the most mysterious countries EVER. There’s a huge question mark on it. Not only is Saudi unknown to the Western countries, but also it’s anonymous to the Eastern ones as well. It’s like a blank spot on the map. The more I meet new people, the more I discover how unknown my country is. Sometimes I even get asked; “where is that?” I just say do you know where Bahrain or Dubai is? And OF COURSE they do, and I just say it’s by there. It’s so funny how a tiny island like Bahrain is more known than Saudi.

You see that peninsula on the right? That's Saudi.  No one really know what goes on in Saudi and how people function.

There are a lot of misconceptions about it; some are very offensive and others are hilarious. I decided to write this blog section Saudi Stories to sum up all what I know. Plus, mom keeps pressuring me to write, so here it is!

Some cool pic from google

Bio:

I was born and raised in Saudi for 17 years by Saudi parents in the most typical Saudi city. After I graduated from high school, I got a scholarship to the United States to continue my further education.  Few years later, I came to the UK, and here I am blogging from London.

*mashAllah*

Saudi Issues: Women Driving

Today is the 26th of October, known as the Saudi women driving campaign say. Some women actually took the action and drove today, and some started two years ago like the the first woman who took the driving initiative seriously, Manal Al Shareef. Women driving in Saudi has been one of the most controversial issues recently. If you want to start a fiery conversation, just mention women driving. In my own family this topic is the start of many fights. Some strongly agree with it, and others can't stand the thoughts of it.

First, watch this video by the lady who started it all. Followed by a story of my own struggle. Then read on for the most common pros and cons people discuss.

Isn't it just inspiring? It actually brought tears to my eyes!

We all agree that driving is important because without it we won't be able to go anywhere. Especially in Saudi since we don't have a public transportation system. Local shops that are walking distance are dominated by men, and suitable shops for women are all miles away and are mainly located by a highway, which makes it even more impossible to go there on foot. Not all families have a willing male guardians who want to take them out. By going out, I don't only mean going shopping, but going to work, school, visiting family and other important things.

With more Saudi women working, the need for drivers is increasing! There are many working class families struggling with this issue. Let me tell you quickly about

my own struggle

with this issue.

After I graduated, I started working in a local university *mashallah*. Even though, the university is local to me, but its about an hour drive. My family has a driver (who gets 2000 SR a month excluding the car, the gas, his housing, car care, and everything else), but he drivers my aunt to her job, which has the same start as my job. So, I had to find another private driver. Finding him was a huge issue, and private drivers in Saudi take total advantage of the women's needs because they know their choices are very limited. So, he charged me 2000 SR (330 GBP) for a month five days a week. My mother also works, and she pays about 1000 SR for her driver. As three working females, we spend a minimum of 5000 SR (825 GBP) and thats without considering other charges for going to other places, gas or car maintenance.

Not to mention the million issues these drivers bring to our lives, and the fear women suffer from the whole driver. What if this driver stops in the middle of the desert and assault the poor woman in the back of the car? He is a stranger after all.

Real Story: 

My mom's coworker's driver got a better offer and he decided to leave her. One morning, after he dropped her to university he texted her saying he is no longer interested in working for her and told her to pick up the keys from the outside guard. When she went outside, she received the keys, but the car was GONE! Who would want to deal with this? If only she could drive herself.

Exception to the general ban of driving: 

There are some establishment within Saudi that allow women to driver, such as Saudi Aramco campus, which started half a century ago. Recently, the King Abdullah University city allowed women to drive as well.

Here are some of the Pros and Cons people discuss when they talk about women driving:

Pros:

• Driving will give women more freedom, and make them less dependant of their male guardian.

• Having less foreign drivers who charge so much

• Making the car journey safer instead of being under the mercy of a strange man.

• A women will be able to get to work and other places without begging all the males of her family to take her to one place (even her own sons).

• In case of an emrgancy, or the need to go to the hospital, a woman should be prepared to take action. What if her male guardian got injured, and she can't find another driver?

• It's a human right. The right of mobility.

Cons:

• Driving will give women more freedom, and make them less dependant of their male guardian.

• Some Saudi men are not respectful towards women, and some will go out of their way when they see a women driving to harass her intentionally. Especially, teenagers and uneducated, close minded men.

• Saudi men and men who drive in Saudi -generally- don't follow any rules and they just drive not caring about any one on the road. There are all sorts of violations on the street and women might not be ready for that.

• The Saudi roads are so messed up and they are not fit for more people to drive.

Speaking of the Cons, here is a comical song that shows the perspective of some men who are against women driving:

Other Important Issues in Saudi: 

Driving is certainly not the only problem that people should focus on. There are issues of housing, starting a business, medical care, education, women employment and the laws of women travelling outside of Saudi. Like any country, Saudi has room to develop and improve. The good and the bad is present everywhere, and there is not a perfect country out there. Each one has issues that its dealing with.

Feel free to share your struggles/thoughts in the comments bellow and please remember to be respectful and kind to each other.