Hours of the Day

We will feel victorious when we master the art of arriving at a shop to do shopping and finding the doors open! We have no sense of victory as of yet ...

During Ramadan, shop hours are open on a very strange and hard-to-predict non-schedule. It's all up to the shop owner. Of course, if they serve food or drink, they're closed until sundown. But then they close for prayer which is right around that time. So they might open at 6:30. And close before 7. And then re-open after prayers. Or, then again, they might stay open through prayers. Or they might close their doors, but let you in if you knock. Or not. Or, they might not open until after prayers, like around 8 p.m. Or maybe 7:40. It's better to not even try to shop until after 8 p.m. But then the malls are PACKED until 2 a.m. and who wants to shop in that sea of humanity that's crawling with black and white slow-moving tents?

With Ramadan and other holidays completed, we thought we'd see what "normal" is. Mmmmm. Haven't fully grasped it, yet!

Some places open early, like around 8 a.m. Others open around 9 a.m. Many, if not most, open by 10 a.m. But that doesn't last long. Prayers hit somewhere around 11:30. and during that time, they close. But maybe not. Sometimes you can continue shopping but you just can't check out. There can be no exchanging of money during prayer times. Which last for 20 minutes. But to prepare for the prayer times, announcements begin about 30 minutes prior to prayer. And they are repeated every 3 minutes or so. And sometimes you're told that you have to pay and leave in the next 15 minutes. Sometimes you're told you can shop but not buy anything after the prayer time ends. Sometimes they turn out all lights and lock you out. Sometimes they close the doors and leave lights on and you're locked in. It's hard to know which it will be because when you look around you, some of the people are rushing to finish shopping and others seem un-phased.

Afternoons are not good times to go anywhere. Stores close from mid-day prayer until late afternoon -- that's roughly from 11:30 until 4:30. And then between 4:30 and 7:30, they're closed for a couple more prayer times. Then, they're open until, usually, midnight. But you never can count on that because opening hours are not mandated. Grocery store types of shops usually remain open all day. But not always. And some close for prayer. But let you shop. You see the trend, yes?

Chaos and confusion. For me, at least. Our company publishes a calendar with prayer times for each week. But even that seems confusing to me.

Basically, I know I can shop from 10:00 until 11:20ish in the morning. And I know I can shop from 7:30ish until 10:00 in the evening. Any other times, attempts to shop are taken with great risk and very low expectations.

It's really quite an effective way to save money!

(That, and the fact that the clothing stores only have dressing rooms for men. Women have to buy their clothing without trying anything on and then they have up to one week to make returns. Some restrooms in the malls have "fitting rooms" so that women can try on clothing that they've already bought and then make the returns right then ... sounds like another topic for a blog entry ...)

Time Fills and Time Flies

Filling time helps time to fly.

It's nice to have some demands on my time and some things that really MUST be done rather than just things I'd LIKE to do! Not just to fill time, but to make a contribution, to meet other gals and to develop friendships --I've started teaching English students, already.

We have two classes, Levels 1 and 2, with a few gals in each class. Chinese, many South Americans, a Russian, Indonesians, ... fun! I'll pick up some of their words here and there, too, I hope! No Arabic-speakers, yet. Hope to get some, though. So far, the students' commitment levels are very high and they want to recruit some more students.

In the "I'd like to" category -- I'm crocheting a throw blanket. The ACs (air conditioners) make things quite chilly when they're on and you're in the direct line of their fans. But when they're off, it swiftly gets too hot. So, a nearby blankie is the best solution. I found pale blue yarn in a terrific yarn/fabric/craft shop last week. The quality is nothing great, equal to Red Heart, I suppose. But it's filling time, it gives me some goals for the day, and it will meet a need when I'm done with the project. By the time it's done, I hope our shipment will have arrived. In it is a whole lot more yarn that I'll put to use right away for another necessary item that is temperature-related -- socks/footies. The marble floors retain the cold air wonderfully. Too well, actually. So my feet need to be toastier. The problem I foresee with wearing socks is that it will turn the marble floors into a skating rink. Should add to the excitement around here, though!

There's another rather strange way that time flies around here. The weekly rhythm has not really set in, yet. I've heard from others that it never really does. We are soooooo used to "our" weekend -- Saturday and Sunday. And we still are linked to it via TV and contact with family and friends. So, even though Saturdays and Sundays are work days, here, they don't fully feel like work days. Watching weekend sports on FOX Sports probably contributes heavily to that. And Thursdays and Fridays are real weekend days. Even though Jim continues working on those days (as always!) ... his schedule is lighter, he works from home, and we mix it up with outings and fun activities. So that leaves Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday as "real" work days. And when it's Wednesday, it's always a shock that we're back to the weekend, again! Some who have been here much longer say that they still are shocked when it's already Wednesday again! All good! I do love this kind of time to fly!

Add to that, the fact that I arrived during the month of Ramadan. And that was followed by the week of Eid ul Fitr. And then we had Saudi National Day. It's no wonder I don't have a sense of rhythm, yet! We've not had a "regular" week!

Going shopping on the ladies' bus fills time. It's an almost-three-hour trek to get to one shop 'cuz the bus route includes a few drop off and pick up points. Women can't drive. Jim has a company car which enables us to get out together in the evenings. But if I want to shop during the daytime I have to use one of the buses that our company provides for the women. It involves a dreadfully complicated sign-up system with lots of room for disasters and squabbles and such. It's nice to have the buses available, at least. But I don't think I'll use them that often.

It's not really filling time ... it's more like killing time. And time doesn't fly when its dead!

Coping Strategies

So I'm working on coping strategies. Some days are better than others.

A practice that I tried to make a habit in Indonesia and rely heavily upon, here, is this one: whenever the prayers are broadcasted ("blasted" would be a more accurate term!) I pray and, if I'm in an appropriate place, sing some worship songs/hymns that relate to the Trinity or Jesus Christ -- God's only Son. That helps.

I usually sleep through the early morning (4:30 - 5:30ish) prayers, having adjusted to the noise. That means only 4 other 20 minute stretches per day.

Where I am totally failing in coping strategies is when I'm out and about in the sea of black tents (women in abayas and hijabs). In other countries where coverings are common I am not so bugged by the garments. I guess it seems more like a personal choice -- some women choose black, some choose lovely pastel scarves and western clothing, ... I realize that for some of the gals it is forced upon them by their husbands. Or by the ultra conservative teachers in their region. Or their fathers. But that's more of a private, family issue. Frustrating but tolerable.

But here ...

Well, it's just sooo irritating to see it forced upon every woman, regardless of her beliefs and convictions.

But what's even more baffling is the women who go beyond the required covering to gloves, slits-only face coverings, undecorated black, ... I've asked expats about the "whys" and Jim's been able to talk with one male Saudi with whom he works. There are no clear answers. It's not the law, though in more conservative areas of the country like Riyahd, it is.

Sometimes it's the husbands who require it. But very often it's the choice of the woman, herself. There's some competition amongst the women, it seems, as to who is more devout. And there's a lot of pressure, I've been told, to be so devout that the husband will not need another wife in order to guarantee his good-living in eternity.

I've heard that these women live under the constant fear that their husbands might: a) get another wife (men can have up to four wives ... 1, 2, 3, 4! ... if they can prove to the gov't that they are able to financially support them and their future children) or b) divorce them.

Such fear. Such bondage. Such isolation.

The real tragedy is that many want it, are choosing it, defend it, and look down upon others who don't embrace it. And that's what's making me nuts!

It's tough to find a way to cope with that one.

P.S./FYI:

The Quran does not explicitly teach that women must be fully cloaked, have heads covered, etc. Just a couple of verses refer to it at all and it's mainly in the context of Mohammed's wives.

Here in this country, the movement for women to be covered and separated from men is quite a modern development which began in the 1980s.

Saudi Arabia's government is a monarchy with a king-chosen Council of Ministers and a king-chosen Consultative Assembly of 150 people. The constitution is the Quran. Their law is Sharia Law.

Another Holiday

This is the area called the Corniche. It's common in all mid-eastern countries -- cement walkways along the water. This one is many miles long and includes areas with American imports such as: Chili's, TGIFridays, Pizza Hut, Starbucks, McDonalds, Burger King, Krispy Kreme, ... So far we've tried Chili's (and loved the food) and will soon visit Starbucks!

Thursday was Saudi National Day, a celebration of the beginning/unification of this country on Sept 23, 1932 by King Abdul Aziz bin Saud. Because the 23rd falls on a weekend (weekends are Thursday and Friday), Saturday is a holiday, too. So Jim's working from home. But the real celebrations were Thursday. We were warned to stay away from the corniche area because there has been quite a bit of rioting in recent years during the celebrations.

The holiday was only established in 2003 and it's existence is a symbol of the shift this country is slowly making toward a government that makes some (not many, though) decisions apart from Islam. True devotees are angered by and do not recognize this holiday because they do not believe there should be any holidays other than those established by Muslim laws and traditions. They don't even believe that there should be birthday celebrations.

Here's a bit from Wikipedia about the kingdom and it's kings.

The Third Saudi state was founded by the late King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia. In 1902 Ibn Saudi captured Riyadh, the Al-Saud dynasty's ancestral capital, from the rival Al-Rashid family. Continuing his conquests, Abdul Aziz subdued Al-Hasa, the rest of Nejd, and the Hejaz between 1913 and 1926. Boundaries with Jordan, Iraq, and Kuwait were established by a series of treaties negotiated in the 1920s, with two "neutral zones" created, one with Iraq and the other with Kuwait. On January 8, 1926 Hussain Ibn Ali became the King of Sharqiya. On January 27, 1927 he took the title King of Nejd (his previous Nejdi title was Sultan). By the Treaty of Jeddah, signed on May 20, 1927, the United Kingdom recognized the independence of Abdul Aziz's realm (then known as the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd). In 1932, these regions were unified as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The discovery of oil on March 3, 1938 transformed the country. The country's southern boundary with Yemen was partially defined by the 1934 Treaty of Taif, which ended a brief border war between the two states.

Abdul Aziz's military and political successes were not mirrored economically until vast reserves of oil were discovered in March 1938. Development programs, which were delayed due to the onset of the Second World War in 1939, began in earnest in 1946 and by 1949 production was in full swing. Oil has provided Saudi Arabia with economic prosperity and a great deal of political leverage in the international community. prior to his death in 1953, Abdul Aziz, aware of the difficulties facing other regional absolute rulers reliant on extended family networks, attempted to regulate the succession.

Saud succeeded to the throne on his father's death in 1953. However, by the early 1960s the Kingdom was in jeopardy due to Saud's economic mismanagement and failure to deal effectively with a regional challenge from Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser. As a consequence, Saud was deposed in favor of Faisal in 1964. intra-family rivalry, echoed by increasing complications from the 1973 oil crisis, was one of the factors that led to the assassination of Faisal by his nephew, Prince Faisal bin Musa'id, in 1975. He was succeeded by King Khalid until 1982 and then by King Fahd. When Fahd died in 2005, his half-brother, Abdullah, ascended to the throne.

Out and About

The sands do blow!

Desalinization plant: our tap water is all desalinized but still quite salty!

This is something that's under construction and it's only link to land is a little walking sand-bridge, it appears.

The "Bridge to Freedom!" -- 21 mile causeway to the island country of Bahrain.

Musings Begin

My second abaya -- a bit more decorative than my first one. Now I'll always have one clean abaya. That's the plan, at least. I have a matching scarf which I carry with me but do not wear. Opinions on scarf-wearing are very mixed among the expat women. How do we show respect for the country in which we live without in any way implying that we agree with their beliefs and customs? That is the dilemma. At this point, I've determined that I will not wear the scarf unless forced to do so.

We did some painting on Thursday, wanting to get such things done prior to the arrival of our shipment.

I've been here for more than two weeks, now. You could best describe my state of mind as "in adjustment" as each day has it's ups and it's downs. I am reminded of our time in Port Harcourt, in the days when we could get out of the compound. Somedays I'd be so anxious to get out and then after being out for a short time, I'd wonder why I ever wanted to do such a thing -- the headaches came on quickly from the air pollution, loud and crazy traffic, trash, and basic madness.

Here, the headaches seem to come just as quickly as they did in Nigeria and they come from basic madness. Very little trash (except along the water's edge in places where workers aren't paid to constantly pick up what comes in with the waves). Very little pollution (but the air is filled with sand and grit). The traffic is not loud (though the drivers are still incredibly aggressive, a topic worthy of it's own blog entry very soon). None of those issues are the problem. And it's not the lack of access to food items. (I'll blog sometime soon about the shopping because that deserves it's own entry.) The madness is more within me and it's more mental, spiritual, and emotional.

My headaches come from trying to process the thinking behind what I see -- the complete segregation of men from women, the required abaya and hijab (head covering), the extreme versions of coverings that go beyond just eye-slits and include black gloves, the screens that some men require to be placed around their family's table when they eat in a restaurant that has expats present, the men who are free to frolic in the ocean or ocean-side pool with their children while their black-tented-wives hide in the shade of the 110+ sun or walk into the water and come back out wearing a now-thirty-pound-soaking-wet black tent,...

For the next few days I'll try to post some photos as well as some thoughts. I'll try to not gripe and whine but rather give you the straight truth of life as I see it. Keep in mind that those who embrace this place see it quite differently.

Alaska, Juneau Portion of trip to Tenakee

So, to get to Tenakee --- first we flew to Juneau. We spent 1 day in Juneau on both sides of our day in Tenakee.

Axel was quite a traveler, as evidenced below.

We pretty much wore out his Grandma and Grandpa, though ... as evidenced way below. :-)

Alaska, Trip to Tenakee Springs

What an amazing experience -- to go back to Tenakee Springs after leaving there with Mom and Dad in 1958. It's a small village, with a population that has hovered around 100 for many, many years. Dad was the school teacher for the '57-'58 school year. There were strong doubts that the school could not remain open the following year due to a drop in student numbers so Dad and Mom wisely packed up and moved to Homer.

Tenakee is on the Chichagof Island, out of Juneau. They were amazing adventurers, Dad and Mom, leaving the bustling area of southern California for southeast Alaska while it was just a U.S. territory!

This was a long-awaited trip ... I hope you enjoy the photos even 1/10th as much as we enjoyed the experience.

Keep in mind that the sun is a rare siting in southeast Alaska. We were blessed -- Dad, Mom, me, Kath, and little Axel --- very blessed!