Hofuf

I am in AL Hofuf, part of the Al Ahsa region, KSA.  Please see this Google Earth screen snip (click on pictures to see them)

It is down from Dammam, on the Gulf, towards Riyadh.

Here is the sign you see when you enter Hofuf from the Qatar Road side (from UAE)

The retail of the city mostly comprises small shops

Just above, an outdoor market, with goods hanging

Typical women’s dress

Most people live in villas with a wall around, a driver’s accomodation built into the wall and a maid who lives in the house.  Many are bigger and fancier, but this is typical.

There are many, many grilled food places.  The traditional ones don’t have a family section, so women aren’t allowed to enter, to buy food or to sit inside.  Some newer places have family sections so women can come if accompanied by a male relative (certainly no unrelated male).

Road Trip 2

Into Saudi, on the road to AL Hofuf (Al Ahsa).

Scenery along the way

Yikes!  Dunes!

This is the Arabian Gulf.  The Salway corner is the only turn in the road from the KSA border to Hofuf.  Biig event … a corner!  You can go to Qatar that way… we go the other way, to Hofuf.

Typical “facilities” along the way 

It was a windy, sandy day along the road to Hofuf – pretty typical – wears the paint off the front of your vehicle

In Hofuf – and the local police want to you to watch out for the faults of others – wise, as no one wants to admit that they themselves may have faults!

Road Trip!

Off to Saudi from UAE, destination Al Ahsa – Hofuf!!  Please click on pictures …
Roadside store and men’s rest stop

Leaving UAE – and the UAEs good wishes

Closing in on the Saudi border

And at Saudi border

Then, hooray, thru the border and on to Hofuf!!

A Great Logo

Saudi Arabia may be a tough place for non-Islamic expats to live, but it does have a great logo.

KSA Symbol

Back in the UA…

Borrowing from the old Beatles song, it is “back in the UA … back in the UA … Back in the U eh eh E”.  I am back in Dubai now.  Driving from Al Ahsa in the KSA into the UAE and then past Abu Dhabi to Dubai was like driving into the future.  And not all in a good way, I suppose.  The construction at Abu Dhabi is monstrous, the roads are good and the pace is still furious.   You can see how people might like the sleepiness, the slower pace , and certainly the much lower cost of living of Al Ahsa.  However, for me I enjoy the work I do here, the friends I have here and the variety Dubai has to offer.  I must say that the Saudi people I met were friendly and helpful.  However, if you are not a follower of Islam, there is little to do in Al Ahsa as life revolves around religion and the mosque.  So it is back to Dubai for me!

The Burj Dubai

Living In Al Hufuf (Hofuf)

I have not blogged in a while.  Let’s put it down to the myriad things one has to do to adjust to living in the KSA.  We live in Al Hufuf or Hofuf now.  A good description here.

It is a character place.  Wacky driving, some ramshackle amongst the new villas, very friendly people.  Westerners are an oddity here.  I had no access to the hocky playoffs.

More on our area and King Faisal U. later.

Moving to Saudi (3)

I am learning a lot.  First, I get the sense (after being here a whole 13 days) that KSA is a very complex, layered and interesting country.  The people are very friendly and welcoming.  They want our talents and skills.  The society is hungry to grow and develop, and not waste the resources (both human and natural) with which it is blessed.  On the surface, it is an uncompromising monoculture.  However, there are so many progressive people here, eager to get things done, that often accommodations are made to ensure that we are comfortable and get what we need.  I will be more forthcoming later.

I appreciate this place.  The learning will be more subtle than it was in Dubai (of course no one ever accused Dubai of subtle!!).

More later.

Moving to Saudi Arabia (2)

It occurs to me, looking at the title of this post, that we’ve moved to KSA, so perhaps the gerundial “moving” isn’t correct.  However, our furniture hasn’t yet arrived, and we are still in the palatial confines of the Intercontinental Al Ahsa, so we are still clearly in the process of moving.

It strikes me as what a very privileged position we are in.  As residents of the Kingdom, we are free to travel around this great country, with its two major sea coasts (Red Sea and Gulf), mountains, antiquities and wonderful people, whereas other foreigners are not so allowed.

And it seems in 10 days, Inshallah, we will have a great place to live and our own furniture inside it.

Keep you posted.

Moving to Saudi Arabia (1)

This is my first post about our move to Saudi Arabia, specifically Al Hofuf /Al Ahsa.  Yesterday we set out from Abu Dhabi.  We made it through the Saudi border in jig time.  Our visas were obviously in order thanks to the stellar work of the KSA cultural attache in Dubai and Dr. Al-Shoaibi in Al Hofuf.  Got to Al Hofuf at about 3 PM; circled around lost for 45 minutes or so; asked a startled Saudi driver for directions; he led us on a low-speed chase (due to my wariness of the drivers!) through Al Ahsa and to the Intercontinental Hotel.  This shall be home until we find one of our own in Hofuf.