An FYI on making hijrah, living in KSA & some other things in between.
As salaamu ‘alaikum. This brand of oil is very good despite the hilarious tip!
Haneefah
| Saudi Police Officer Tickets Father Arab News |
| KHAMIS MUSHAYT, 8 November 2007 — A local traffic police officer in Khamis Mushayt in southern Saudi Arabia stopped his father at a local checkpoint, the daily Okaz reported yesterday. The father was surprised when his son, who was in charge of the checkpoint, asked for his driver’s license. When the father handed his son his driver’s license, he was told that it had expired and then to his disbelief, he was issued a citation. The shocked father became angry and sped off, not saying a word to his son.
Later that day, when the son went home, the father turned the tables on him by refusing to let him into the house. Relatives intervened and eventually convinced the father to let his son back in the house, however this came with a condition: The son must pay the traffic ticket. The son obliged and paid the ticket the following morning. |
You Get What You Pay For
As salaamu ‘alaikum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. My husband and I have decided to never, ever purchase appliances from unknown companies. Why? Take a look at the picture below of my radio. It broke as soon as we bought it home. The power button sunk in when I turned it on.
We took it to the service center for repairs. After several weeks of not hearing anything we called to see if it was ready. Of course it was not ready - come on. After a few more weeks we finally were able to pick it up and bring it home. Guess what? It immediately broke again. The “Stop,” “Pause,” “Play” buttons fell off. The CD door was hanging off (partially Su’aad’s fault). The tape deck was jammed. The antennae broke in half and the power button disappeared. My husband was too upset to take it back and did not care for a refund.
I still wanted to listen to the “Quraan Radio” station, so I made due by making an antennae out of a hanger and used a wooden spoon to reach in and press the power button. {Miskeen, I know….but it worked…at least for a while.}
My radio finally gave up and died a couple weeks ago. We plan to get a “real” stereo system from a company we know and trust. You get what you pay for.
Haneefah
As salaamu ‘alaikum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. This is too funny for me to comment on. Read for yourself…..
Haneefah
GUWEI’IYYA, Saudi Arabia - The legs are long, the eyes are big, the bodies curvaceous.
Contestants in this Saudi-style beauty pageant have all the features you might expect anywhere else in the world, but with one crucial difference — the competitors are camels.
This week, the Qahtani tribe of western Saudi Arabia has been welcoming entrants to its Mazayen al-Ibl competition, a parade of the “most beautiful camels” in the desolate desert region of Guwei’iyya, 120 km (75 miles) west of Riyadh.
“In Lebanon they have Miss Lebanon,” jokes Walid, moderator of the competition’s Web site. “Here we have Miss Camel.”
While tremendous oil wealth has brought rapid modernisation to the desert state of Saudi Arabia, the camel remains celebrated as a symbol of the traditional nomadic lifestyle of Bedouin Arabs.
Throughout history camels have served multiple purposes as food, friend, transport and war machine. They were key to the Arab conquests of the Middle East and North Africa nearly 1,400 years ago that brought Islam to the world.
Camels are also big business in a country where strict Islamic laws and tribal customs would make it impossible for women to take part in their own beauty contest.
Delicate females or strapping males who attract the right attention during this week’s show could sell for a million or more riyals. Sponsors have provided 10 million riyals ($2.7 million) for the contest, cash that also covers the 72 sports utility vehicles to be will be awarded as prizes.
“Bedouin Arabs are intimately connected to camels and they want to preserve this heritage. The importance of this competition is that it helps preserve the pure-breds,” said Sheikh Omair, one of the tribe’s leaders,
“We have more than 250 owners taking part and more than 1,500 camels,” he said inside a huge tent where the final awards ceremony takes place.
Over at the camel pen, the contestants are getting restless as the desert wind howls and whips up swirls of sand in the hot afternoon sun.
Amid a large crowd of Bedouin who have gathered to watch, the head of the judging committee emerges to venture into an enclosure with some two dozen angry braying camels.
Camel-drivers sing songs of praise to their prized possessions as they try to calm the animals down.
“Beautiful, beautiful!” the judge mutters quietly to himself, inspecting the group. Finalists have been decorated with silver bands and body covers.
“The nose should be long and droop down, that’s more beautiful,” explains Sultan al-Qahtani, one of the organisers. “The ears should stand back, and the neck should be long. The hump should be high, but slightly to the back.”
The camels are divided into four categories according to breed — the black majaheem, white maghateer, dark brown shi’l and the sufur, which are beige with black shoulders. Arabic famously has over 40 terms for different types of camel.
Some females have harnesses strapped around their genitalia to thwart any efforts by the males to mount them. One repeat offender called Marjaa has been moved away.
“This one would fetch a million!” says Hamad al-Sudani, a camel-driver, admiring the heavy stud, or fahl.
As salaamu ‘alaikum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. I’ve been asked if maxi pads are available here. LOL…Yes. You can get brand names like “Always” and “Stay Free.” They don’t come individually wrapped like the ones in the West, however you do have a nice selection to choose from. Longs, overnighties, heavy-flowies, liners, and wingies…lol…whatever you want In Shaa Allaah. “Faam” is a good Saudi brand if you can’t find the ones you prefer. They are available in every corner store, pharmacy and supermarket.
A friend a mine was told that maxi pads were not available in KSA, so she packed a suitcase full of pads before making hijrah only to find out that they are here…lol.
Haneefah
As salaamu ‘alaikum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. I never thought in my wildest dreams that I’d live in Saudi ‘Arabia, yet here I am Tabaarakallaah. I never thought that I’d eat the best tasting fried chicken here either…lol.
There’s a famous chain of fast food restaurants called “Al Baik.” Believe it or not, they put Popeye’s “Momma Slap” chicken to shame. They bury KFC and their so called “secret recipe.” William’s and George’s Chicken are no match for my ‘Arabian brothers.
What makes “Al Baik” so special? {All you fried chicken lovers will enjoy this..lol} - They inject hot sauce right into the chicken. Every bite is full of flavor. As my southern father would say - “Gee Mo Nitty! That’s some gooooooood chicken!”
Al Baik is crowded on any given day. The lines were out the door and then some on during ‘Eid. My husband’s friend told him that restaurant owners in a nearby city complained to some officials when Al Baik wanted to open a new store in their town. They were afraid (and rightfully so) of being put out of business, so Al Baik did not build there.
Try their chicken if you’re ever in Saudi….you’ll love it In Shaa Allaah.
Haneefah
*Photo from the Virtual Tourist web site.*
As salaamu ‘alaikum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. I found these comments on a virtual toursim web site.
Daebissa said: TAXIS!!!! Probably the best thing you can do when you find a good taxi driver that can speak passable English is to snatch him up! Get his mobile number, and if you are planning to go somewhere, you can call ahead. That way, you know you are with someone you can trust and who doesn’t rip you off. Secondly - KNOW SOME ARABIC. There are a few arabic words that can get you by in a taxi. I am going to type these how they sound phonetically. These are: 1) Al la toule (straight head, all the way straight, no turning). 2) Yamine (right) 3) Yasaar (left) 4) Henna (here, i.e., stop) Thirdly - KNOW WHERE YOU ARE GOING. There is nothing more frustrating and tear-evoking than driving around Jeddah with someone who doesn’t speak English trying to tell him where to go when you don’t even know yourself. Be careful, because when you ask the driver at first if he knows where _________ is (fill in the blank), he will probably say yes, even if he doesn’t know. Fourth and lastly - KNOW THE PRICE OF WHERE YOU ARE GOING. Before you even get into the taxi, ask how much. He will give probably a high quote, so then you tell him what you already know the price should be. He should smarten up and take you for that price.
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June said: The fastest and most accessbile way to go around the city is taking the taxicab, you won’t miss it, they’re all in white uniform color. Negotiate for the fare before even jumping into one, that’s how it goes. Taxi meters, though functioning, are not really in use on most taxis, except maybe if you request for it. However, you would end up paying more. Bargaining is the name of the game. Fare ranges from SR5 to 25, depends on your destination. Coming from the airport to the city centre, may cost from SR30 to 50.
As salaamu ‘alaikum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. The eggs are so fresh that they come wrapped in cellophane speckled with chicken pooh and feathers. You can’t get any fresher than this unless you yourself go and get them from the coop.
Wash your hands before you eat - well not in Saudi..lol. The new rule is to wash your eggs before you crack ‘em. You don’t want chicken pooh and feathers in your omelet right? I must be fair, not all the eggs here are covered with chicken (as my daughter would say) “Po Po Pope” but many of them are. Check all of your eggs before leaving the market, some may be cracked and rotten.
Haneefah
*I hope you are not grossed out by the picture. This is “ok” compared to others I’ve seen!
As salaamu ‘alaikum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. Here’s some Hijrah Humor and Saudi Facts for you...
The Internet: In 1999, the Internet service became available in the Kingdom, with all the connections routed through a state server sited at the King Abdul Azeez City for Science and Technology. The Ministry of Post, Telegraph and Telephones provides the external means to access the Internet and the service is available for the public.
Internet Service Providers: 27 (7 years ago). Saudi Telecom has 23,748 employees. Back then, total number of trainees reached 17,436.
Source: Saudi Online Facts Brief
Now, if they could just get us a home address that would be great! I have a few personal and business E-mail addresses, but not a home mailing address…lol. Don’t be surprised if you ask someone for directions and they say, “I can’t tell you. I have to show you.” – It’s true! You just might get lost in a big city full of side streets without addresses.
Haneefah
