Saudi Gangnam Style

Dear Readers,

Hope you had a great Eid, I'm planning to do a EId highlights post, but at the mo, my whole family has the flu, and I'm trying to particpate in NaNoWriMo, more on that later, so don't hold your breath.
In the meanwhile I decided to share a parody of PSY's Gangnam style that a Saudi group made to sarcastically depict the annoying Saudi youth phenemenon known as 'the guy in the undershirt and thobe pants'.

Some guys insist on hanging out wearing just their under shirt and pants sans the thobe both at home and outdoors, which is equivalent to walking around in your underclothes.

What do you think of the video?

Enjoy!

You Are Not From Jeddah

Dear Readers,

Every time there is a school holiday Jeddah is flooded with visitors from other cities in Saudi Arabia. Now for those of you who maybe unaware, Jeddah is the Paris of Saudi Arabia. Seriously, I kid you not. People think Jeddahwis are quite liberal and rather depraved, I might add. There is a burgeoning expat community, a pretty dormant PVPV or mutawah, and it has the Corniche beach and Obhur Creek beach resorts. The visitors are attracted  to the beach like flies to honey. Its hard to find a place to park from 5pm till 4am!

Many of the Saudi visitors are from Riyadh, and Jeddawis can spot them a mile away. They walk around like they own the place, drive crazier (yes I know its possbile), and love to wear their esteemed headgear everywhere and all the time. You may remember that a while ago I did a post called How Not to Wear a Ghutra/Shemagh, this was targeted generally at Hollywood producers and the odd Western expat trying to assimiliate. Well, now I think I need to do a post targeted at Saudis from Riyadh, Where not to wear the ghutra/shemagh!

 

Captions are welcome

For more funny posts be sure to follow me on Facebook.

Saudi Arabia bans English and Gregorian Calender!

Dear Readers,

Up until now, most businesses in Saudi Arabia use both dates the Islamic Hjiri calendar printed by Um AlQura university and the Gregorian calender. Similarly English is used alongside Arabic, as there are many non-Arabic speakers in Saudi Arabia.

So when I read that English and Gregorian calender had been 'banned I was shocked.
The Gulf News reported that the use of the English language, widely used in business, has been banned, as has the use of the Gregorian calendar, according to a statement issued by a Saudi Ministry. The statement went on to explain the reason for the ban as an attempt to preserve the Arabic language and the Islamic calendar.

First of all I dont think Arabic is under any threat of becoming a 'lost' language, definitely not here in Saudi Arabia. Most Saudis and Arabs speak/read/write Arabic in fact sometimes it is a problem to find someone with similar fluency in English or both languages.

You have to use Gregorian dates dealing on all international business transactions, and on passports otherwise they won't know when to show up for a meeting, expect payment, or the validity of your passport.

Secondly, which elusive Saudi Ministry issued this edict??? The Ministry of Interior?, Surely they have more sense than this.

Thirdly, if this is another foolish attempt to improve Saudiization levels by making the lives of foreginers more uncomfortable, then it is a very stupid move, indeed. There's a better way of drastically improving Saudization levles and increading investment in the kingdom to boot: Grant citizenship or a green card or indefinite leave to remain to those who have been born here or have lived/worked here for more than 20 years, and allow them start busienss buy proeprties with sacred property rights. Now that initiative would be a win-win...

I'm waiting for a retraction and the person who issued this moronic statement to disappear.
English is the international language of business, and you certainly, can't ban it. It is a step backwards, and that's really the last thing Saudi Arabia needs right now, and I think everyone realises that.








So lets all sit and wait until some sort of clarification or retraction presents itself