Location: Southwest Asia (bordered by the UAE, Saudi, Yemen and the Gulf of Oman
Government: Islamic Absolute Monarchy
Population: 2.8M (including about 700K expats)
Capital: Muscat
GDP per capita: ~25K
Established: 751 (Constitutionally in 1996)
Economy: Predominately oil & gas and minerals…they’re working on an industrial sector
Friday, May 7, 2010
Oh-Man Oman
I just returned to Saudi after about 36 hours in Oman. I can’t say I did much that was culturally enlightening this weekend but that was kind of what I expected. I planned the trip last minute. Thursday I lounged around the resort, caught up on a stack of Economist articles that has been building for months, had a nice seaside dinner and crashed around 11 (I hadn’t slept since Tuesday night). This morning I had a great run on the beach capped off by a dive into the Indian Ocean. I then had brunch and got a driver to show me around Muscat for a couple hours before heading to the airport.
A co-worker of mine called Oman, “chill” before I left and that’s the best way I can describe it. It was just really laid back and relaxing. The resort was quiet and very private. I didn’t see many people my age or many American (though most people were foreigners…Germans, Indians, Nordics from what I could tell). The Omani people I met were incredibly friendly and polite. The atmosphere was very island-like. It reminded me of the Caribbean. Geographically, it reminded me more of Baha - arid hills all around with devastating cliffs and white rock.
Muscat itself was quiet and incredibly clean (a stark contrast to Riyadh). My driver didn't speak much English but I think we were able to hit all the big spots. Perhaps the most impressive were the Al Jalali and Al Mirani forts (see next entry) which were built during the Portuguese regime (which started about 500 years ago and ended in the 1700s). Tourists aren’t really allowed in them, but they made for nice photo ops.
O(so)mani Photos
Not a bad beach...
I swam through that (yeah right)
Muscat at 140Km/hr
The Zawawi Mosque in Al Khuwair, Muscat
Al Jalai Fort
I left the windows open so I'd wake up and catch the sunrise the second day...glad I did...and then I promptly went back to bed for 3 hours.
Action shot.
I'll post more pics to facebook (if I can figure out how)
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Life Was Good Today
8 hour delay. Not a wink of sleep. A beer while watching the sunrise over the Gulf of Oman, totally worth it...
Waiting
Those who know me well know that patience is a quality I am short on. Therefore, you probably would have found humor in me huffing and puffing in the Riyadh airport for the last 5 hours over my delayed flight and the airline’s made up reasons for it (according to Abdullah from Oman Air the plane has been circling the airport for about 4.5 hours). I’m over my madness and confusion and now I’m just writing it off as an “experience.” I am quickly coming to realize that there isn’t a rush for much of anything over here. Perhaps for someone with my disposition a few months in a place like this won’t be such a bad thing.
They do their best not to cancel flights here because of the inefficient and irrational customs and immigration practices in Saudi (and probably b/c they don’t want to refund you). If the Saudis stamp you out, they expect you to come back with a stamp from wherever you were headed and will give you a hard time if you don’t. The immigration and customs process is unpredictable and time consuming when everyone plays by the rules. Throwing 200 people who didn't go anywhere into the mix might bring the entire “system” to its knees. So, trying to walk out of the airport right now would probably take a couple hours. I’m going to wait this flight out.
I’ll be gaining an hour when I get to Oman and then have an hour drive to the resort so at this pace, there is a good chance I’ll see the sunrise over the Gulf of Oman just about the time I arrive tomorrow. I’ll be exhausted, but I could think of worse ways to spend a Saturday morning…
The airport is fine. The lack of a bar is a bit disappointing but given the length of this delay, perhaps a good thing. Everyone is friendly, though I do stick out a bit. As far as I can tell there isn’t another American on the fight. Seeing all these different people is a lot of fun. It’s interesting what you pick up from body language (and how conscious you are of your own) when you can’t speak to people. In some ways, such exchanges are more genuine than a conversation. I can’t help but wonder about their families, their experiences, their likes and dislikes, their aspirations, their regrets. Where do they come from? Who do they miss? What are their stories? We all have a story and I’m a believer they are all fascinating in their own way.
They do their best not to cancel flights here because of the inefficient and irrational customs and immigration practices in Saudi (and probably b/c they don’t want to refund you). If the Saudis stamp you out, they expect you to come back with a stamp from wherever you were headed and will give you a hard time if you don’t. The immigration and customs process is unpredictable and time consuming when everyone plays by the rules. Throwing 200 people who didn't go anywhere into the mix might bring the entire “system” to its knees. So, trying to walk out of the airport right now would probably take a couple hours. I’m going to wait this flight out.
I’ll be gaining an hour when I get to Oman and then have an hour drive to the resort so at this pace, there is a good chance I’ll see the sunrise over the Gulf of Oman just about the time I arrive tomorrow. I’ll be exhausted, but I could think of worse ways to spend a Saturday morning…
The airport is fine. The lack of a bar is a bit disappointing but given the length of this delay, perhaps a good thing. Everyone is friendly, though I do stick out a bit. As far as I can tell there isn’t another American on the fight. Seeing all these different people is a lot of fun. It’s interesting what you pick up from body language (and how conscious you are of your own) when you can’t speak to people. In some ways, such exchanges are more genuine than a conversation. I can’t help but wonder about their families, their experiences, their likes and dislikes, their aspirations, their regrets. Where do they come from? Who do they miss? What are their stories? We all have a story and I’m a believer they are all fascinating in their own way.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Here Comes the Saudi Weekend!
The weekend in Saudi is Thursday and Friday...
I was planning to go to Dubai today for an office meeting but I literally couldn't get a flight. Sooo, I booked two nights at this resort in Muscat, Oman (see above) instead. It’s not exactly a Middle Eastern adventure, but I didn’t have much time to plan this week and this should make for a laid back weekend. I’m tentatively planning on Petra, Jordan next weekend…think Indiana Jones…
Coffee shops are all over the place and many of them are western (there’s a Starbucks inside my hotel…no surprise). However, none of them seem to have fruit. If you like chocolate covered muffins you’re all set. If you want an apple, good luck.
This is not a walking city and not just because of the heat. There aren’t any sidewalks in most places.
Everyone smokes here. I guess if you can’t drink, you find another vice…
It has now rained each of the last three days. This is apparently unheard of and there was severe flooding in the city yesterday. Everyone left early from work today (but the westerners) to avoid the late afternoon rain. What’s kind of funny about it is it really hasn’t rained that hard. I obviously didn’t bring an umbrella and haven’t really felt like I’ve needed one.
Working Hard or Hardly Working?
I’ve now spent 2 days working in Saudi and while I can’t write specifically about our project, I do have some general early observations about the Saudi work-life balance. From what I have seen, a typically work day for a Saudi is from ~9:30AM to ~3:30PM. Few women work and since they aren’t allowed to drive, their husbands leave early to help them run errands. Work is interrupted throughout the day for prayer, and holidays and vacations occur quite frequently. Ramadan alone essentially shuts down the country for the better part of a month. Like any place in the world, I am certain the typical work week varies depending on the person and profession. That said, while I don’t mean to make any generalizations, based on my limited experience in Saudi (and in the Middle East more broadly) this isn’t a “work first” culture.
I don’t mean for these perceptions to be critical. It’s simply a different lifestyle than what I as an American have grown accustomed too. This is a part of the world where God and family are truly placed above anything else. It’s an approach to life that many Americans may profess too, but few actually live out. Those are my sociological opinions on the matter.
Economically speaking, it isn’t a lifestyle that is conducive to becoming a significant player in the world economy. In that regard, the country’s ambitions and actions seem to be out of line. There is no real sense of urgency or drive, at least in the work force. This is in stark contrast to other parts of the world. I have some experience working with people in Indian and China and their approach to work – and more broadly speaking, economic progress - is on the opposite end of the spectrum. It’s no wonder they’ve had significant success in recent years.
There is no right or wrong way on this matter. It really comes down to priorities. However, I find it hard to believe a country can maintain this type of work-life culture and ascend to the top of the ranks of world economic powers. I guess only time will tell.
I don’t mean for these perceptions to be critical. It’s simply a different lifestyle than what I as an American have grown accustomed too. This is a part of the world where God and family are truly placed above anything else. It’s an approach to life that many Americans may profess too, but few actually live out. Those are my sociological opinions on the matter.
Economically speaking, it isn’t a lifestyle that is conducive to becoming a significant player in the world economy. In that regard, the country’s ambitions and actions seem to be out of line. There is no real sense of urgency or drive, at least in the work force. This is in stark contrast to other parts of the world. I have some experience working with people in Indian and China and their approach to work – and more broadly speaking, economic progress - is on the opposite end of the spectrum. It’s no wonder they’ve had significant success in recent years.
There is no right or wrong way on this matter. It really comes down to priorities. However, I find it hard to believe a country can maintain this type of work-life culture and ascend to the top of the ranks of world economic powers. I guess only time will tell.
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