It is a woman's perspective on life in the Kingdom, and there is no question that the "d" restrictions, that is, dress, demeanor, and driving, weigh more heavily on the Western woman than the Western man. And it is compounded by that wonderfully fuzzy and gray era on quasi-legal work. Cuddihy was in that sub-set, with the right personality, to rise to the challenge. She decided to explore, and come to terms with the world around her. At some level, it would seem self-evident, but success lay in breaking out of the endless griping and gossiping of the company coffee klatches. She (and her husband) made non-company friends, explored Riyadh, took up tennis, learned Arabic, and even more seemingly bizarre, certainly from the point of view of other members of the compound, sought out Saudi friends...

Written by a female Middle East expert, Bradt’s Saudi Arabia is the first English-language travel guide from a mainstream publisher that focuses exclusively on the Kingdom, which has now opened for general tourism as part of rapid political, economic and social reforms. With detailed advice on what to see and do, listings for accommodation and restaurants, guidance on cultural etiquette and advice for women and other diverse travellers, this book provides the practical information adventurous tourists need to explore this new, exciting destination. Saudi Arabia will appeal to adventure travellers, offering activities ranging from pristine, world-class scuba diving to mountain-trekking. With dramatic scenery including a desert that stretches for hundreds of kilometres (where you can camp like a Bedouin) and several accessible nature reserves, visitors looking for undisturbed landscapes are spoilt for choice. Culture vultures will appreciate pre-Islamic rock art, Nabatean heritage, Mada’in Saleh (the sister city to Jordan’s Petra in Jordan) and six UNESCO World Heritage Sites rarely visited by international tourists. Particularly after sundown, when Saudi Arabia truly comes alive, urbanites can explore the cities of Riyadh and Jeddah, where shopping opportunities range from traditional souqs to top-end malls where the wealthy go to see and be seen. Gastronomists can enjoy varied cuisine, from fine dining worthy of a Michelin star to traditional meals served on the floor, shared by all and eaten by hand. This guide dispels misinformation by providing an unbiased, up-to-date and comprehensive resource that accurately reflects what Saudi Arabia now offers visitors from all backgrounds. Most outsiders know little about the Kingdom other than from typically negative media coverage, so may be pleasantly surprised at its rich history and youthful population eager to extend hospitality to guests respecting their culture and traditions. A comprehensive guide combining detailed travel information about the entire Kingdom (from the Northern Borders to Asir, and from Hejaz to Eastern Province) with a chapter explaining some of the main practices of and reasons for the hajj and umrah pilgrimages, plus contextual insights covering cultural etiquette, reforms and women travellers, Bradt’s Saudi Arabia is the perfect companion for people who thrive on off-the-beaten-path travel.

Working and Living in Saudi Arabia' provides valuable cultural and practical business information necessary for all professionals working and travelling to Saudi Arabia, including those who may be working and living in other Middle East countries.

Secrets Under the Veil is a compilation of stories of two expatriates contracted to work in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for a two year period. They experienced situations that were culturally shocking to them and often frustrating. The contracts they signed were misleading and incredibly restrictive. Some of the stories may or may not surprise you but you will surely be entertained. Nonetheless, the experiences these women had created memories of a lifetime and are irreplaceable.

In the wealthy Saudi oil kingdom there is no such thing as secular law or modern courts. Instead, Saudi princes create the laws, based on Sharia, Islamic law derived from the Koran and Hadith, and the muttawas act as judges, enforcers, and executioners.

Lyn Stafford writes her memoir about her time in the 1980s, when she leaves a low-paying job in Alabama to sign a two-year contract in Saudi Arabia. There, she will help launch a new medical journal for the King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh to be named The Annals of Saudi Medicine. She knows that her decision will cost her. Even though her family's future is the reason for her going to the Middle East, her life in the Kingdom is fraught with risks she never planned for, and the unintended consequences of taking those risks. It seems her fears of not being able to be mother to her three children and daughter to her parents from so many thousands of miles away may all be coming true. But the immediate problems arrive on her doorstep because she has arrived at a moment in history, the third Saudi Arabian Five-Year Plan, when all expatriates and their jobs are at risk. She soon finds out how vulnerable she and all her friends in that hospital are to corruption, surveillance, and even violence by the Hospital's Security Forces. With the help of letters from home and especially from the expatriate underground, which consisted mostly of ham radio operators and returning expats smuggling in news, she begins to see how what she cannot see is affecting everything she can.This curious narrative is about the remarkable, sometimes foolhardy, men and women who navigate an exotic but treacherous landscape. Lyn's carefully researched memoir explores the lives of expatriates in a crazy, politically mixed-up, often dangerous, but beautiful world that seems to have lost its compass.

The book is a story of an ex-pat and his experiences, along with his fellow ex-pat tales which includes helicopter evacuations from dangerous situations, working with ex-KGB and IRA members, insider trade dealings, encounters with mafia gangs, middle eastern conflicts, sex, funny tales including romance, marraige and friendships forged in adversity.

SAUDI ARABIA. Jejo Das went to work in Riyadh as a driver, believing that would secure his future. No such luck. He had to return dejected to India after suffering extreme humiliation. His colleague Soman was physically tortured by his employer for getting his wife's instead of his approval for a driving licence. Soman wants to return to India too but is not being allowed to leave. He is his employer's prisoner. OMAN. Chandra Babu and his family used to live in abject poverty. So Babu left for Saudi Arabia to work as a labourer, hoping for a better future. That did not happen. Disillusioned, he returned home. The next stop was Kuwait from where he returned without a rupee in his pocket. He then went to Oman where his dreams began to come true. While there, he witnessed the pain and struggle of many persecuted Indians and started helping them. One of them was of a housekeeper, Kumari, who had moved to Oman after being ill-treated by an Indian family in Dubai. But she fared worse in her new job. Unable to bear the brutality of her Omani employers, she sought refuge at the Indian embassy. Babuhelped her raise the money for her return ticket to India. UAE. GopalRaghavan arrived in Dubai with only dreams and a tattered bag. For a while those dreams remained just that. Then, suddenly, his fortune turned. Today, he is wealthy and contented. ChandyVerghese wasn't as lucky. A senior journalist working for a newspaper in Sharjah, Chandy went through a harrowing experience at the hands of his new boss, the daughter of the newspaper establishment's chairman, and was forced to return home. KUWAIT. Sarah, from the Philippines, was taken for a ride by her Kuwait employer. Fortunately she was able to overcame all the impediments in her way. But Rani, from Cuddapah in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, wasn't as fortunate. Not only was she repeatedly raped by her employer and his son but also not paid her salary for months. Rani endured the pain and humiliation for a long time until she managed to flee to a new employer. However misfortune continued to shadow her]] These are real-life expat tales from Arabia]]some sour, some sweet.

From the author of Threading My Prayer Rug, an eye-opening view of life in Saudi Arabia. It’s Not What You Think is a wry, incisive account of working in Saudi Arabia that offers insight into that insular patriarchal society, what is so attractive to expatriates living there, and what was contradictory or confining about it for a naturalized American who is a woman and a Muslim. A hospital executive in New Jersey, Sabeeha relocated with her oncologist husband to Riyadh, the most conservative city in the country, intending to remain two years. They ended up staying for six. Her book takes the reader on a journey of discovery that mirrors her own. Offered an influential position at Riyadh’s most prestigious hospital, she first has to obtain her husband’s permission to work. In public spaces, she quickly encounters the morality police but also learns the freedom of the abaya. Salesmen staff the lingerie department. Women in Riyadh do not work in public places, yet they hold positions of authority within corporate culture; and outside Riyadh, she discovers that women-owned-and-operated businesses flourish, and Bedouin women could drive in the desert decades before Riyadh’s ban was relaxed. Through Sabeeha’s eyes, we see how Saudi and Western expat cultures coexist within the boundaries of “don’t ask, don’t tell,” how traditions define the identity of the Saudi nation, and how to discern what is “culturally appropriate” versus what is required legally. As she dons pilgrim’s garb, we join her on the Hajj, to discover the intensity and spiritual high of the devout.