The National Museum in Riyadh

Once in a while, we try to focus on broadening our cultural learning of the Kingdom and yesterday, we finally made it to the National Museum. We had previously attempted to find the place…in vain, so when the compound organized a bus, it was our sure way of getting there and back. I expected to visit a museum but was awed more by the park setting around the museum than the museum itself. We found a huge complex of parks, trees, laws, water features and interactive water games for children.

Being a weekend, hundreds of people were there, many spending the afternoon around a blanket/rug and picnicking in the park. Kids had brought their trikes and bikes and were having a blast while their abaya clad mothers, nannies and older sisters were sitting, watching over their brood and sipping on their tea.

The National Museum of Riyadh’s goal is to showcase the country's educational and cultural development and giving an insight into the history of the Kingdom. The Exhibits are centered around themes- Man and Universe, The Arabian Kingdoms, The Pre-Islamic Era, Prophet Mohammad's Mission, Islam and the Arab Peninsula, The First and Second Saudi State, The Unification of the Kingdom, The Hajj and Two Holy Mosques. We spent about one hour in the museum and felt like we were the only ones there. While the park was busy with people and occupations, very few entered the museum and browsed its galleries. We were able to see all the displays, alone, just like a VIP visit. I personally marveled in front of the various samples of Arabic writing throughout the ages. Alex loved pushing all the buttons on interactive map displays and Worth liked the rocks and minerals displays founf in Saudi. Unfortunately, it never was indicated whether displays were original or reproduction nor were they dated. The signage was bilingual Arabic and English which helps tremendously with the visit, but movies presented were only in Arabic.

A lot of the historical exhibits were linked with the Koran, having timelines representing historical facts at the times of Prophet Mohammed, Jesus, Abraham and Moses. Islam and its spread are so intertwined with the story of the Arabian Peninsula that it sometimes is impossible to explain history without talking religion.

All in all, I recommend a visit of the National Museum but I also suggest that you come early, bring your picnic and enjoy the park. In the warmer month, kids could even probably wear swimsuit and thoroughly enjoy all the water games.

Date Night

This past Thursday night the family went to the mall, which in itself is not that uncommon. It's always nice to just walk around the huge mall and finish up at the food court where all can make their own choice...and we do usually end up ordering from 4 outlets! So, all four of us have our food and are sitting, enjoying the meal in relative peace and quiet.


One thing I do miss is the people watching, as most women are covered. However, this weekend I did some great people watching and one lady caught my eye. She was sitting alone, at a big table. She slowly uncovered her face, taking her niquab (face cover) off and showing off her beautiful complexion and a perfect smile. Since she was alone, with no food in front of her, it was quite peculiar! Then, I looked at the table right next to hers, occupied by a man who was sitting so he was face to face with the woman and it hit me! She was showing her face to him! And he was rewarding her with the biggest smile. They started talking too... each sitting at a different table and separated by about 5 meters. After a few minutes of this, she put her niquab back on and left the table, to return to one occupied by her friends.

Is this an elicit Romeo and Juliet tale a la Saudi? Not quite sure, but what was certain is that the two were looking at and talking to each other in perfect anonymity...and we were witness to it ;-)

Tahra Tying Lesson

Today, before the photography club started meeting, a couple of girls were playing with their scarf/tarha and one had masterfully tied hers to only show her eyes. I’ve been in the Kindgom 18 months and still hadn’t figured out how to tie it and have it stay there! Well, good thing since today, I learned it from a 9 year old! I am now officially able to cover my face when going out in public.

To cover or not to cover...

Breaking news: Sheikh Ahmed al-Ghamdi, the Mecca head of the branch of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (or in short the Saudi Religious Police) has criticized the kingdom’s ban on gender mixing, the fact that Saudi women who are made to wear the veil and the Saudi law banning women from driving. Not just one but three aspects dealing with women’s life and women’s rights in the Kingdom are being challenged. In the past few weeks, we’ve noticed a lot of talk about women working at cash registers in some stores. Of course, we are not seeing them in Riyadh yet, as this is mainly happening in liberal Jeddah, but even there the people are quite divided. Some are lauding it as progress for women across the kingdom, others are outraged at women working and checking out men’s groceries in stores.


Consider this: many women are graduating from university and find themselves unemployed because a law is not allowing them to mix with unrelated men on the workplace. Plus they cannot drive themselves to work and have to rely on drivers to take them anywhere, so it really isn’t easy being a Saudi woman trying to work here.

I’m not sure where all this will lead, but I just hope that women will be able to do as they please, to cover or not to cover if they decide to and maybe, one day, to get in their car and drive themselves wherever they want. All these changes will take time and I doubt I will still be in the Kingdom when they happen!

"No need" for women to cover...  click this link for the article itself and to read comments to it!

VIP treatment

This weekend, I flew to Jeddah on the Red Sea to lead a 2 day PYP workshop. The coordinator at the school had arranged VIP treatment for my arrival, which was a first for me both in and out of Saudi. I was curious about what this exactly meant!

Upon landing at the Jeddah International Airport, I had received clear instructions: do not board the bus taking passengers from the plane to the terminal. Instead I found a beautiful dark colored full leather interior VIP Audi A8 waiting for me at the bottom of the jet way stairs.

I was whisked away in the plush comfortable Audi and taken to the VIP terminal, all furnished with fluffy sofas, wooden coffee tables and beautiful Arabian artwork, a far cry from the uncomfortable gray plastic chairs usually used in airports. Once in the VIP terminal, I was greeted by two representatives from the school who delivered me to the hotel.

The return was as interesting. Last night, the school representative borrowed my Iquama (the Saudi resident card) and my flight information, and went to the airport to check in for me. Today, he picked me up from the hotel one hour before my flight and drove me to the VIP lounge. I sat down, relaxed and when it was time, was driven in the wonderful VIP Audi A8 and dropped at the bottom of the jet way stairs. I had seat 1C, in first class… Still can’t figure out how that happened, since I was booked on an economy seat, I guess I should thank the VIP treatment! After finding my seat, I was offered a few dates and Arabic coffee.

Unfortunately, after a 30 minutes wait, we were all asked to deplane due to an issue with one of the doors and return to the terminal. Since no Audi was waiting for me this time as this was unscheduled event, I ended up boarding the bus and was taken back to the terminal. Once there, I saw those horrible plastic chairs…not very tempting! So I followed some of my fellow first class passengers directly into the first class lounge. Might as well use the VIP treatment all the way! I had access to the buffet, comfortable chairs, cappuccino machines, juices and soft drinks, but unlike any other first class lounge in the world, no hard stuff was served! After an almost three-hour delay we all boarded another plane and finally were en route back to Riyadh, enjoying a great flight in first class. Is there any other way to travel than VIP? It’s going to be difficult to fly economy next time!

At the Border

Last weekend, we had planned a mini-vacation in the marvelous Kingdom of Bahrain…so a short road trip to the border to be followed by an uncertain amount of time at the border. Before leaving the Kingdom, we all had to get the Exit-reentry visas for our passport. No paper, no leaving the Kingdom!

For those who are not too sure about its location, the Island of Bahrain is situated just a stone throw from the Eastern Coast of Saudi, right across from Dammam and the huge ARAMCO compound. It’s connected to the mainland via a 25 km long causeway with the border point in its middle.

Arriving to the border is usually painless. Its crossing on the other hand can be very lengthy or quick as a whistle, depending on the time of day you get there, mostly due to the fact that we are not going through just ONE border crossing, but more like SEVEN..yes, you’re reading this right…there are seven border checkpoints/stops/booths to go from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the much smaller Kingdom of Bahrain.

So, on a Wednesday evening, arm yourself with loads of patience, as the Saudi weekenders arrive in drove and all have to go through all seven points, just like all of you.

Number 1: Toll Booth – each vehicle pays a 20 SR (about 5 US$) toll to access the causeway and in exchange gets a receipt for that toll.

Number 2: Custom booth employee prints out a Custom paper and hands it to you.

Number 3: Saudi Immigration - You hand in your passport with the utmost important Exit-Reentry visa and get the Exit stamp from the Saudi Government on the paper visa stapled to your passport while your name is checked on their computer system.

Number 4: Hand your custom paper back to an officer, quick and easy!

Number 5: You’re about to enter Bahrain – so hand in your passport to the Bahraini immigration officer who skillfully applies yet another stamp to one of the empty (or near empty) passport sheets.

Number 6: Bahrain Customs – as a Saudi vehicle going into Bahrain, we are not stopped…Don’t have anything to hide! Story may be different for a Bahraini vehicle going back home.

Number 7: Bahrain Insurance, as it is necessary to purchase additional insurance in order to enter the island, even if you have already purchased additional insurance from your Saudi insurer…don’t bother, that insurance is useless. You will still have to get the Bahraini insurance, so hand out another 20 SR with a smile and the gate opens.

SMILE, take a deep breath, you are in Bahrain. Enjoy the weekend. On the cultural side, I can recommend the National Museum, the old Fort and a walk in the old town and tours of its restored houses. Some great little restaurants are nicely tucked in an area right behind the Gulf hotel. This time we stayed at the Novotel Al Dana Resort. I highly recommend it, quiet, picturesque and their breakfast buffet is just finger-licking good!

Eid-Al-Ahda

Yearly, the Muslims only celebrate two religious holidays: at the end of Ramadan and on the 10th day of the last Islamic Month. Those days move each year since the Muslim calendar is based on the lunar months. Eid-Al-Ahda commemorates the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son, following an order from God, but instead Abraham sacrificed a ram. The Bible has the same retelling but Christians do not celebrate it. On this holy day of remembrance, the Muslims will celebrate by slaughtering a sheep, the halal way. That means the sheep will face toward Mecca and won’t be allowed to see the blade of the butcher’s knife. The meat is then divived in three equal parts, to be given to the family, to their relatives and friends and the last third to the poor. In Saudi Arabia, Eid also means that millions of pilgrims converge annually to Mecca to perform the Hajj, the pilgrimage to the Holy sites of Islam in Mecca and Medina. Trying to fly towards Jeddah on the Red Sea is virtually Mission Impossible as pilgrims are flocking in droves and all planes are fully booked… Over four millions will again perform Hajj this year, including some of our colleagues who are going on “family trips” to Mecca as the pilgrimage is a good experience to live together.  They purchased an all-inclusive package, with flights, transfers, hotels, all meals and even a guide - a guarantee that all their needs will be met timely and in an organized fashion. 
As a preventative measure, we went grocery shopping this morning…as last year, by the time the holiday was over, the stores were empty: no produce and dairy were available, since the stores had not been replenished during the entire holiday. We also withdrew cash from the ATM, as those will soon be emptied and won’t be refilled until Nov 20! The country basically shuts down on the last few days, as all Muslims are celebrating, families are gathering…

One measure that the Saudi government has taken is the passing of strict laws for sheep slaughtering, preventing people from doing it in their backyard or in the street, but instead having them use mobile slaughter houses. As for the four million pilgrims in Mecca, they are also slaughtering…but indirectly. The pilgrims pay for a sheep that is then slaughtered. They receive some meat while the rest in given to the poor, in the country and also shipped to other poorer Muslim countries. It is a highly organized enterprise that works like clockwork and gets better at it each year.

Only sad that we, Christians, are not allowed in Mecca, the holiest place of Islam…

Children's Paradise

Last night, both children were invited and attended birthday parties. Both started and ended at about the same time and were rather close in proximity... So we spent our Thursday night driving around town, dropping kids at parties, having dinner at Café Blanc, a traditional Lebanese restaurant with a modern twist and picking up exhausted kids from parties. But, boy, was it worth it!


Emma has been invited to a Wave Pool party that could compete with any wave pool at an expensive water park! The location was in the Diplomatic Quarters, tucked away from the street and protected from eyes and noises by high walls. Her classmate’s parents had reserved the entire facility and expected between 200 and 300 children. Emma loved the full-size slides, the enormous waves and had the time of her life. When I dropped her, I met both parents who were very nice and welcoming. In typical Arabian hospitality, the mother invited me to stay, have coffee and eat a few sweets…so, in order not to be rude, I accepted and sat down, ate my sweet, a delicious chocolate covered with Almonds and nuts and drank a small Arabic coffee, but explained that I couldn’t stay as my son also had a birthday invitation and we still had to drop him. After inquiring about ending time, I left Emma in all the surrounding nannies’ hands and only came back five hours later to pick her up, exhausted, fed, happy and bearing more gifts than she came with! Those party favors would rival any “regular” birthday gift you could offer a “regular” child back in the States or in Europe! We’ve already decided to try and visit that wave pool again, as a family…

Alex had been invited to another Swimming party at a Palace…We had the map, with the location in red and it looked like it took an entire city block.. and boy, did we find it easily! It was THE biggest palace we’d seen before in a residential neighborhood. After showing the invitation to the gate guard (since they never expect Westerners to attend those Saudi royal kids’ party) Alex, his friend Toby and I were let in. Not sure where to go, we were about to knock on the front door…but a nanny came out of a “smaller “residence and gestured us to follow her, in a marbled floors, highly decorated maze of hallways all the way back to the children’s residence! Yes, you are reading this correctly, the children have their own house, decorated and equipped with children in mind: colorful, kids sizes furniture, TVs all over, 2 elevators, one disco, a play theater, indoor video games, indoor riding cars, popcorn and soft ice-cream machines…

But that was nothing compared to the outside playground… Alex calls it the “Fun Land” and it really truly was just that. A foot deep pool with a interactive water playground, bumper cars, carousel, Disneyworld “make you throw up” teacups, a train, 2 inflatable jumpies, one plastic ball pit, and a pool over 6 meter deep made for diving and swimming with two slides worthy of any water park. By the way, did I tell you that all this was there permanently…? The kids have their own play land and use it whenever they want!

I had the chance to talk with the birthday girl mother for a few minutes. She was super nice, wearing a beautiful bright yellow silk/satin gown, made up and coiffed to go out. Following protocol, I shook her hand only after she extended it; we chit-chatted a bit and talked about how much fun the children were having, how much they were enjoying the play areas and the disco. She was happy to hear this and said that this was for her children and their friends to enjoy and that my children were welcome back any time. It was just two moms talking about their kids… Just the two of us, the Belgian-American mother of two with Her Royal Highness, daughter of King Abdullah and granddaughter of King Abdul-Aziz, the founder of modern Saudi Arabia.

After all that fun, it was time to leave. Kids gathered their stuff and we were led back through the maze of hallways, stopping at the party favors table that again would put to shame any gifts you would think appropriate to give an 8 year old child!

All in all, a pretty exciting, fun-filled, "normal" Thursday night in the Magic Kingdom of Saudi Arabia!

10/10/10

So, where are you today, on 10/10/10 and what did you do? Today was as uneventful as a regular workday can be… Do you remember where you where on 9/9/09? I was in the States with the children while Worth was on the way to Saudi! How about on 8/8/88? That day was a pretty cool one…I was just a kid, hiking in the French Tarn area, sleeping in tents and under the stars, kayaking by day and bivouacking at night…Great memories of that summer camp! On 9/9/99 I guess I was at work too…if it was a workday. Otherwise resting on the weekend. Nothing memorable that day!


Anyways, I just had to log something in for today, 10/10/10! And see you all on 11/11/11!!! Let’s make cool plans for that one!

A culinary victory

For many expats, living in another country is a very culturally and culinary enriching experience, tasting new foods and discovering new places. However, one of the problems encountered living in a new place is not finding the usual ingredients used in recipes from "back home". Living in the States for 15 years, I know there are a few ingredients I couldn't find for my favorite Belgian recipes...and learned how to make do and use alternate options, or would bring back pearl sugar and others directly from Belgium.




Well, moving to Saudi has brought on the same issue. Just yesterday Alex, my son, wanted Southern Style Buttermilk biscuits for breakfast...so; I tried to make him some, knowing full well that I did not have buttermilk or shortening, two basic ingredients for the recipe! Well, the buttermilk biscuits were awful and hard to swallow, both as a food and as a culinary mess-up. But, as the great Charles Chaplin said "Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself." that failure was not important...and gave me courage to try again...this time after seeking better ingredients!



Last night, while at the grocery store Danube, I found what the Saudi call LABEN. I decided to give it a try as a replacement for the buttermilk. This morning, upon opening the bottle, my guess proved correct: ...not milk, not yogurt...not sure what is really is but it smelled like buttermilk and had a very similar consistency...



So, this cooking fool tried her hand again at buttermilk biscuits...and they turned great! Flaky consistency outside, moist and dense inside...just like they should be. Best proof of the success: the baking sheet is empty as my three buttermilk monsters ate them all!

Class Representative

Today, Emma, my 9 year old daughter, scored her first political victory when she successfully ran for class representative for the Grade 4 girls.  We spent about an hour last night making "Emma 4 class representative" flyers, all decorated with stickers...  She also wrote her speech, talking about how she's made friends with all of them, how she's not afraid of speaking up her mind in front of older students, how she will strive to make her classroom community better for all, and she even finished it with a little catchphrase "A vote for me is a vote for you!"  To be honest, she did get a little help from both her parents, but still, she's the one who wrote the speech and she presented it to her classmates this morning!
We are really proud of her, first for wanting to run and second for winning.  Emma is still the "new kid on the block" and doesn't have any title attached to her name...as the majority of her classmates are real princesses with titles to match.  She won "fair and square" with the girls voting for her.  Now, is she the most popular girl in her class?  Not sure, but the fact is that she was chosen a particular student who seems to be the bossiest of the class! 
Sweet victory!

Desert Encounter

Yesterday, on Saudi National day, we decided to go for a hike in the desert and convoyed with the Fantastic family. Trying to find a good place, we found ourselves on a gravel trail. It was pretty nice and we thought that we would be able to naviguate it without too much difficulty. Mr F however decided to leave his car behind at the beginning of the trail as he did not have high enough clearance.

So, here we are, all in the GMC Envoy, fresh out of the garage...actually almost first time out since we got it back. It is so much fun and the desert is beautiful, not sandy but rather hilly, rocky and gravely!

Those gravels did turn into a trap when the car started sliding, the wheels slipping out of control and eventually we got stuck in the gravel! Now, we are alone, just the two families, in the middle of the desert! None of our cellphones have reception, the "can you hear me now" guy should start working in the Kingdom. On the way there, not too far actually, we did see a bedouin camp, with a couple of tents and camels. So, in real case of emergency, we could always go ask them for help!

We do a quick water check: the camel pack is full, we also have 4 little bottles and another thermos full, so enough for a while. So, the guys dig around the wheel and decide to manouver to get the car out of its current predicament. The moms and the kids decide to explore around, climbing the nearby hills and looking around. Eventually, the car is freed from the gravel and decision is made to go back toward Riyadh, enough adventures for the day.

Guys get in the car and drive back to the Fantastic car which had been left not even a mile away while the kids and moms walk back. We spotted some of the desert gourds that pop up once in a while in the desert. Those are always popular with the kids who pick up the yellow ones and love to crush them! We believe they are not edible, as the animals do not seem to care for them, not even the camels.

Despite the turn of the events, we also were lucky to spot several herds: two of goats and one of camels, that one with their sheppard (I'm not sure how to call the guy working with camels, so sheppard he is today).  The man seemed genuinely happy to see people.  We greeted him in Arabic, asked him how he was doing.  He offered us to taste some camel milk.  Obviously, that meant to milk some of his camels as he was not carrying any with him....and my spirit of adventures had had enough for the day.  We did thank him very nicely in Arabic and he waved and smilled very nicely.  This bedouin would have given us milk if we had accepted, I am convinced of that! 

We also found a discarded camel harness that I picked up and brought home. It did not smell too god, but it's really cool to have one.  If you look at the camel picture you can see that some of them are wearing one. 

A little further we saw a victim of the desert!  A poor little goat seemingly had gotten stuck in wires and fell into a crevace.  Surprisingly it was not covered with maggots and flies, which made us think that it had happened quite recently.  I guess all that watching of CSI has educated me on the process of maggots growing on cadavers!  It did not even smell bad, yet!

 We also discovered another "fruit" we had not seen before: it looked like a giant lima bean, all soft and mushy.  Alex was desperate to pick it but I told him that the animals of the desert were eating those and that it was better to leave it hanging in the tree, so it would be freshly picked whenever an animal would find it! 

 

Despite the stress of getting "stuck" this desert walk that did not really happen was full of adventures and discoveries.  I can't wait for the next one...but with no gravel or inside a 4x4 vehicle!

Saudi Mobility

One of the more familiar aspects of living in Saudi Arabia is the necessity of owning a car. Public transportation is nonexistent, so it is necessary to own a car. Most Saudi families own multiple cars for their husband, wife(wives), and children. I would almost be willing to put money on the idea that there are almost as many cars in Riyadh as there are people in the city. So the roads are crowded and the driving here is unlike any driving that you would ever encounter in the worst driving cities in the United States. We no longer get excited to see cars running red lights as traffic flows, driving against traffic on 6 lane highways, and cars on fire scarcely get more than a nod of notice from us.


However, I can tell you that we do notice not having a car. For the last seven day we have been sans transportation. Our car would not crank up after we returned from the States. Chris , our neighbor/banker Sammi and the compound employees managed to get the car cranked up and when I returned it still worked. A week ago this past Sunday, I went to do some errands and came home. Our car had been making a high pitched humming noise that indicated an electrical issue since last April but we waited until we returned to attempt to have it fixed since it was not interfering with the operation of the car. Claude, a colleague and neighbor needed us to take him to a car shop because he had an issue with his car when lo and behold, our car wouldn’t crank again. I figured the car wouldn’t crank due to some reason associated with that noise. We couldn’t get the car started that evening so we tried again the next day and drove around. That Tuesday I dropped the car at the dealership to have it worked on. Mind you, the delay in bringing it to the shop had to do with the Muslim Eid holiday. That delay on the front end was being met with the holiday on Wednesday for Saudi national day. Had I not picked the car up today, we would have had another four days without a car. This would have been a problem because we need school supplies and provisions.

Our car got an oil change, changed the idle speed relay, a fan bearing replaced, had an A/C issue fixed, needed a new battery, had the cabin air filter cleaned and the rear door hinges replaced. Some of these things may have been covered by our cars extended warranty. When we got a car I was keen on buying a nearly new car since a warranty would fix any issues we had. This idea was validated by the fact that Claude, Josh and Rick all bought quite used cars and have lost a great deal of time and money on repairs. That’s not to say that they haven’t been good cars for them but I can confirm transmission and engine replacements as just some of the repairs.

We got quite lucky and the warranty covered most of the repairs. We lost the car for the week but all of the repairs I talked about cost less than 1,200 SR, roughly $346. Sure we paid a little more for the car, but it has really been quite worth it.

We have the car back, with the wheel and seat wrapped in plastic for protection!  Alex had a grand time taking it all off!

Saudi National Day

Tomorrow has been decreed a National Holiday by King Abdullah, the reigning monarch of Saudi Arabia and Custodian of the Holy Mosques.  In his honor and to celebrate the anniversary of Saudi, I researched a bit about Saudi Arabia history and am giving you my take on the Modern History of the Kingdom. 
Remember the breathtaking vistas from Lawrence of Arabia, vast expanses of desert, uninterrupted by anything beside the occasional camel? From that movie, you know that Saudi Arabia is a huge country occupying most of the Arabian peninsula. It currently has a population of about 22,000,000, including about five million foreigners. Earlier this year, we even became a part of the statistics when we filled in the Saudi Arabian Census form. Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam, has Mecca and Medina, the two holiest cities of Islam, and sees millions of Muslim pilgrims flock to Mecca and Medina yearly for the Haj.

From an economic perspective, Saudi has the world's largest reserve of oil, right below its surface, making it cheap to be retrieved and processed. Worth actually just filled up our GMC Envoy for the whopping amount of $9.00 for 74 liters, or 19.5 gallons!

Saudi Arabia has maintained good relationships with the USA, as all the photographs of the various US presidents meeting the Kings of Saudi Arabia hanging within the US Embassy here in Riyadh bear witness. There is a long history of political and economical bonds between the two countries that was put to a test when it turned out that many of the hijackers of September 11th attacks had Saudi passports and that their leader, Osama Bin Laden, came from a very wealthy Saudi family involved in the construction business. He has been stripped from his citizenship and is persona non grata in the Kingdom, although it’s quite daunting to see the Construction sites at the Kind Saud university protected by huge fences all bearing the Bin Laden Enterprises Name.

Saudi Arabia is a monarchy governed under strict Islamic laws of the Wahhabi sect, which regulate public behavior, especially for women and foreigners. Women cannot drive cars and have numerous other restrictions imposed on them.

From a historical perspective, various cultures have lived in the peninsula for over 5,000 years. But, except for a few major cities and oases, the harsh climate prevented much settlement of the Peninsula. Nomadic tribes always lived in the north and center, while the southern tribes were mostly sedentary. Oases made a sedentary way of life possible and provided stops on caravan routes.

The nomadic way of life and tribal organization of the interior of north and central Arabia made it difficult to form large stable political organizations. Already around 1500, one tribe seemed to take over the land; The Saud family was established in Ad Diriyah, in the center of Najd, near the modern capital of Riyadh. The family’s rise to power was also linked to an acceptance of the Wahhabi, one group within Islam and extended their power over most the center of the Peninsula. They advanced all the way to Mecca and Medina but lost the area to other tribes. In 1824 Riyadh and the vast territory around became the Saud capital. However, rivalry within the family weakened the Sauds and, overpowered by another tribal ruler, the Saud family fled to Kuwait.

In 1902, Abdul Aziz ibn Saud fought back for his family’s hold of Riyadh. Over the next 20 years, his tribe advanced all over the peninsula, including Mecca in 1924 and Medina in 1925. In 1932 he renamed his Kingdom Saudi Arabia, the Arabia of the Sauds! He did fight opposition from the religious group of Wahhabists who had no tolerance for necessary twentieth century innovations, including all machines and telegraph as well as the presence of non-Muslims in Saudi Arabia, forbidden by tradition and ended up defeating them in 1929. However, ever since, the Kingdom has seen internal battles between the most extreme forces in Wahhabism and the more pragmatic strain with suspicion cast on all new inventions. For example, the radio was first opposed but was later accepted when the King showed how it could be used to broadcast the Qu’ran. Wahhabi rule does remain strict in Saudi Arabia. No foreigners can become citizens. Women cannot get drivers licenses and cannot perform legal and financial procedures on their own. Alcohol is forbidden in the kingdom. The internet was outlawed for a while and is still government censured.

Shortly after becoming a kingdom, oil was discovered and transformed the face of the desert nation. Oil revenues have contributed to the wealth and fortunes of the Saud family, but unlike some other Gulf countries, this wealth has not brought on social changes and economic development like in Dubai or Abu Dhabi, UAE.

When King Abdul Aziz died in 1953, his son Saud accessed the throne. Every since, all the kings have been sons of Kind Abdul Aziz, all half-brothers, born from his wives. In 1964, King Saud was forced to abdicate because of criticism of his outrageous spending! His half-brother Prince Faisal became King, naming his half-brother Khalid his successor.

King Faisal was a frugal and observant monarch, raised in the Wahhabi. He introduced innovations such as television, inciting the opposition of conservative elements in the kingdom. Faisal is credited with abolishing slavery in Saudi Arabia in 1962. He was also active in foreign affairs. In 1973, he initiated an oil embargo following the Yom Kippur war, causing a sharp increase (tripled and quadrupled) the price of oil… Those growing up in the 70s remember how poor we were!!! But Saudi Arabia, as the world's largest exporter of oil, benefited from newfound prosperity. However, Faisal was assassinated in 1975 by his nephew, and Khalid became king.

King Khalid continued the process of modernization and under his rule Saudi Arabia initiated several foreign policy initiatives through Crown Prince Fahd. This moving forward was not appreciated by all and in 1979 fundamentalist Sunni riots in the Grand Mosque in Mecca were initiated by those who felt the kingdom had become too liberal and that the royal family had become steeped in corruption, ostentation, and imitation of the West. The rioters shot and killed a guard in the Grand Mosque, a holy place, where bloodshed is punishable by crucifixion. Only a fatwa, religious decree, allowed bloodshed to dislodge them by force.

King Khalid died in 1982 and was succeeded by Fahd, who designated Abdullah as crown prince. Saudi Arabia cooperated with the United States in keeping oil prices low in the 80s in order to hurt Soviet energy trade and bring down the Soviet economy. During Desert Storm in 1991, the kingdom accepted large numbers of US troops, and was a base for US operations against Iraq that remained after the conflict was over, angering traditionalists.

The Saudi Regime was rocked in 2003 by al-Qaeda attacks in Riyadh in May and November. Riots demanding reform by both traditionalists and democratic reformers also took place. Some of these attacks were directed on expat compounds (ours was hit) and aimed at hurting the Saudi Government. The unrest was met with arrests and force, but also with promises of reform.

King Fahd died in July 2005. His half-brother, Crown Prince Abdullah became king. He had been acting as regent after King Fahad had a incapacitating stroke in January 1996 and took care of all day-to-day affairs. Abdullah is the fifth son (out of 37 sons) of King Abdulasis bin Abdulrahman Al Saud, , the founder of modern Saudi Arabia, to ascend to the throne.

As you see, Saudi Arabia, in its 78 years of existence, has been torn by opposition, seen riches, family conflicts, attacks on its visiting workers, the end of slavery, a rise to modernity and has many years ahead to look forward.

Grocery Shopping

It's funny to confess this, but one of my guilty pleasures is grocery shopping at Carrefour on a Thursday morning,the first day of the weekend here!  Riyadh has three Carrefour grocery stores run by the French chain, selling all the best France has to offer.  All their upper level managers are imported from France as well as many of their customers!  It's what I call "expat central" on that weekend morning.
It is the place to buy your cheeses, delicacies, prepared food, fruits, vegetables and fresh dairy products imported directly from France and arriving on the shelves on Thursday morning. Many of their products are also the Carrefour store brand that you came to rely on for their price and quality. 
And, as I found out yesterday morning, their receipt is even printed in English, a big plus from the Arabic receipts from last year.  I can review the prices after purchasing all my goods and wonder how my total bill is always around the same amount, with 5 or 10 or 15 grocery bags filling my grocery cart!

Batha Souk

Today will/should be the last day of Ramadan, when at Iftar the Eid Mubarak will start, the most celebrated holiday of the Muslim year.  Families and friends will get together, eat and be merry and the children will receive gift envelopes with money.  So, as you can imagine, people all over Riyadh are antsy to finish Ramadan and their fast.  Since this is a holiday, all services in the compound will be suspended for the next 5 days, so might as well get out while we can!  This morning, Imy daughter Emma and I took the compound bus to go to the Souk.  The driver was supposed to take us to the Dirah Souk, where you can find rugs, decorations, appliances, and abayas...  Instead he dropped us at the Batha Souk, mostly a textile souk.  Emma accompanied me as she needed a new abaya to start school, since it is school policy that all girls grade 4 through 12 wear an abaya to arrive on school campus, to cross the street for PE classes and to leave in the afternoon. 

You may think that abaya shopping would be pretty quick, right....how many models of black abaya could exist...but you are so wrong!  The souk was just opening up when we arrived, lights turned on and merchandises were being displayed.  At first, we could not see many abaya shops.  After wandering around and checking out those that were opened, they just seemed to multiply.  Everywhere we looked you could see an abaya shop.  Emma is pretty picky (already, for age 9) for any piece of clothes..so imagine her choosing a black abaya.  We knew the length she needed and she wanted one with pink!  Of course, all the ones displayed had blue, green, orange, red or yellow stiched decorations...so those did not fit the bill! Eventually, at the 10th shop (or more, as I quit counting) she saw one that she liked with interesting looking sleeves, some rhinestones details and a cool design in the back...We had a winner!!!  To my surprise, her chosen abaya does not have any pink in it, but I did not say anything as to not have her change her mind!  After some bartering, just a matter of principle since we are at the souk after all, I paid the man and Emma immediately put on her new abaya and removed the too short old one she was wearing, without showing an inch of skin!  She's very quickly adapting to the "no show" rules of the Kingdom.

Two of my freshly arrived colleagues were accompaning us on this shopping trip.  It was their first time in a Riyadh souk and they did not know what to look at, sensory overload.  Since they are new, they are still looking for necessities and ended up buying shower gels, shampoos, lotion and hairdryer.  Throw in some cashewnuts, almonds and even a new abaya for one of them and it was a successful trip!  It was interesting to see it through their eyes.  They were interested in everything and asking me if the quoted prices were reasonable.  I felt like the oldtimer, which is kind of funny since I haven't been here a year!

Ramadan and Iftar

Right now, Muslims around the world are living Ramadan, the ninth month of their lunar calendar.  During this entire month, they fast and do not eat or drink from dawn until sunset.  The act of fasting is to teach Muslims about patience, humility, and spirituality. They pray more than usual during Ramadan and ask forgiveness for past sins, pray for guidance and help in refraining from everyday evils, and try to purify themselves through self-restraint and good deeds. In a way, you could compare this to the period of lent that Catholics live every year between Ash Wednesday and Easter.  However, unlike the Catholic lent, Ramadan is based on the lunar calendar and changes dates each year, moving backwards about eleven days each year depending on the moon. Because of that, we are not 100 % sure when the Ramadan will finish, as it depends on the sighting of a full moon, which may not happen if the sky is covered that night.. Prayer, which usually numbers five daily for about 5 minutes each time, are longer and in the last ten days of Ramadan, are very important.  In the evening, two hours after Iftar, the break of fast, we have been hearing prayers around town, for about 90 minutes.  There is another added prayer, in the middle of the night, around 1:00 am, which again lasts for 90 minutes.  I woke up last night, thank you jetlag, and heard the night prayers from the closest mosk.

 Now, during this whole Ramadan period, life for non-Muslims is also different if you live in Saudi.  It is extremely recommended to abstain from eating and drinking, laughing or behaving extravagantly in public.  Modesty in dress code should again be followed more strictly.  All in all, these are considerations for the respect of those fasting. 
What does it really mean to us?  Well, being in a workplace where many of our colleagues are Muslims, we do not eat or drink in front of them.  Today was our first day back and breakfast and lunch were offered, in a separate room.  We could see that some of our colleagues were fasting, from the low level of energy and the pale faces.  You have to understand that the sun rise around 4:30 am and set after 6:30 pm, which means 14 hours without water, while living in very high temperature in the middle of an arid desert!  I've considered not eating, but couldn't fantom not drinking.  I'm really feeling sympathy and respect for my colleagues and for Muslims around.  It's also interesting that until moving to Saudi, I really had never thought about the hardship of the fast.

At sunset Iftar or the break of fast happens by first eating one date and drinking a glass of water, then on to prayers.  It is after all important to eat nutritious and healthy foods after fasting all day.  Imagine the best of middle eastern food every night! Stuffed grape leaves, hummus, falaflel, pita,  baba ganouj, fattoush salad, tabouleh, lentil salad, fresh fruits and many many others!  Last Thursday I was invited to an Iftar banquet...what celebration!  Everybody was gathered, a prayer was said, dates were eaten by all, then more prayers, then off to a buffet with all kinds of great tasting food...  You can't live in the Middle East without having some favorites, of course and was really happy to have them again, after two months of western food fare.  I had not realized that I had missed it!

One of my colleagues was actually explaining all this to me and when asked what she missed the most during Ramadan she said coffee!  At Iftar, the first thing she has are TWO cups of black coffee...and somehow feels all that sudden a burst of energy.  Only then does she sits down and enjoy foods..and here I am, worried about all of them not drinking water during the day!

At the Iftar banquet, a man was pouring date juice from a special carafe...it was probably one of the best juices ever, a mix of what I think was rose water and date juice...Another man was going around pouring coffee as no self-respecting meal would be complete without cardamon coffee and Arabic sweets!

Bon Appetit, or more appropriately,  بالهناء والشفاء / بالهنا والشفا (bil-hanā' wa ash-shifā')

Return to the Magic Kingdom

After a busy summer break, it came time to fly back to Saudi, alone, as kids and hubby were staying behind for another week.  So, 3 flights and 2 layovers later, I arrived late last night at the villa and was glad to see our little kitty cat Gumbeaux alive and well, extremely happy to see me, purring and licking proving that!
The house was hot...probably close to 100 F/40 C inside when I entered.  We only had one AC unit running for the cat, which turns out not to be enough to cool the whole place in such high summer temperatures.  The floor felt sandy, the wooden side tables were covered with a thin film of sand (and cat's paw prints for some), the water in the toilet bowls had totally evaporated, the back door in the laundry room had piles of sand and ants all over who all came from the crack under the door and the dryer vent. 
So, at around 10:45 last night, I started vacuuming the floors, dusting the tables and mopping like a mad woman.  Eventually I had to go to bed and tried to fall asleep.  Not an easy task when you are jetlagged with 8 hours difference, and ahhh, before I knew it the alarm woke me up! 
Work from 9 to 3, then return home and on to another task: the car!  Of course, after sitting under the canopy for 2 months, the car battery was dead! OUr neighbor Sammy tried to jump it to no avail....We pushed the car on the street then workers pushed it to get it started, down a little side street.  We were trying to get it to crank up. There, Sammy got his cables again and ran it for 15 minutes...eventually it sta...rted. So, to make sure it wouldn't die, I drove around the compound for about 20 minutes, since I am not allowed to drive on the streets.  I even took the car outside between the walls and the fence! The army guys in their watch towers and the security guys at the front gate were looking at me driving around and laughing when they realised what was happening!  One of the army dudes even came out of his place to check it out! 
Then, after all that pushing, waiting, cranking, I did the most refreshing thing I could think about: carwash, with hot water coming straight from the water tank!  You should have seen how filthy the car was...Red sand all over. I had to clean the street afterwards!
Just now, some compound workers just delivered a NEW (at least to us) TV that lets us get over 35 channels, even Nat Geo and History channels.

Who said the compound was dead??? We had some excitement today! 

Summer vacation 2010

What a wirlwind of adventures we've had this summer.  We left the Kindgom on July 6th at 12:35 AM en route to Paris, from where we took a TGV train to Belgium to visit with my family and friends over there...  The day we arrived in Namur, the Tour de France was passing through and we had the chance to see the commercial caravan as well as the peloton wizzing through in less time it took to say "Look, here's the Tour de France".  Since the city was closed down, my parents met us at the train station, we put all our bags into the car my dad had parked the night before and we spent the afternoon watching the Caravan, getting some little souvenirs, even grabbing a Tour de France Souvenir bag.

Over the next two weeks, we saw many family members and friends, having dinners and parties here and there.  The children showed amazing adaptability and blended in with all the cousins and friends.  Throughout our stay Belgium was hit by an unsual heatwave and had us begging for AC!  My parents' converted attic where we slept was very hot but we pulled through and were able to enjoy the beautiful Belgian heat and sun..Not many times can you say that about Belgian weather!

Among the highlights was the visit with my cousin Vincianne of Liege and climbing over 360 steps to reach the citadel.  After this climb, we had a well-dereved mid-morning Aperitif at the reknowed Maison du Pequet, the oldest continuously opened cafe/bar since the 18th century.  For lunch we had the typical Boulet Frites (meatball in the yummiest sauce and fries) and Potee (green beans, bacon, potatoes and pork sausage).  We ended the afternoon behind the cathedral at the Village Gaulois with a refreshing drink.  Unfortunately this whole set-up was destoyed the next day by heavy winds and rains.

We also did the tourist tour of Bruxelles with a viewing of the world famous Manneken Pis and lunch in one of the narrow tourist streets.  This statue of a little boy has since several centuries been a major tourist attraction in the city.

Nobody actually knows why the manneken is there. He is believed to be nothing more than a decoration on top of a fountain, where people in the Middle-Ages came to get fresh water. Already in the 15th century a fountain called 'manneken-pis' existed in Rue de l'étuve. The official origin can be traced back to the 13th of August 1619 when the city ordered the sculptor Jerome Duquesnoy to make a new bronze statue of manneken-pis to replace an old and withered one. During the course of the centuries our little manneken has often been hidden to protect him against bombs of invading armies. He has also been stolen several times by plundering soldiers at times of conflict. Oftentimes, the Manneken-Pis gets a makeover from his wardrobe of more than 600 costumes.   He received his first costume on May the 1st 1698 by the governor of the Austrian Netherlands.  Nowadays he still receives new gear when folklorist groups visiting Brussels. There are many legends about the Manneken. According to one of them a little boy had watered against the door of a witch who lived where the fountain now stands. The witch was so angry that she turned the little boy into a statue. Another legend says that a man had lost his little son. He found the child after two days near the place where now the fountain of manneken-pis can be seen. When the father spotted his child, the latter was peeing. As a token of gratitude the father had the fountain with a statue of a peeing boy constructed.  I've also heard the legend of the little boy rescuing Brussels from a fire by peeing on it!  So as you can see, many legends surround this little guy!

On Saturdays one of our favorite things to do is just go to the market and see all the goods offered.  Kids also love to go as it always provides them opportunities to see small pets, goats, rabbits and poultry as well as get a pack of some delicious candy! 


 
 

So, after two weeks in Belgium we headed back to the States, in two shifts.  As we were all waiting to board the Atlanta-bound plane, an announcement looking for volunteers to give up their seats was made.  Worth and Emma decided to stay an extra night in Paris while Alex and I headed back to the States.  Unfortunately it took them two days to get back due to flight delays and missing the last connection... and they arrived just in time for the big Welcome Home party thrown by some of our Clinton friends...we must have been over 50 people at this Pigapolouza, with Cajun microwave pig, lots of pork goods and other yummy treats.  We had so much fun and are thankful to have such friends celebrating our return!
 
Over the next few weeks we visited with many friends, having breakfast, lunches and/or dinners at homes or restaurants...all those not very good for our waistlines!  We did a quick visit to see the family and cousins in Dallas, TX.  We also invaded Granny's house with all of our luggage for the length of our stay, although we tried to stay out of the house for various lengths of time.

One of Worth's favorite activities is playing golf with his regular game on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.  'The Rat Pack' game is a high stakes golf game wich deals out good chances to needle each other and play golf.  All of the Rat Packers were anxious for Worth to hit it in the bunkers since they just knew his sand game was so much better after living in Saudi Arabia.  Worth got the last laugh though when he won the Club Championship division all of his friends were playing.  He even was able to get some new clubs courtsey of his Mom for his 40th birthday.
 

Kids also had their share of fun, including a weeklong stay at World Disney World, in Orlando, Florida, as their Christmas and birthday present from their Granny.  Their Tante Elaine, my sister in law, planned the trip, organized their days and took them with her.  They came back loaded with Disney souvenirs, ranging from the traditional Mickey Ear Hats to a pin collection for Emma and a pressed pennies collection for Alex.  The kids thoroughly enjoyed their week in the Magic Kingdom.  Emma even swam with sharks and Alex rode a submarine!  They also prepared their authograph's books and brought them back full of signatures.  All in all, they will never forget their first time at Disney, having been able to enjoy all the rides, seeing all the sights. 

Thanks again to Tante Elaine for taking them to Orlando....as it allowed us to book a trip to a all-incluse resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica!  And what a trip that was!  Never had we taken such a luxurious vacation:  all inclusive in the land of rum and good times.  We spent our days at the pools, on the beach, snorkeling, kayaking, Hobi riding, biking...  We also went off the reservation and enjoyed a day trip to the hills where we tubed down the Great River and took a trip down a series of zip lines.  This was a first for both of us, wearing all the safety gear to glide safely from ropes hanging in the trees and above the river.  That was one of the coolest way to see the area trees and vegetation...

All in all, this was a summer to remember, busy as can be and full of adventures.  In two days, I'm heading back to the Magic Kindgom and will be followed by the rest of the family a few days later. 

Sharpie

It's funny how being back in the States makes me realize little things I had forgotten I was missing so much..  For example, picking up a People Magazine and not having any pages ripped up or legs and bossoms blackened with a thick sharpie.  I guess I was getting used to it or was not paying attention anymore.  This week, I'm leading a workshop and some participants started talking about censorship, which made me think of Saudi and of how aggravating it is to not be able to purchase a magazine with the guarantee of having all the pages still in the mag.
Might as well enjoy those while I can!

Ghost town

Imagine standing in the middle of a street and seeing the dust around being picked up by the wind, hearing the distant calls to prayer, marveling at the almost but not quite ripe bunches of dates hanging heavily from the palm trees, laughing at the stray cats frolicking in green lush front lawns, listening to the birds chirping in the lime trees.  Imagine children's bikes nicely parked under fabric tent carports, ripsticks waiting to be picked up again, lawn furniture gathering dust under the heavy sunrays...but not seeing a single person! 
Our compound has turned into a ghost town!  With the advent of summer and the summer vacation, all the families have vacated the premises, some with and some without the dads.  The maids are finding that their usual villas have been emptied for the summer, the nannies have been left behind, giving them also a much deserved summer break to enjoy.
Last night, we took our evening walk around the compound and truly did not see another person during our walk.  Some cats, some children's bikes and toys, but nobody else.  The majority of the villas seem emptied, many are actually being repainted and refurbished before new occupants move in.  That's the sad part of the summer, as we had to bid goodbye to some of our new friends who completed their contract in the Kindgom and moved on to literal and figurative greener pastures. 
So, to all of you still here, congrats, you are part of the few die-hards sticking it out during the summer.
And to those who have left, we are not very far behind...13 hours and 19 minutes to be exact until take off!

The Summer Exodus

Every year, a massive Exodus out of the Saudi capital city takes place. The Saudi schools finished this past Wednesday, many of the international schools finished a week or two ago...which means that Riyadh has already lost about half its population and that King Khaled International Airport is seeing its heaviest traffic since the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Summer in the middle of the Arabian desert is hot, temperatures are averaging 45 Celsius daily, in the shade and it's much hotter in the sun, as you all know.

Riyadh is a desert town with the old city of Diryah having been built at this location because of a wadi (Underground River) that could provide water to the Bedouin tribes on a consistent basis, giving them and their animals a little oasis of greenery in the middle of the unwelcoming expenses of sand. Things have changed since then, as most Saudi are urbanized, cars have replaced camels as daily mean of transportation, water comes from a water "factory" that desalinates water from the Gulf to use for daily household usage and bottled water comes from deep water wells and natural sources. BUT one thing has remained the same: the desert heat and dryness.

So, once school is over, Saudi and expat families pack their suitcases and leave the country behind. Their destinations however are different. Expats, like us, go "home" for the summer, wherever home is! So, tomorrow evening, we are heading home first to Belgium and then back to the States where we will stay away from the desert heat, although we will tackle the summer humidity when back in the South! All of our colleagues, almost without exceptions, have already left and are homebound for the summer break. They are going back to Canada, Australia, Singapore, Lebanon, Syria, the States, Colombia, Sweden, UK…

Most of our students also have already left Saudi to go spend the summer in one of their residences scattered around the globe. A few of the favorite places that kept popping up when they were discussing their summer plans included Paris, London, Rome, Madrid, Lebanon, New York, Los Angeles, the Maldives, Provence in the South of France...

So, who is left behind? Those who can’t afford a plane tickets, including manual laborer from Asia, families who just welcomed a baby, people who keep on working during the summer, those not fortunate to have an almost two month long summer break. There are advantages at staying put: the streets are much less congested with traffic, the shopping malls are running insane sales, like 70, 80 % off everything, hotels like the Four Seasons are almost giving you their rooms for the weekend for ridiculous amounts compared to the rest of the year..

Would all this entice me to stay?  Heck NO! We are so getting out of Saudi Arabia! Too hot and so many other reasons.  Just ask when you see us ...

Masalama and have a great summer.

A Girl's Guide To Saudi Arabia

This is it! Last day of school for the students...actually they didn’t even have school and reports were distributed this afternoon. I survived my first year in the Kindgom, with some ups and downs... and how fitting that TODAY Vanity Fair publishes a teaser for an article in their August issue about “A Girl’s Guide To Saudi Arabia”.  Link the Vanity Fair Article
Now, as a girl who now can say has lived in Saudi Arabia, I’m starting to know how to function in this society and the article is AGAIN talking about all the stereotypes of women in Saudi. Before moving here, I had heard and read it all...had to cover, could not travel alone, without a male guardian, could not do anything independently. Living here opened my eyes and ears and showed me that, although Saudi is still a very religiously controlled country, visiting women are treated with decency and are not required to cover completely...
Maybe I’m overreacting, but I even left this comment for the article: “ I'm writing this from Riyahd. As a western women currently living in Saudi Arabia I do not like this teaser article. It again perpetuates the stereotypes of being a woman in the Kingdom. Before moving here, I had the same idea as the author, but after 10 months here, there are more sides to the story than these quite sensationalized and exaggerated points of beign a women. I will buy the magazine when it comes out and will read it, hoping that the author went beyond what is believed life to be like in Saudi.”


Let this be heard and make sure to get a copy of the full article at publication!  That probably will be another blog!

Elections

Aujourd’hui j’ai exerce mon droit de vote en tant que citoyenne belge, vu que ma pauvre petite Belgique se trouve à nouveau dans une crise gouvernementale (et si on en croit certains medias au bord de la scission de la Flandre et de la Wallonie.) En tant que résidente belge a Riyad, inscrite à l’ambassade, j’ai eu le droit de m’inscrire pour les élections au sénat et a la chambre. Il y a quelques semaines, j’avais rempli mon formulaire pour les élections, la semaine passée, le consul est passe délivré ma convocation en main propre, donc j’étais prête pour les élections. Ce vendredi matin, l’équivalent du repos dominical partout dans le monde, je me suis rendue a l’ambassade. De la centaine de Belges inscrits, seulement 25 avaient décide de voter en personne, les autres ayant opte pour le vote par proxy. Le bureau de vote avait des assesseurs ainsi qu’un chef de bureau (tous personnel de l’ambassade). J’ai reçu mes deux bulletins de vote, me suis rendue dans un bureau servant d’isoloir et ai enfin contribue au bon déroulement de la démocratie belge !