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Mark100 · Joined: 05 Feb 2003 Posts: 441

Such is life in saudi that you will probably want to go to the supermarket just to get out and about.

The highlight for many teachers when i was working at KFMMC was the bus ride into Khobar and then the wander around the shops.

Sad but true.

Cleopatra · Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 10:40 am Post subject:

Griff-James · Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 11:31 am Post subject:

"Such is life in saudi that you will probably want to go to the supermarket just to get out and about.

The highlight for many teachers when i was working at KFMMC was the bus ride into Khobar and then the wander around the shops. "

Very droll, Mark. Smile

johnslat · Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 1:45 pm Post subject: Relativity

Hmmm, if it is indeed droll, it is also (at least in my opinion) a fact. But then, I suppose there can be such an entity as a droll fact.
Supermarket day was most certainly the highlight of many weeks for me in Saudi. I used to go there, filled with the hope that perhaps there would be a new fruit or vegetable on display.
And then, there was the Jarir bookstore right next door. Paradise, indeed.
Living in Saudi can get one to more fully appreciate the pleasures that are often classified as "small", not to mention increasing one's patience level and capacity for deferred gratification.
It's all relative.
Regards,
John

Griff-James · Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 6:28 pm Post subject:

Lordy!

Mia Xanthi · Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 7:19 pm Post subject:

Griff-James · Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 7:37 pm Post subject:

I enjoy reading, writing and physical activity.

Griff-James · Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 7:47 pm Post subject:

Wilfred Thesiger, Paul Theroux, Colin Thubron, PG Wodehouse, JG Ballard, Ambrose Bierce...

johnslat · Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 11:16 pm Post subject:

Dear Griff-Jones,
Then you should do well there. Reading and writing are essentially solitary occupations and even physical activity often is, too. Those three activities (and after 1996, the Net) were my mainstays during my time there.
Have you ever wanted to read all those LONG, Victorian novels: Thackery, Trollope, Austen, the Brontes, Dickens? Saudi is the place to do it.
Regards,
John
P.S. I like your taste in authors.

Mark100 · Joined: 05 Feb 2003 Posts: 441

When i cleaned out my bookshelves before departing KSA i was rather amazed to find nearly 400 books.

This figure probably only represents half of all the books i read in Saudi.

At one stage i was reading 3 books a week but generally i would get through two a week.

If you like historical fiction i can highly recommend the Rome series by Colleen McCollugh...spelling might be wrong...great reads and also take you a while to read them.

BTW

The bus ride into Khobar and the shopping were indeed the highlight of the week for most people at KFMMC.

THere was always a lot of thought and planning before the bus trip into town.

johnslat · Posted: Fri Jun 20, 2008 1:48 am Post subject: We are all roamers

Dear Mark100,
After doing a little research on Colleen McCullough, I may have to give her another chance,
"The Thorn Birds" was one of the very few books I have begun and was unable to finish.
But everyone deserves a second chance; the "Rome" novels (ancient Rome has always been one of my great interests) look very promising:

"The depth of historical research in the Roman novels led to her being created a Doctor of Letters by Macquarie University in 1993."

Regards,
John

Cleopatra · Posted: Fri Jun 20, 2008 12:24 pm Post subject:

Regarding McCollough's Rome series, even if - like me - you are an ancient history nerd, these books can be a little too detailed. Definitely not for those who need 'action' on every single page. Doubtless the author took on this project not for the money - I doubt there's a huge audience for 500-page tomes covering the intricacies of Roman republican politics - but more from a personal passion. She even drew the maps in the books herself.

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

I found that after the first 3 volumes or so, you had... rather maxed out on Rome and Caesar. As Cleo said... even if you love the subject.

They will definitely help fill one's time in the Gulf though. Laughing

I had already done the whole Victorian novels routine suggested by JohnS too. In most Gulf libraries, these were about all the fiction that they had in English.

VS

WhatsGrammar? · Joined: 05 Jun 2008 Posts: 54

ghost · Joined: 30 Jan 2003 Posts: 1693 Location: Saudi Arabia

The per capita income for Saudi Arabia was around $20,700 in 2007, which is quite a bit less than EFL teachers make.

Check this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita

Of course, there are Saudis who were formerly from countries like Yemen, etc., who may bring the numbers down, but overall, teachers are certainly not impoverished, taking into account the fringe benefits, including free housing. Everything is relative.

In Korea, most teachers on their salaries of around $2500 u.s. are right around the national average, but the foreign teachers may have more disposable income, thanks, once again, to the free housing. At the end of the day, the disposable income you have and savings, can compensate a lot for a relatively modest salary. In Saudi a teacher making $3300 u.s. is about equivalent to a Canadian making $5000, thanks to the fringe benefits and savings possible, including free airfares. Not to mention tax deductions, which are heavy for Canadians who earn decent salaries.

Ghost