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Riyadh, Jeddah or Al Khobar?
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georgiasmith



Joined: 30 Jan 2013
Posts: 3
PostPosted: Wed May 08, 2013 10:17 pm    Post subject: Riyadh, Jeddah or Al Khobar? Reply with quote
Hello People
Offered a good teaching job in a choice of:
Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar.
Would really appreciate some advice on which one to choose.
I am a woman in my 50s not interested in night clubs drinking etc. Would hope for some social life though book clubs, games etc etc.
Would love to be near the sea but hear Jeddah is dirty and polluted.
Also swimming and gym are very important to me.
Advice much appreciated
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nomad soul



Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
PostPosted: Wed May 08, 2013 10:27 pm    Post subject: Re: Riyadh, Jeddah or Al Khobar? Reply with quote
georgiasmith wrote:
Offered a good teaching job in a choice of: Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar.

Are you sure you're to be given a choice? If the offer is from a contracting company, you're not likely to have any say as to where you'd end up.
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georgiasmith



Joined: 30 Jan 2013
Posts: 3
PostPosted: Wed May 08, 2013 10:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Yes definitely have a choice
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cmp45



Joined: 17 Aug 2004
Posts: 1475
Location: KSA
PostPosted: Thu May 09, 2013 4:40 am    Post subject: Re: Riyadh, Jeddah or Al Khobar? Reply with quote
georgiasmith wrote:
Hello People
Offered a good teaching job in a choice of:
Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar.
Would really appreciate some advice on which one to choose.
I am a woman in my 50s not interested in night clubs drinking etc. Would hope for some social life though book clubs, games etc etc.
Would love to be near the sea but hear Jeddah is dirty and polluted.
Also swimming and gym are very important to me.
Advice much appreciated



All Cities = pollution

I am biased in favor of Riyadh mostly for the dry air as opposed to both coastal cities being quite sticky & humid. Generally speaking, I have heard that both costal cities are more open and liberal in comparison to Riyadh, but I think this is a subtle difference IMHO.

No interest in nightclubs or drinking??? Welcome to KSA...as there are no legal establishments that offer such entertainment. You develop your own social net work as you get to know your way around and meet people...if this is something you desire it's up to you to make it happen.

Quite frankly, the main focus should be the quality of the work place. if you have a crappy work place, then I doubt it will matter which city you are living in....life in general will be a daily misery.
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scot47



Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343
PostPosted: Thu May 09, 2013 7:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Jeddah, although the high humidity in summer can be a bit much.
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Heaton



Joined: 02 Jan 2012
Posts: 35
PostPosted: Thu May 09, 2013 7:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Al Khobar has the most foreigners thanks to the oil industry and the presence of Aramco. There are English book exchanges on the Aramco compound. The Eastern Province is "liberal" by Saudi standards, so it provides more social freedom than other parts of the country.
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scot47



Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343
PostPosted: Thu May 09, 2013 3:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Khobar (well, Dhahran) has the best library in KSA. The KFUPM Library can be used by non-university personnel - and EVEN BY WOMEN. The library is smaller than the mammoth one in Riyadh, but has a cataloguing system that functions. Huge collection of academic books on the region and works of general interest. Your chance to read, for example, the Complete Works of Trollope.

In Jeddah there is an excellent lending library Based on the grounds of the British Consulate (The BCL - British Community Library) Membership is open to those with "Western" passports.

Of course Riyadh has an Opera House but the Religious Establishment will not allow it to operate !
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sicklyman



Joined: 02 Feb 2013
Posts: 930
PostPosted: Thu May 09, 2013 6:43 pm    Post subject: Re: Riyadh, Jeddah or Al Khobar? Reply with quote
nomad soul wrote:
If the offer is from a contracting company, you're not likely to have any say as to where you'd end up.


Al Hoty allow you to choose your location so this is definitely not the case for all contractors.

If the OP enjoys a pool and a gym, a compound would probably be best. There seems to be more availability and choice compound-wise in Khobar than I've heard there is in Riyadh or Jeddah.

Pricey, but cheaper than living on a compound are memberships at hotel gyms/pools... but then, women might not be allowed in. The Crowne Plaza in Khobar would happily let my wife watch me swim, for example. And they wouldn't let her in the gym at all.
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scot47



Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343