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Drinking
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MoonMonkey



Joined: 18 Dec 2008
Posts: 33

PostPosted: Sun Aug 22, 2010 10:12 am    Post subject: Drinking Reply with quote

Hi everyone,

Everybody likes a drink right? With some many mixed messages on this forum can anyone confirm the facts, either from personal experience or knowledge of the laws.

1) Can you drink anywhere in Saudi (embassies, hotels, private homes, compounds, anywhere??)

2) Are there cities which are stricter, or less strict about the odd drink?

As someone who likes an occasional drink this is vital info, if its totally impossible to drink what else can replace it?

Thanks very much. Smile
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bulgogiboy



Joined: 23 Feb 2005
Posts: 803

PostPosted: Sun Aug 22, 2010 11:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hey,

I've researched this a bit myself Very Happy Alcohol is completely illegal everywhere in Saudi Arabia. Even Yemen has western hotels where you can go for a drink, but no such luck in Saudi. Any drinking done in Saudi is strictly illicit.

I would imagine you could drink at embassy parties, because that is on foreign soil, so to speak, although I'm not sure how easily people get invites to them...They probably have alcohol in the US military bases too.

I'm applying for jobs in Saudi at the moment, and have resigned myself to a booze-free experience whilst I'm there. Probably no bad thing actually! I'd rather drink nothing than drink some nasty homebrew from a dirty bathtub!
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Sadebugo



Joined: 10 May 2003
Posts: 524

PostPosted: Sun Aug 22, 2010 12:48 pm    Post subject: Re: Drinking Reply with quote

MoonMonkey wrote:
Hi everyone,

Everybody likes a drink right? With some many mixed messages on this forum can anyone confirm the facts, either from personal experience or knowledge of the laws.

1) Can you drink anywhere in Saudi (embassies, hotels, private homes, compounds, anywhere??)

2) Are there cities which are stricter, or less strict about the odd drink?

As someone who likes an occasional drink this is vital info, if its totally impossible to drink what else can replace it?

Thanks very much. Smile


I don't drink but anyone in Saudi can direct you to individuals on the compound who regularly brew. The Saudis know this is going on just as they know Western women are walking around in shorts on the compounds. But, as long as it's not thrown in their faces, they pretend it's not happening.

Sadebugo
http://travldawrld.blogspot.com/
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cmp45



Joined: 17 Aug 2004
Posts: 1475
Location: KSA

PostPosted: Sun Aug 22, 2010 12:58 pm    Post subject: Re: Drinking Reply with quote

MoonMonkey wrote:
Hi everyone,

Everybody likes a drink right? With some many mixed messages on this forum can anyone confirm the facts, either from personal experience or knowledge of the laws.
1) Can you drink anywhere in Saudi (embassies, hotels, private homes, compounds, anywhere??)

2) Are there cities which are stricter, or less strict about the odd drink?

As someone who likes an occasional drink this is vital info, if its totally impossible to drink what else can replace it?

Thanks very much. Smile


A variety of facts/ laws regarding Saudi Arabia can easily be obtained, if you do a search on the web...as for personal experiences...well that's another thing...am sure there are the 'usual suspects' that may be willing to share their madcap experiences. As well as, give you tips on where to find it and / or brew your own??? Personally, I abstain while in the country and indulge when outside of KSA on a break. If you choose to indulge within KSA, you do so at your own risk!
However, if you absolutely can not live with out a "drink" perhaps you should seek employment in the more moderate Gulf countries that allow 'proper' alcohol. Or...check your self into a rehab center??? Razz

What else can replace 'it'? Hmmmn, let me think on that and get back to you.... Rolling Eyes Shocked


Last edited by cmp45 on Sun Aug 22, 2010 1:38 pm; edited 1 time in total
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007



Joined: 30 Oct 2006
Posts: 2684
Location: UK/Veteran of the Magic Kingdom

PostPosted: Sun Aug 22, 2010 1:27 pm    Post subject: Re: Drinking Reply with quote

MoonMonkey wrote:
Hi everyone,

Everybody likes a drink right?

No.

Quote:
With some many mixed messages on this forum can anyone confirm the facts, either from personal experience or knowledge of the laws.

1) Can you drink anywhere in Saudi (embassies, hotels, private homes, compounds, anywhere??)

2) Are there cities which are stricter, or less strict about the odd drink?


The Magic Kingdom's law of alcohol t says:
"Sentences for alcohol offences range from a few weeks or months imprisonment for consumption to several years for smuggling, manufacturing or distributing alcohol. Lashes can also be part of the sentence; and a hefty Customs fine if smuggled alcohol is involved. The authorities also hand out stiff penalties to people found in possession of equipment for making alcohol."

The above law applies for both Saudis and non-Saudis!

77 lashes if you drink privately, and 499 lashes plus deportation if you drink in public! Laughing


Quote:
As someone who likes an occasional drink this is vital info, if its totally impossible to drink what else can replace it?

Try camel milk with Zanjabeel mixed with black grapes! Laughing
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veiledsentiments



Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA

PostPosted: Sun Aug 22, 2010 2:12 pm    Post subject: Re: Drinking Reply with quote

MoonMonkey wrote:
Everybody likes a drink right?

Not true at all. I don't drink because I don't like either the taste nor the downer that alcohol provides.

I would second the suggestion that you might want to avoid Saudi Arabia and Kuwait and get a job in Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE, or Oman, where one can buy drinks in the hotels and purchase booze at a liquor store for home usage.

VS
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johnslat



Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 13859
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA

PostPosted: Sun Aug 22, 2010 2:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Dear MoonMonkey,

Can you drink in Saudi? Sure - heck I knew people who BECAME alcoholics there (as well as people who became teetotalers.)

Is it wise to drink in Saudi? Probably not - unless you keep it strictly to "at-home" drinking and never go out when drunk or even when smelling of drink.

Of course, the problem there is that when drinking most people tend to throw good sense and discretion out the window.

In my nineteen years there, I witnessed a number of teachers get into trouble because of alcohol. Some ended up in jail; others were just fired and deported. A few had both happen to them.

Drinking, in my experience, was the major cause of teachers' running afoul of the law and of having to seek employment in some other country.

So, if you like to indulge but want to teach in the Middle East, listen to the other posters: go to one of the countries where it's NOT illegal.

Regards,
John
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Cleopatra



Joined: 28 Jun 2003
Posts: 3657
Location: Tuamago Archipelago

PostPosted: Sun Aug 22, 2010 5:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Although the same cannot be said for many things in Saudi Arabia, the law as regards alcohol is crystal clear: It is illegal, always and everywhere.

Now, just because something is illegal does not neccessarily mean it is unobtainable, just as illegal drugs are readily availble in the cities of the US and Europe if you know who to ask. Pretty much the same goes for alcohol in KSA: many expats brew their own 'wine' and there's even a black market in the real stuff, though naturally you'll pay through the nose for that bottle of bootleg Johnny Walker or Absolut Vodka, so most people stick to the moonshine.

As John has said, you need to be very careful when indulging in a tipple in KSA. Nobody cares what you get up to at home, but do not go outside your apartment or compoud if you are in any way under the influence. I know of people who have been arrested for alcohol consumption when they fell over drunk literally outside the gates of the embassy where they were attending a party.

I would also agree with those who say that if alcohol is an essential part of your life, KSA is clearly not the idea destination for you.
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Puddlesz



Joined: 14 Jul 2010
Posts: 16

PostPosted: Sun Aug 22, 2010 7:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I also agree with VS. If your desire to consume alcohol is so strong, then I advise you not to teach in Saudi Arabia or the Middle East in general. Try taking up teaching in Europe.
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sharter



Joined: 25 Jun 2008
Posts: 878
Location: All over the place

PostPosted: Wed Aug 25, 2010 8:58 am    Post subject: booze in saudi Reply with quote

You can buy all the ingredients locally. Sugar, baking yeast 100% grape juice and water...hey presto wine after a couple of weeks. Alcohol is good in moderation so ignore all the puritanical posts you get from the angels on this board. Moreover, in the Gulf a large part of the expat social scene involves going to houses and eating and drinking. Go to Saudi for the dosh, brew up and leave the hell hole as soon as you have got your dosh. I was on a compound where everyone, except the fundamentalist British Pakistanis , brewed and we had a laugh. Bahrain is another option but you will burn dough there.

Good luck.
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scot47



Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343

PostPosted: Wed Aug 25, 2010 12:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

"Everybody likes a drink right?"

WELL, ACTUALLY, NO. yOU HAVE IT WRONG THERE !
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Captain Willard



Joined: 11 Sep 2010
Posts: 251

PostPosted: Tue Nov 02, 2010 4:02 pm    Post subject: Re: booze in saudi Reply with quote

Is brewers' yeast illegal too?

Can the authorities tell the difference?

I may need some for nutritional purposes only.

Smile

sharter wrote:
You can buy all the ingredients locally. Sugar, baking yeast 100% grape juice and water...hey presto wine after a couple of weeks. Alcohol is good in moderation so ignore all the puritanical posts you get from the angels on this board. Moreover, in the Gulf a large part of the expat social scene involves going to houses and eating and drinking. Go to Saudi for the dosh, brew up and leave the hell hole as soon as you have got your dosh. I was on a compound where everyone, except the fundamentalist British Pakistanis , brewed and we had a laugh. Bahrain is another option but you will burn dough there.

Good luck.
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scot47



Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343

PostPosted: Tue Nov 02, 2010 4:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Not only Pakistanis refrain from the manufacture, sale, distribution and use of beverage alcohol !
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WhatTimeFinish?



Joined: 27 Sep 2010
Posts: 22
Location: On the sofa, in my pants

PostPosted: Tue Nov 02, 2010 4:57 pm    Post subject: Re: booze in saudi Reply with quote

Captain Willard wrote:
Is brewers' yeast illegal too?


Anecdote Alert!

I was told that you can take full brewing kits into Saudi, in your luggage. These will make you up to 5 gallons of high-grade wine from 1 gallon of concentrated grape juice, wine yeast etc. Expat workers have been stopped on the way in and luggage searched, uncovering their kit. The Saudis on the borders, who are primarily checking for weapons and religious paraphernalia, most probably indulge in booze themselves as they're so close to a country that isn't dry (if you're crossing by road, anyway), and will not bother to even confiscate your booty.

But, remember that if you're caught with anything illegal and if the customs or police guy is determined to be a c*** you could go to a very nasty Saudi jail. You have to ask yourself if it is really worth the hassle when you should be able to fly/drive out on a regular basis? Saudi is a country where you can buy illicit prescription and non-prescription drugs and labelled and non-labelled booze, but this is very, very well hidden because of its draconian laws and punishments.

The postal service is pretty dire though, which can work to your advantage if you know the name of the previous occupant of your property and know that they've left the country for good.

Or just make a name up!!
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johnslat



Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 13859
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA

PostPosted: Tue Nov 02, 2010 6:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Dear scot47,

"Everybody likes a drink right?"

WELL, ACTUALLY, NO. yOU HAVE IT WRONG THERE !"

Umm, actually I'd say he has it right. You and I DO like A drink. In fact, we like it TOO much. The problem is we can't stop with just A drink.

Regards,
Anonymous John
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