Working in Saudi Arabia

[yuli]

A woman from Australia was raped in Saudi and then had to serve 8 months for 'adultery'.

Since when is Saudi Arabia part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE)?

[Askr]

A woman from Australia was raped in Saudi and then had to serve 8 months for 'adultery'.

Since when is Saudi Arabia part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE)?

Ever since I forgot to check my post before submitting.
Sorry I meant a woman was raped in the United Arab Emirates and then got sent to prison.
Got to be careful in foreign countries.

[Got To Be Kidding]

Actually, a woman can travel alone in Arab countries as long as she takes a moment to understand the culture - and that she can depend on certain elements of Arabic culture to come to her aid. And no, she doesn't need dress like a local, but she does need to try and understand how a society works to steer clear of the danger zones.

For instance, a woman traveling alone in an Arab country should never, ever sit in the front seat of a taxi.

She should never sit next to a guy on a bus.

Modest clothing, always.

Never allow a man to touch you.

etc.

I know that it sounds 'backward', but when in Rome...

[Askr]

Actually, a woman can travel alone in Arab countries as long as she takes a moment to understand the culture - and that she can depend on certain elements of Arabic culture to come to her aid. And no, she doesn't need dress like a local, but she does need to try and understand how a society works to steer clear of the danger zones.

For instance, a woman traveling alone in an Arab country should never, ever sit in the front seat of a taxi.

She should never sit next to a guy on a bus.

Modest clothing, always.

Never allow a man to touch you.

etc.

I know that it sounds 'backward', but when in Rome...

Yes, well said.
I met a lovely Italian lady in bangladesh who was traveling solo. The lack of women on the street is very noticeable there.
There are very very few tourists in Bangladesh (i met 4 in 10 days). Any foreign tourist gets a crowd of people wherever they go.
But she had no problem wherever she went. Totally knew where she was and what she was doing. She travelled solo through Pakistan as well before it got to dangerous.

[Gao Bohan]

I've known several American engineers and technicians who lived and worked in Saudi Arabia, and for the most part enjoyed themselves. At my last job, one of my customers lived there for three years, made a ton of money, and is glad he went. He had a rather peculiar experience once, however. He was walking around Old Riyadh when a group of mutaween (Saudi's religious police) grabbed him and forced him to follow them to a public square. A Saudi woman who had been convicted of adultery was there disrobed, humiliated, and beheaded.

Any comparisons between Saudi Arabia and the USA in terms of human rights are disingenuous and idiotic.

[GuyInTaiwan]

A woman from Australia was raped in Saudi and then had to serve 8 months for 'adultery'.

Since when is Saudi Arabia part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE)?

Ever since I forgot to check my post before submitting.
Sorry I meant a woman was raped in the United Arab Emirates and then got sent to prison.
Got to be careful in foreign countries.

What does that statement even mean? Which foreign countries? All foreign countries? Why not one's own country? What relevance does the UAE have to Saudi Arabia in terms of laws?

[Got To Be Kidding]

What does that statement even mean? Which foreign countries? All foreign countries? Why not one's own country? What relevance does the UAE have to Saudi Arabia in terms of laws?

The UAE is actually a hodge podge of emirates (princedoms) that actually have quite different laws from each other. What is allowed in one emirate, gets you thrown in jail in another.

Here's an example. A while ago, a friend of mine was in the UAE, and the emirate he was living in allowed you to own alcohol but not buy it (or something like that). He heard of a place selling beer by the case in another emirate and decided drive out and pick one up. Unfortunately, getting home with the case was tricky, because he had to travel through yet another emirate that would throw you in jail for mere possession of alcohol.

So yes, it is a very, very good idea to be savvy about customs, laws and mores of a country before traveling.

[GuyInTaiwan]

It's such a trite thing to say though, and I'm still not sure what the laws in the UAE have to do with the laws in Saudi Arabia.

[tomthorne]

I know that it sounds 'backward', but when in Rome...

... kill Christians?

[trubadour]

I heard it is not safe on the streets as a white person. True?
I heard foreigners have to live in compounds. How much does that suck?
How long does it take to get a visa there?
What's a good school to teach at in Saudi?
How does Saudi Arabia compare to other countries in the region which employ a lot of teachers?