any1 here lives or has ever been to saudi arabia?

Question

just curious!!!...and if u have what do u think of it..truthfully i want the positive sides and the negative ...thanx

Answer 1

Yes I have been living here for the past 12 years. And it has been great. The only problem is that woman don't have much freedom here but there are huge malls. Cool places and good food. I love it here. I would never ever even think to leave Saudia.

Answer 2

Hello there, I have lived in Saudi Arabia for the past two years. I am from Canada. Things are great here for the most part, nice people, great shopping, family orientated, plenty to do with your family. But on the negative side I can get so bored here. I am use to doing what I want when I want without my husband. Now I need my husband to drive me everywhere. I do not speak the language fluently yet which makes it hard to make friends. Also if you have children and send them to school here they are given a hard time by the locals for looking different.
But I think in the end it is all worth it. Saudi is a gorgeous place and worth the few minor issues it may have.

Answer 3

I lived in Saudi Arabia for 2 1/2 years. It is a very interesting place to live, the people are kind and the food is good. I still miss shwarma (lol). But in many ways it is a difficult place to live. Women are not allowed to drive so transportation was difficult, I had to walk or take a compound bus so I was limited as to where I could go during the day. Also I am used to working and there are not many opportunities there unless you have a degree in teaching or nursing. The Saudis themselves are nice and I was able to meet people from all over the world which was good. One of the negatives though was the power that your sponsor has over you. My husbands sponsor was very bad and threatened us and we ended up running and hiding for about a month, this is the only reason I would never return there to live. It was an intolerable situation brought about entirely by his company and we had no control over it at all. But I will go back in the future for Hajj and Umrah.

Answer 4

I'm an American male that lived and worked in KSA for 23 years.
I have read what others have said and they are, for the most part, correct in everything they have told you.
I see that you are a female (at least I assume you are). If you want to work there, you don't have many choices. Teacher, nurse or flight attendant for Saudi Arabian Airlines is about it.
I was single the whole time I was there but I had many friends that were married. The wives spent most of their time shopping, travelling, or just having parties to talk about where they had been or where they were going.
It isn't the same for many of the expat wives, their husbands didn't work for the airlines and they were pretty much limited to where they could go and what they could do.
I don't think I would have stayed there as long as I did if I hadn't worked for the airlines. I was able to leave the country every weekend if I so chose. Most expats don't have that luxury and it can be difficult for them at times.

Would have to say that my own personal experiences were such that my time there was the best years of my life. I was paid very, very well and had opportunities to travel that took me to most of the countries on the earth.
The people there are also very friendly, if you take the time to acquaint yourself with them. They can be a little difficult to understand (their way of thinking and their culture) but if you make an effort to see the world from their point of view, you will have no trouble and will look back on your time there with fond memories (and also with humor).

Hope this helps.

Answer 5

I've been to Saudi Arabia when I went to visit my dad back in 2000.

Saudi is like the philippines in many ways; the highway going to the airport is like the highway from the north expressway and the highway going to the south. The amount of sand that i see everywhere, it kinda reminds me of a pampanga ashfall (when Mount Pinatubo exploded).

The speed limit is different though, 120 km per hour! i'm not sure how many miles per hour... but i guess around 90 mps or so. We were slow at that rate! the other cars kept on overtaking.

It's super hot, the weather is so dry but you won't prespire. there's no precipitation as far as i know. :) the water in the faucet is really hot, it was practically steaming whenever i wash the dishes after lunch. and my dad wonders why i take a bath so late...

The food is really good, and it's nice to take a break from eating pork. i was also pretty shocked at the size of the cabbages... they were bigger than pumpkins! we went to some of their stores for shopping, and it was really fun because most of the arab merchants there know how to speak Tagalog already. i also saw a lot of Filipino products here, imagine there's lucky me pancit canton! they also have beef tocino and bulalo.

The malls are really huge though. I loved going there.

Answer 6

I am a Saudi and I live in Alkhobar. For me the most advantage is the people and how they care for each other. It is a growing economy so you can make some money if you know were to go. The disadvantages are some people's driving and I would say some governmental services need improvement.

Answer 7

I am in Saudi Arabia since five years, it is a good place to live… the advantage is that you can make money easily here, wither and the labor law ( for expatriates only) are the major disadvantages.
If you want more details write to me.

Answer 8

ive lived in saudi all my life even though im originally indian. i consider saudi my home and it truly is amazing :D..the food is great..the people r amazing..n its a realy nice place..there alot of disadvantages but which country doesnt have its set backs? you have to cover up in a black abaya when you go out..but u get used to that after a while..its reli not that bad..women cant drive and u have to depend on the men for transportation..the shopping is reali great though! alot of people imagine saudi to be backwards but we have huge malls n evrything else people around the world..i love saudi =)

Answer 9

i had been living in saudia arabia from 23 1/2 years. It is the best place in the hole world. I have been visited every city in saudia arabia.

Answer 10

im american and for the past two odd years ive had the singular misfortune of being trapped in this country. lets see good things: very, very few. it is possibe for some1 (i mean expats) to make money hear but only in teaching ppl here want 2 learn english like CRAZY. if u work as an english tutor u can make quite a bit of money about 20,000 rials (5,000 bucks) a month wich isnt good in itself but thats how much some1 with a Phd would make in a month over here. also the ppl here r honest (2 some extent) ill admit that. for example some ppl sell stuff outside the mosques after prayers. wen its time 2 pray they just leave their wares on the ground n just put a cloth over them n i swear 2 god no one touches a thing. after the prayer the shopkeeper fellows come out then take off the cloth cover n get ready for business then wen evryone else comes out they crowd round them buying like crazy.
about the bad stuff: practically everything else. stuff that drives me crazy (in random order) :corruption is rampant here of course, most of the oil revenues r just used 2 build palaces for the royal family. no part of this country has a proper sewer system the city of jedda wer i live only had a sewer system installed last year in the YEAR 2005 IN THE GODDAM 21st CENTURY. and two thirds of the city STILL dont hav a sewer system. he driving here is very bad no one obeys the rules at all they act like bedouins riding their camels im not trying 2 insult them im serious they drive their cars as if theyr camels or horses or sumthing. also ppl here r very ignorant they dont know squat about technology or the rest of the world or ANYTHING.
bottom line: this country is HOPELESS.