"The Agreement House"

This is deserving of a post.  For Christmas, my mother created a pictoral quilt from the following photograph of Al Bai'a in Hofuf, taken during our 2009 trip.  This is one of the first pieces off of her new long-arm quilting machine!  Beautiful, isn't it?!

The photograph

The quilt

Quilt label

Thoughts While Jet-lagging

Just some post-reunion thoughts since I’m already up way too early...

Firstly, we’re definitely glad we made the trip.  Not only did we get to visit some of our old haunts, but we also saw some parts of Saudi Arabia that we never visited while living there.  We experienced Saudi Arabia as guests staying in an Al-Khobar hotel rather than as Expats living inside the shelter of a company compound.

While there have been drastic changes since we were last living there, it is comforting to see the Saudis take such pride in their heritage, wanting to preserve and share it...from the many cultural and natural history museums that are being developed to the wonderful Heritage Village Museum and Restaurant to the preservation projects in old Jeddah.  Too often, the old is thrown out or devalued in the movement toward modernization, and so much is lost before anyone realizes that it is, truly, a loss.  Houston is a prime example.

Saudi hospitality is the best in the world.  They invite you into their homes, feed you until you are full to the gills, and would give you the shirt off their backs if you asked.  So don’t!  Their generosity is grounded in centuries-old bedouin customs that were a necessity for survival in the harsh environment, and it hasn’t changed.

The reunion organizing committee took on a quite a project.  I shudder to think of the organizational and logistical nightmare it must have been for them.  Some things did not go so smoothly, and I am sure they put up with a lot of grief from the reunion attendees, but given the scope, they deserve a pat on the back and a few days rest!

Although many of the places in camp are still familiar and bring back fond memories, the landscape and cultural fabric have changed so much that we definitely felt like guests.  Very welcome guests who were treated like royalty, but guests nonetheless.  Dhahran no longer feels like home.  Many of the memories and inside jokes that we share as expats seem out of context there now.  But they are still at “home” in the context of the biennial Aramco Brat reunions.  The reunions are truly a virtual home town and the closest we will ever come to going “home.”

Saudi Aramco President and CEO Khalid Al-Falih put it very eloquently when he spoke of the individual experiences and accomplishments of  Aramcons as fibers in weaving a greater tapestry for the company and country (“Those Who Helped Build Company Honored”).  The same holds true for us as individuals: we were profoundly affected and shaped by our experiences in Saudi Arabia.  They make up part of the weft of our personal tapestries.

Day 12: Dubai

We spent an entire day in Dubai before flying back to Houston.  Tom Parker, a former colleague who now works for Polarcus in Dubai, was kind enough to give us a great driving tour of the different parts of Dubai.

We drove along Jumeira Beach and out to The Palm, the palm tree-shaped series of islands that is a huge real estate development.  The gold suq was closed for prayer, but we did manage to hit the old suq in the Bustakaiya area on the other side of Dubai Creek.  A lot of the smaller shops were open after prayer, but the rug shops remained closed, perhaps because it was a Friday.  We watched the water taxis and dhows moving along Dubai Creek.  We’ve never seen so many dhows stacked up alongside a quay like that before.

Dubai is a strange place.  Upon being processed through immigration and customs and checking into the hotel, we decided Dubai was the gig to get if you want to be stationed in the Middle East.  However, after a day of experiencing the place, we decided it had all the charm of some strange “transit lounge/duty-free world,” where everyone is just visiting on the way to somewhere else.

The development is impressive, but it left us wondering where all these people are going to come from to fill the office and apartment space, 50% of which appeared to be about 50% completed.  Looks like Dubai is in for an ugly meltdown in this economy.

Day 11: Hofuf

Our last road trip in Saudi Arabia was to Hofuf in Al Hasa, the world’s largest date palm oasis.  In addition to this natural resource, Al Hasa sits on top of the Ghawar field, the largest onshore field in the world.

(While fresh dates are a rarity in U.S. produce sections, they are standard fare in the Middle East and an essential offering with Arabic coffee and tea.  For an introduction to date varieties and cultivation, see this article in Saudi Aramco World: “Carrying Dates to Hajar.”)

Hofuf was a popular field trip when we were in elementary school.  It was like a walk back in time with a camel/livestock market and a centuries-old, palm thatch-covered suq.  On one such field trip, a couple of little boys in my class decided it would be a good idea to buy some baby goats at the market and bring them back to camp.  We rode back to Dhahran with two baby goats running around the bus.

We immediately noticed the development along the Abqaiq Road, leaving Dhahran.  It used to be nothing but low dunes and sandstone jebels.  There were still a surprising number of bedouin tent encampments in the area near Hofuf, so some things haven’t changed.

We went to the newer camel market first.  Most of the sales transactions and loading of camels by cranes into pickups had occurred before we got there, but the lull in activity gave us the opportunity to ride camels (SR5) and take photos.  Watching the Arabs leaning up against the livestock fences reminded us of Texas cowboys.  This was the Saudi version.  We briefly considered asking them to pose while making the “horns down” sign with their hands.

Next we headed over to the old Turkish fort, Qasr Ibrahim and Al Bai’a House in the old Al Kut district.  The turkish fort was captured from the Ottomans in the middle of the night without a fight. Al Bai’a House is where a treaty was signed uniting the local tribes under Abdul Aziz.  Sadly, the old Suq Al Qaisariyyah burned to the ground a few years ago, but we were happy to see that they are trying to construct a new one in its likeness.  Al Hasa is working hard to develop its own tourist industry, and the old suq was a valuable asset in that regard.

Lunch was in a national park, compliments of the Al Hasa Chamber of Commerce.  When we arrived, the doors to the park reception hall were locked, so a mad scramble ensued to find a park ranger with keys to let us in for lunch.  Our hosts were presented with a memento from the group to thank them for their hospitality.

Speaking of developments in Al Hasa, we need to take this opportunity to point out their campaign to be designated one of the 7 natural wonders of the word under the landscape category.  Al Hasa is currently in the lead!!!  Please visit the link below and vote for Al Hasa, and be sure to pass it along to all of your friends.  We told our hosts we wouldn’t let them down!

Day 10: Khobar and Lena’s

Wednesday was a much-needed down day.  We spent the morning doing our last-gasp Khobar shopping before we headed to meet Jan and Hania at the Reunion House in Dhahran and head over to Lena’s for lunch.

Lena is an interior decorator, so her home is absolutely beautiful!  We looked at photos of her family and tried to get caught up on everyone.  She had prepared a fabulous lunch of non-Middle Eastern dishes for us, thinking we were probably full to the gills with traditional foods.  So true!  She’s a great cook.  We need to remember to get her apple pie dessert recipe -- it had cream cheese in the middle of it and was outstanding.

After lunch, we lounged around the old Rec area while I tried to track down my repaired high-heeled, Saudi sandals before the evening dinner and fashion show started.  I had no luck -- there was too much going on in preparation for the show, so I will have to have someone bring them to me.

Finally found Al Zamil’s in Khobar open and bought some fabric.  Al Zamil’s is a sewing and craft store that I recall visiting nearly every time we made a trip to Khobar when I was a young girl.  I vividly remember looking through all the buttons and threads in the store which is now located in a multi-story building on the Corniche.  We had dinner at Latif Bakery again, then headed back to the hotel to pack up for our departure the next evening and get some sleep before getting up early again for one last trip...to Hofuf.

Day 9: Shaybah

Our trip to the Shaybah Field started before the crack of dawn with 5 am bus transport to Camp and then the Aramco hangar at Dammam Airport.

The Shaybah development is Saudi Aramco’s crown jewel located in the Empty Quarter, ‘Rub Al Khali,” near the UAE border.  Given the remoteness and harshness of the environment, Shaybah is truly an engineering and operational marvel.  The 3 (soon to be 4) GOSPs (Gas Oil Separation Plant) and residential camp are set on the subkha plains surrounded by red sand dunes, some as high as 1000 feet.  It is nearly impossible to describe in words how desolate and inhospitable a setting this is.  Photos barely do it justice.

It was a bit windy, so photography was a little difficult, and we were coated with fine sand by the time we left early afternoon.  I made the mistake of wearing flip-flops which would have been perfect for walking on the dunes had the sand not been so blistering hot by noon.  And it was only March!!! 

After returning to Dhahran, we accompanied the Manges to Ismail Nawab’s home in Ar Rabiyah for more tea, coffee, and Arabic sweets.  The Nawabs are close friends of the family, so we were glad to have had the opportunity to accept their invitation.  The company and food were both excellent.  Regrettably, we could not stay longer as we had to run back to the hotel and change in time for the Farewell Dinner.

The Farewell Dinner was hosted by local businessmen in Al-Khobar at the Seef on the Corniche.  The bus was supposed to transport us to the restaurant, but, after a full circuit of the Corniche, couldn’t find the place.  He made a phone call and circled around again before Tom spotted the restaurant...a mere 5-minute walk from our hotel, not the 30-minute bus ride we had been on.  Our driver thought it was absolutely hilarious when he saw how close it was to the bus stop.

Both of us were pretty stuffed at this point, but we went to enjoy the company and hospitality. In addition to spending a few minutes socializing with reunion attendees we had not had much time to talk to, we ran into an old classmate, Lena Jalbout!  What great surprise!  She hasn’t been able to attend any of the Aramco Brat reunions because of a conflicting, annual business trip to the U.S.  We made plans to join her for lunch at her house the next day, had one more cup of kawa with our sadeeg in the lobby of Le Meridien, then called it a day.  It was a long one!

Days 7 and 8: Jeddah

On Sunday morning both the Jeddah trippers and those going to the Asir flew out of the Aramco hangar on a 737-700 (the Shaybah).  We flew into Abha first to drop the Asir group off and got a spectacular view of the mountains and gorges of that area.

After stopping at the hotel for coffee and check-in, we headed into the older part of the city to see Naseef House.  Naseef House was built in 1872 by a wealthy merchant family and has been partially restored as part of a larger project to restore and preserve Jeddah’s distinctive, old architecture.  HRH Abdul Aziz purportedly ruled from this house for a year and a half before going to Riyadh.

Our host at Naseef House, Dr. Sami Nawar, the Director General of Jeddah’s Tourism and Culture Department, was something else!  He had a wonderful enthusiasm for his city, great sense of humor, and fun tales.  Several historic areas have been earmarked for preservation and restoration, and it was quite a relief to hear him speak about the importance of striking a balance between the two so as not to overdo the work and destroy the historic areas’ look and feel.  Renovations and new construction in these areas will maintain the old architectural styles.  The topic prompted us to ask him if he had ever been to New Orleans.  While much newer than Jeddah, mile after mile of historic neighborhoods have been fiercely protective of too much change, summed up in a t-shirt design that says “la beaute d’entropie” or “the beauty of decay.”  Our host had, indeed, been to New Orleans.  An impish grin spread across his face as he told us he “had a LOT of fun!”  Uh-oh!

He carefully timed our tour of Naseef House to have us up in the old wooden structure on top, enjoying the sea breeze, when the evening prayer call began.  We sat quietly and listened while the muezzin calls rang out from 37 different mosques simultaneously.  Beautiful!  We then enjoyed some mint tea with him before departing for dinner at a seafood restaurant on the Corniche, Al Wadaa, compliments of Saudi Aramco.    

Monday morning, we started out at a little suq recommended by Nancy, our Saudi Aramco tour leader who had lived in Jeddah for 6.5 years before moving to Dhahran.  Unfortunately, Jeddah is a little slower to wake up than Al-Khobar, so little was open before we had to leave for our appointment at the Emir of Mecca’s offices.  There were a couple of shops Nancy wanted to visit and managed to get them to open up a little early for her, but it was nothing the rest of the group was really interested in.  A pattern was emerging.

It’s a good thing we arrived a little early for our reception at the offices of HRH Khaled bin Faisal bin Abdul Aziz.  The drives were so narrow and sharply curved that we witnessed some pretty impressive bus maneuvering.  Seemed like it would have been easier to park the bus in the lot and have us walk up to the doors, but proper entrances are very important, especially when being filmed.  The driver almost made it under the portico without incident.  Almost.  On the 2nd to last cut, he took a chunk out of the wall near the entrance.  Oopsie!

There was much discussion with Saudi Aramco Government Relations officials on proper protocol for greeting the Emir.  The script didn’t play out quite as prescribed but close enough.  We all filed through to shake his hand and bid him “salaam alaikum.”  We were both struck by how much he resembled his late father, HRH King Faisal, who was ruling when we first moved to Saudi Arabia in 1972.  He was presented with a commemorative gift of the inscribed crystal-variety and a few words of thanks and appreciation from our group.  Saudi Aramco had a photographer present and is planning on sending the attendees a CD of the event which we will be sure to share as soon as it arrives.

Our Saudi Aramco tour leader took us a by a gift shop and another store prior to lunch at a Turkish restaurant.  The last store was the Saudi equivalent of Garden Ridge Pottery.  No one in the group had any business or interest in purchasing any large ceramic pots or patio furniture which prompted the question “what the hell are we doing here?”  This is the point at which it became plainly evident to all of us that our tour leader, Nancy, was using this tour as her own personal shopping trip to Jeddah!  She was buying items for her patio in Dhahran!  We were none too happy with her.  One of the attendees went so far as to loudly thank her for allowing us to accompany her on her shopping trip to Jeddah.  The last shopping stop delayed our lunch at Al Fairouz, a popular Turkish restaurant, which left us with little time to see the Corniche before heading to the airport!  The food was very good, but we can’t say as much for our tour leader.

Our last stop in Jeddah was a full 15 minutes on the Corniche, the famous 100-km, waterfront stretch along the Red Sea which is decorated with numerous sculptures and little mosques.  We didn’t even have time to walk over to the little mosque that jutted out into the water, but we had sufficient time for one of our group to step in something really nasty as we were getting back on the bus.  There were NO dogs running around the beach, so we’ll just leave it to the reader to figure out.  What followed was a about 10 minutes of hilarity as he tried to remove all traces from the bottom of his shoes.  In addition to the bus driver and a beach worker helping him with bottled water, paper towels,a piece of shell and a broom,  he had the encouragement of the entire bus as we watched (and video recorded) the process.

So much for the Corniche!  We headed back to Dhahran, getting to the hotel around midnight and caught about 3 hours of sleep before the early-morning Shaybah trip the next day.