Kirsty Isitt's Open Salon Blog

New Blog

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:01:34 -0500

Hey guys,

Just a heads up that I'm moving. New blog can be found at the link below if anyone is interested in reading.

http://mywrittenjourney.blogspot.com/

Hopefully I'll see some of you over there.

xoxoxox

June 17th 2011 - Will women start driving in Saudi?

Mon, 23 May 2011 04:05:10 -0400

I know it’s been a long time since I posted anything here, and I don’t really have an excuse for my absence. However, I’ve recently come across an issue that I would like to give a little global exposure to, and what better place than OS where there are so many people who are open minded and passionate.

One of the best local papers we have here in Saudi is the Arab News, and this paper has had a few interesting articles in recent months about the same topic from different view points. That topic is women being allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia.

Starting with the most recent, a friend sent me an article that was published today (Monday, 23^rd May, 2011) entitled “Adventure behind the wheel lands Al-Sharif in custody again”. I’ve placed the link at the bottom of the post so you can read the full article, but the general gist is that a woman by the name of Manal Al-Sharif was arrested after she drove her car around the Dhahran area (very close to where Ger and I live) and she posted a video of herself on YouTube talking about the challenges women in Saudi Arabia face when relying on drivers.

I’d read about another woman and the campaign they are associated with (I’ll get to that in a second) relatively recently, but this article stood out from previous mentions as it points out that there is no actual law forbidding women from driving. There are fatwas (instructions from religious clerics) issued against women driving, but there is absolutely nothing in the legislation. The lawyer interviewed, Adnan Al-Saleh, compared it to the fatwas issued against smoking whilst cigarettes are widely distributed and used across Saudi without a second thought.

I’d always thought a woman driving was illegal; it turns out we’d all simply assumed it was because it wasn’t done.

The campaign I mentioned before began life on Facebook, as many campaigns are wont to do in this Social Media era. Known as the “Teach me how to drive so I can protect myself” campaign, the founders have called for women to get behind the wheel of a car on the 17^th of June and start driving in protest. It’s interesting to note at this juncture the words of Manal Al-Sharif’s lawyer in today’s article:

“Manal’s decision to drive was strictly personal and not linked to any group or ideology. If she had driven on the day of the campaign, planned for June 17, that would have been considered a demonstration without coordinating with the authorities concerned. That would have given the government the right to take legal action against her.”

I think it’s absolutely fantastic to see that 13,000 people have joined the Facebook page and it’s truly inspiring to see women finally take a stand as a united front on something they are passionate about. I’ve said from the start that change for women will come to Saudi, and they would bring it about themselves and it seems as if they are finally on the brink. However, as you can tell from the lawyer’s quote, they have an uphill struggle ahead of them. It may not be illegal to drive, but it is illegal to protest and make your voice heard. The campaign has focused itself on the issues of women having to drive in emergency situations and not knowing how and women in low income families who cannot afford to pay taxis, let alone have a personal driver.

Of course the desire to drive stems as much from these reasons as it does from relying on a driver or taxi, and I can tell you from over two years experience out here that it is a logistical nightmare. Not once in my two years and four months here have I been on time for work, and that’s with a driver provided by my own company who has a vested interest in getting me to my desk as early as possible. And don’t get me started on the taxi drivers I call. I’ve lost track of the amount of times I’ve heard “yes ma’am, five minutes ma’am” and was still waiting, stranded at a mall where everything was closed for prayer from noon till four, an hour later.

Having lived it with them I am fully behind them. That’s why I am always a little taken aback when I speak to, or hear about, a Saudi woman who has no interest in driving. Another Arab News article that caught my eye was published on April the 13^th, 2011 called “Not all Saudi women seeking to drive cars” (again the link is below).

The first woman quoted in the article gets my back up immediately by saying she has no interest in driving because she’s too damn lazy to walk from her parked car into the mall. Not only was one of the proudest moments of my life when I first parked my own car at a supermarket and walked myself in there having done it without relying on someone else, but I thought it was a seriously bad way to open an article against women driving. Women shouldn’t drive because they might have to walk somewhere? Come on!

However, as I kept reading I did come across some valid reasons why women would be against getting themselves from A to B. For instance, the local men following women everywhere and this being frightening enough as it is when you’re in the back of a tinted car; I can attest to this, it’s disconcerting, pathetic and down right irritating but also an issue for another blog. The one I understood most though is the reaction of the deeply religious to a woman who dares to not even cover her face, let alone drive a car. I think this could lead to some potentially very dangerous situations for women drivers, especially when you consider so many of the roads here go on for long, deserted stretches where you would be completely exposed and vulnerable.

On a balanced view though, I was still all for women, on the 17^th, giving a firm two fingered salute to the culture of depriving women of such a small amount of independence. After all, saying women shouldn’t drive because men have been doing it for longer and are therefore better at it is simply not good enough. Many women here have lived in Bahrain, Oman, and Dubai etc. where they have driven themselves quite safely, not to mention that women all over the world get lower insurance rates because it has been proven that they are naturally more cautious and safety conscious drivers than men.

Then I remembered an article my lovely husband, Ger, referred me to a few months ago. We’d been with friends and the (Western) women in the group were bemoaning the fact that we couldn’t drive and we missed our cars and Ger said, with no note of apology in his voice, that he would not let me drive even if they introduced a law that allowed it. You can imagine the uproar from the assembled women, all of whom are passionate, full on 21^st century women not used to being kept down simply because of their gender. None of us expected such a medieval response from a man we all know is generally so passionate about equal rights.

His point of view, although admittedly also from a place of concern for my safety given the inevitable reaction of religiously zealous men (and women if I’m honest), was heavily influenced by an article in the Arab News published on the 7^th of March, 2011 called “Imagine if women could drive”. It is one of the best pieces I have ever read and I know you will all appreciate it for the writing style and ability if nothing else. It was written by Somayya Jabarti, she opens by encouraging the reader to imagine it’s the year 3000 and women in Saudi had been granted the right to drive, but that is all that had changed about the country.

By the time I was done reading I saw the bigger picture. I’m not going to spoil the reading experience for you by waffling on about the contents, it’s the last link at the bottom of the page, but when you’re done reading I’m sure you’ll believe me when I say that there are so many things that need to change here in terms of women’s rights that being allowed to drive is a very small thing and really should be a bit further down the list of the battles to pick. With any luck the campaign on the 17^th of June will be one of those small stones that, upon falling from a great height, creates the echo that triggers an avalanche.

Whilst I still support the brave women that are taking a stand on this issue I hope that this article gets people thinking about how lucky they are to live in countries where the women’s rights revolution has already, for the greater part, done its job and cause you all to spare a thought for the monumental battle that is ahead for Saudi women.

Thanks for reading.

http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article422616.ece

http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article356535.ece?comments=all

http://arabnews.com/opinion/columns/article306202.ece?comments=all

Winter Time in the Desert - Dig Out the Scarves!

Tue, 21 Dec 2010 04:12:30 -0500

So it’s winter time, and the temperatures are even starting to drop here in Saudi. Of course we’re no where near cold enough for the kind of weather conditions that have ground the UK to a depressing halt, but that doesn’t mean we’re missing out on melodramatic behavior – quite the contrary.

Looking at the weather report for Al Khobar for the next few days the lowest temperature we can expect is 11°C; perfect, T-Shirt wearing, comfortable weather. Not according to the locals.

Instead of cool air conditioning, or nothing at all as there really is no need, everywhere is swelteringly hot. Walking into my office is like entering an enclosure for tropical plants and animals. After the relief of the general humidity and burn of the sun dying down everyone in the office has gone bonkers and upped the temperature, as if they miss the Arabian summer heat!

I’ve never been as cold indoors as I was this summer. The A/C blasted ice cold air all around me and I spent the summer in jumpers, layered up to the eyeballs trying to stave off frost bite and hyperthermia. Now the weather is reasonable we’ve hit the other extreme. Hot air making me sweat rivers at my desk. You can actually feel the heat hit you as you walk through the revolving doors. That’s quite normal in the summer, but as you leave.

As if making those of us with blood in our veins melt in our chairs is not enough to keep the Saudi security guards and other staff toasty warm, they’re all walking round – indoors – in scarves, hats, gloves and big wooly jumpers over their thobes! The most you need outside at the moment is a light jacket, and that’s only if the wind is up.

It never ceases to amaze me how these people can wander around in 50°C plus humidity and not bat an eyelid, but when the temperature drops the teeniest bit you’d think we were living in the arctic. It makes me wonder how quickly Saudi would grind to a depressing halt if it snowed here, it’s bad enough when it rains!

A Christmas Dinner Virgin - For Foodie Tuesday

Tue, 14 Dec 2010 05:12:04 -0500

I mentioned in yesterday’s blog that I may share with you my card making finesse today, but given that it’s Foodie Tuesday I thought I’d talk about my plans for Christmas dinner instead. Lucky you!

FusunA asked in the comments yesterday how I was planning on feeding 13 people, so I though I would tell you all about the stress I had when I realized exactly how many people were descending on me on the 24^th. It seemed like a great idea at first, having all the people who would be alone for Christmas dinner over. But then it grew, and I invited couples, families and other waifs and strays. Soon we were close to 20 people. That’s when the panic set in. How was I supposed to fit all of them in our house, let alone cook them all a feast to remember?!

Luckily, not everyone I invited is staying in the sand. Some are going home to the UK and South Africa to be closer to their families and others are visiting friends and fiancés elsewhere in the world. So the number fell off to 13, with only 2 kids. Easy, right? Well it should be, but this is the first time I’ve hosted Christmas and the first time I’ve cooked the whole enchilada by myself. Sure I’ve helped out in the kitchen before, but I’ve always had direction, and the pressure’s never been on me to get it all right.

Sure, I could delegate dishes to folk who are coming, and they’re all more than happy to do that. However, the thought of 11 adults fighting over the small kitchen to re-heat and finish preparing their signature dishes gave me a headache. It turns out I’m a bit of a control freak so we’re on plan B, I do all the cooking and they just throw a cash donation in a pot when they arrive to help with the cost.

Which brings me nicely to the menu. Aside from making sure the turkey is big enough for that many people to have a decent sized portion, how do you make sure there’s enough food to send them home with that overly stuffed feeling that is essential after Christmas lunch, without causing myself to stress to the point of being hospitalized in a white, padded room for the foreseeable future? I did what I always do when I have a dilemma, I Googled.

I spent a day finding simple recipes for appetizers and managed to pull together a simple menu (see below) that I think even I can manage! I can almost taste it all now. And the beauty of it is that everything set up so it’s all is done before the day except for the turkey and veg, so I’m just looking at a large roast dinner, which I have to say is my specialty (well I am British…). With a little bit of planning I’ve gone from stressed first time hostess to well organized control freak who’s really looking forward to feeding a football (soccer) team.

The only hurdle I may face is finding all of the ingredients in Saudi. It’s not that I need anything illegal, its just that with import being so unreliable you can’t guarantee getting something you manage to find one week the following week.

There is a trip to Bahrain on the horizon though, so I should be able to get everything there, including the Christmas pudding and crackers for the table. Ger and I will also be making a trip to the massive pet store whilst we’re the other side of the causeway to get our cats their Christmas gifts. Although, if they carry on pulling the tree down and breaking decorations they might just get a lump of coal each…

The menu looks a little as follows:

Appetizers

Salmon Roll Canapés

Prawn Cocktail

French Onion Soup

Main

Roast Turkey and Stuffing with an assortment of roasted, steamed and boiled vegetables, including the obligatory Brussels.

Dessert

Yule Log

Christmas Pudding

Both served with cream, custard or ice cream.

Tea or Coffee

Served with Mince Pies and an assortment of cookies.

Christmas Planning in Saudi Arabia

Mon, 13 Dec 2010 03:12:36 -0500

Well, it’s been a while. For a very long time I’ve had zero inclination to write anything, but here I am again. It’s strange, for a good few months life has been quiet and relaxed and I’ve had hours and hours at my disposal to sit and write and there’s been nothing, not even a whisper of inspiration or desire to type or put pen to paper. Now, however, when I’m rushed off my feet going from one Christmas party to another whilst planning Christmas dinner for around 13 people I feel utterly compelled to write something, anything. God damn creativity has done it again!

Anyway, my topic today is not creativity and how much of a fickle mistress she is, it’s about Christmas. I know, there’s going to be a lot of those blogs around for a while, but I think our Christmas may be slightly interesting to some of you. As you may know, my husband and I live in Saudi Arabia. We’re both British (though he grew up in Canada) but we’re currently dug in in the desert waiting out the tidal wave of economic depression.

Saudi is obviously not the most Christmas friendly place. Technically speaking we’re not even supposed to celebrate at all, even having a tree can get you in serious trouble. However, the ex-pat community being as strong as it is here there’s actually minimal resistance to celebrations in the part of Saudi we call home, so long as we’re not organizing Christian parades down the main streets the authorities tend to turn a blind eye.

The problem I’m finding with Christmas in Saudi is that I keep forgetting that it is even Christmas time. Well, when I say problem, I really mean blessing. Don’t get me wrong, I adore Christmas. Seriously, my dream job would be working as an elf in Santa’s toy factory way up in the North Pole. Christmas addict as I am though, I am unbelievably happy to have missed Christmas music in the stores for the last two months, and all the Christmas shopping in crowded malls and the pressure to spend butt loads of money to appease every single person on the gift lists consumerist desires.

It’s quite pleasant to suddenly realize, as I did last week, that it was nearly Christmas time. It hit me as I was at work that I had arranged nothing, and I mean nothing, for Christmas. The day itself will be just a regular day for us here as we’ll all be working. The 25^th is a Saturday, but as the weekend here is a Thursday and Friday we’ll all be chained to our desks. But I hadn’t even thought of a gift for my husband, I felt seriously behind the game!

So, I did the logical thing, went into Christmas overdrive! The top of my to do list was buy a tree. Now, as I mentioned that’s not the easiest thing here, but a friend of mine assured me that she had found one in a craft store that I adore called Al Zamil. Zamil is a bit like Aladdin’s cave, you never know what you’ll find there but they have a brilliantly wide range of crafty supplies, from glass painting tools to wood carving and everything in between. It stood to reason that if anywhere in Khobar (our home town) had a ‘seasonal plant’, as they’re known as out here, it would be this treasure trove of a store.

So along we went. Not only did they have a room full of trees of assorted sizes there was an entire aisle full of baubles, tinsel, lights and an array of other decorations. There was a bit of an Only Fools and Horses moment when it came to finding the trees though I have to say! In hushed tones we were directed to a stock room in the attic of the building and when we had chosen the size we wanted we were handed an oblong, brown cardboard package with nothing on it but the price and ushered out of the room. It was awesome!

Whilst I was there I picked up supplies for my Christmas card making. I’m making my usual little Santa and snowmen cards. Very simple, very easy and a process I may share with you tomorrow.

Once the tree was up I was in full Christmas elf mode and was inviting people left right and center to join us for a feast on Christmas Eve. Well, they all accepted, so now I have to cook my first ever Christmas dinner for 13. Nothing like a baptism of fire eh?