Have you ever had a little argument with your kid over the pronunciation of a word? Imagine telling your kid that "fantasy" is pronounced /fæn.tə.si/ and he/she says, "Noooooooo, my teacher says it is /fa:nta.zi/." And so goes on the argument until you give up because kids hardly get tired. Maybe this is just my opinion, but I noticed that kids believe so much that their teachers know better.
What happens when your child attends an international school that has teachers from every corner of the globe? You got Americans, Canadians, Britons, Indians, Filipinos, Egyptians, Nigerians, Ghanians, Cameroonians, etc. It is not surprising when some non-native English speaking parents worry when their kid(s) speak(s) English like another non-native whose country of origin is different from theirs. Not that being a non-native English speaker is bad (I'm one, by the way), but the general tendency is for parents to want their kids to express themselves like native English speakers. In Jeddah, for example, I have seen little clubs spring up with the main objective of teaching kids to speak like native English speakers (particularly with an American accent). The latest one is the American International Reading Club for Kids that accepts boys and girls aged 8-11 years for a monthly fee of 150 SAR, books not included.
The reading club administrator, Taqwah Summers, opened this club (which will effectively begin its activities on February 2, 2012) after the multiple requests of some parents. The club is located in Rawdah District 6 and opening times for girls are Thursdays from 10.00 am -11:30 am, and for boys Thursdays from 2.00 pm-3.30 pm. For more information, parents can contact the club administrator on 0501027905 or via e-mail: Taqwahsummers@gmail.com
Il faisait frais. Nous n'avons pas toujours les températures de ce genre à Jeddah- en tout cas pas avant 17 heures. Je suis sortie faire une promenade avec mon fils. Après une marche de 5 minutes, j'ai sentie une mauvaise odeur. Juste là à travers la rue, il y avait un petit ruisseau riche en excréments. J'ai dû porter mon fils pour traverser ce petit ruisseau. Après 5 minutes encore nous sommes tombés sur les eaux d'égout. Et hop ! Encore une fois ! Je le porte et je saute. Lorsque nous avons rencontré le quatrième ruisseau, j'en avais marre. Je me suis décidé de rentrer à la maison. C'était horrible. On ne pouvait pas marcher pendant 10 minutes sans traverser un ruisseau d'excréments. Je pensais que cela n'arrivait que dans mon quartier jusqu'au jour où je suis allée rendre visite à quelques amis à Bawadi. Scénario identique.
C'est dommage que dans un quartier avec des bâtiments et les routes bien construits, vous allez souvent tomber sur de la "merde" qui coule dans les rues. Ce n'est pas seulement un problème pour les piétons, même les conducteurs essaient d'éviter ces ruisseaux malsains qui coulent dans les rues. Je me souvient quand mon beau-frère essayait d'éviter un ruisseau d'excréments. J'étais perplexe et je cria, "Bon sang! Est ce que c'est necessaire de faire ca? La voiture reste dehors de toutes les façons." Il dit : "Jamais. Je ne peux pas laisser mes pneus nager dans la merde des gens."
Naturellement, les gens étaient inquiets lorsque les rues de Djeddah était inondées par les eaux de pluies en 2009. Ils étaient très inquiets que le lac d'égout géant qui était proche de Jeddah pouvait inonder la ville. Mais qu'en est-il des eaux d'égout devant nos portes un jour normal sans incident ? On pourrait se demander pourquoi les eaux d'égout s'échappent et coulent devant certains bâtiments pendant environ une semaine et personne ne fait rien. Pendant les dernières vacances au mois d'août, j'avais remarquée qu'il y avait des nombreux ruisseaux d'excréments dans mon quartier. Était-ce parce que tout le monde était occupé avec les festivités ? Ou était-ce parce que l'odeur ne genait plus les gens ? En passant, comment est-ce qu'une personne peut-elle supporter la puanteur des eaux
d'égout ... Pouvez-vous le faire ? Je ne peux pas.
It was a cool day. We didn't always get temperatures like this in Jeddah; at least not before 5 p.m. I felt like taking a walk with my son. After walking for 5 minutes, I got a bad smell. Right there across the street, there was a small stream rich in sewage. I had to carry my son to cross this little stream. Another 5 minutes and we came across another "poop-rich" stream. There we went again! Carrying and skipping. When we came across the fourth stream, that was it. I decided to go back home. It was horrible. You couldn't walk for 10 minutes without having to come across an over-flooded sewage tank. I thought this only happened in my neighbourhood until when I went to visit some folks in Bawadi District. Oh my! Same case scenario.
It is a pity that in a neighbourhood with well-constructed buildings and roads, you frequently come across sewage flowing in the streets. It is not only a problem for pedestrians; even drivers do try to avoid getting into sewage running across the street. Once my in-law was trying to avoid a pool of sewage, and I was like, "Oh come on! Does it really matter? The car stays outside anyway." He said, "No way. I can't let my tires get into people's poop."
Naturally, people were worried when Jeddah was flooded by the rains in 2009. They were very worried that the giant sewage lake that was close to Jeddah may flood the city. But what about sewage seeping out at our doorsteps on normal uneventful days? One would wonder why some buildings have sewage seeping out of their tanks onto the street for about one week and nobody is doing anything. This was what I noticed during the last holidays in the month of August. There were so many sewage streams in my neighbourhood and people were just going about their normal activities. Was it because everybody was busy with the festivities? Or was it because the stench didn't bother people so much anymore? Come to think of it, how could anyone stand the stench from sewage?...Can you? I can't.
Hello Dear Readers,
It has been nearly 4 months since I last posted on this blog. Al hamdulillah! I am back and ready to start posting again.
We went through a hard time trying to look for another kafeel (sponsor). The point is that we had 2 weeks to get a new sponsor or get an exit visa. Phew! I remember when my husband got that sms. We were having one of those conversations and wondering whether his sponsor would call him soon to give him a deadline. We stopped laughing about the whole thing when his phone beeped. And lo! It was written in black and white. He had 2 weeks to get another sponsor and start the transfer process or his sponsor would issue him an exit visa.
Our greatest ordeal was finding another sponsor who would accept an emergency transfer. The second was to pay 12,000 SAR (this is not the usual fee for transfers). We had a few disappointments from a few people who accepted to become his (my husband's) sponsor. Along the line they disappeared leaving us in the middle of our despair. Finally, we found someone who was willing to go ahead with the transfer. Al hamdulillah, he wanted to do everything on his own. That meant going through the normal and lengthy procedure of transfers. The guy who asked us to pay 12,000 SAR would have sapped us of our funds because the usual fee was 2,000 SAR for first-time transfers. Apparently, he was the type who did things under the table and behind closed doors. We accepted to work with the new sponsor, who took his time in doing everything. Going through the normal channel meant that we risked not meeting the deadline set up by the former sponsor, but we had to do it if we wanted to go the legal way. As the days passed, we kept praying that his former sponsor would not call to remind him of the deadline. Every time there was a development during the transfer process, my husband always made sure that he informed his former sponsor. Two weeks became 4 months, and today we have a new sponsor. Needless to say that his former sponsor exercised great patience because he was willing to give us more time and in doing so he was putting himself in a situation that did not suit really him.
Finally, we can start making plans to leave Saudi Arabia in a smooth way and not like we are being shooed out of the country. I am thankful that this whole thing is over, and we do not live with the worry that at one moment or the other someone might call us to tell us that they were going to issue us an exit visa.
Dear readers, it has been long since I last posted on this blog. I admit I have been very busy during this period. In addition, there are legal issues that my husband and I are trying to resolve.
Insha'Allah, I will be back, and I will take over from where I have stopped. Hopefully, I will be writing from Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
I thank my friends and readers for their kind messages. I will not forget you in my prayers.
Je me suis rendue chez ma coiffeuse quelques jours avant le début du Ramadan. Pendant que j'y étais, son portable sonnait à plusieurs reprises et j'étais surprise de constater que à chaque fois elle regardait son portable, soupirait et ignorait l'appel. Cette attitude éveilla ma curiosité et après que son portable ait sonné pour la énième fois, je décida de lui demander pourquoi elle ne répondait pas à ses appels.
-Ces dames Saoudiennes peuvent être très ennuyantes, répondit-elle. Elles appelent à chaque minute parce qu'elles ont besoin d'une domestique alors que je leur ai demandé d'attendre mon appel car je n'hésiterai pas à appeler si je trouvais quelqu'un qui voudrait travailler comme domestique.
Je compris donc qu'elle éssayait d'aider quelques dames Saoudiennes à embaucher des domestiques. La plupart d'entre elles avaient des domestiques mais elles avaient besoin d'une de plus pour travailler pendant le mois du Ramadan. Dans leur désespoir pour trouver les domestiques avant le début du Ramadan, elles mettaient trop de pression sur elle.
Quiconque a été invité auparavant par des amis Saoudiens à partager l'iftar aurait remarqué la variété des plats qui sont préparés. Les plats sont appétissants et le repas est généralement à plusieurs services. Même un chef cuisinier aurait besoin d'un coup de mains pour l'aider à préparer les repas pendant cette période.
La seule question que je continue à me poser c'est pourquoi ces dames ont tellement besoin des domestiques pendant cette période ? Les musulmans dans d'autres pays célèbrent le Ramadan et les ménagères gèrent bien le travail pendant cette période sans avoir à embaucher des mains supplémentaires. Les musulmans Saoudiens célèbre-t-il d'une façon particulièrement différente?
It was a couple of days before the beginning of Ramadan. I was at my hairdresser. Her phone kept on ringing and I was surprised that each time she looked at it she sighed and decided to ignore the call. This roused my curiosity and after her phone rang for the nth time, I decided to ask her why she wasn't answering her calls.
"These Saudi madams can be very boring at times," she replied. "They just keep calling every minute because they need a maid. I told them to wait until I get back to them when I find someone interested in the job."
From what I understood, she was helping some Saudi ladies hire maids for their households. Most of them had maids, but needed one more to help with the work during the month of Ramadan. In their despair to get maids before the Ramadan, they were putting so much pressure on her.
Anyone who has been invited before by their Saudi friends to share iftar must have noticed the variety of dishes that are prepared. The dishes are appetising and the meal is usually served in courses. Even a chef would need a couple of hands to help him/her prepare the meals during this period.
The one question that lingers in my mind is why these ladies need maids so badly during this period? Muslims in other countries celebrate Ramadan, and the housewives deal with the work during this period without having to hire extra hands. Do Saudi muslims celebrate in a particularly different way?
