I mentioned the unveiled female newscaster to our host, and he said it was probably not a Saudi TV station, but maybe Lebanese. That makes way more sense. Then he added, "But who knows? Women have many different preferences even in Saudi Arabia." Yeah, right.
First we had a tour of old Riyadh, visiting Al Masmak Fort, which is an important cultural symbol because it was taken by the king in the battle that was the turning point of the reunification of Saudi Arabia. Until quite recently, there was entire old city made of mud, but most of it was torn down to make way for new construction, and all that remains is the old fort and a tiny piece of the wall.
Then we went to the old market, which is a big block of stores that sell incense, incense holders (both traditional and electric), and traditional men's clothes. There were almost no customers at the market. I asked our host about this and he said that business is declining because most people shop elsewhere now.
Then we went to Kingdom Tower, where there is a very tall modern tower, and a shopping mall even more giant and upscale than the one we went to yesterday. At the mall, our host excused himself for a few minutes to pray, and I decided I would go check out the "Ladies' Kingdom", the top floor of the mall where only women are allowed. There was a (male) guard at the entrance to ensure that no men went there, and a sign warning that no photography was allowed. Inside, it was mostly women's clothing stores and cafes. All the women who worked at the shops were wearing western clothes, just like they would wear if they worked at a mall in the U.S. The women shoppers still had on their abayas, but many of them had removed their head scarves. Outside of the Saks 5th Avenue store there was a sign that said, "Ladies only. Please remove your face covering for security reasons."
Then we took the elevator up to the top of the tower, where there is an amazing view of Riyadh.
Chivalry appears to be entirely absent in Saudi Arabia. I have not noticed any evidence of men trying to be especially courteous to women in any way. They are not unkind, but women are definitely expected to fend for themselves. Waitstaff at restaurants and hotels are often very courteous to guests, opening doors, carrying your luggage, and taking your plate back to your table for you at a buffet. But they do this for everyone, and if anything, Mike gets this treatment a little more than I do. So I was a little surprised going to the top of the tower and the elevator operator said, "Ladies first!" However, I quickly realized that this was not actually courtesy, but a way to keep the women separate from the men in the crowded elevator. Getting into a crowded elevator first just means you're crammed into the back and you're the last to get out of the elevator. Oh well.
Then we went to dinner at a very fancy restaurant which our host kept telling us apologetically was not at the top of the tower but "only" on the 77th floor. We met three more physicists for dinner. They were really nice, and we had a great talk about physics and physics education.
The restaurant was very western (the menu advertised their French chef), and there were no private seating areas or barriers between the tables. There were still separate sections for men and families, but you would only know that by seeing who was sitting where. I did notice that although there were way more customers in the family section, the men's section was on the side of the tower that had a much better view. The restaurant was nowhere near full, which had been the case everywhere we've been. I keep wondering if we're going places at odd times because it never seems like there are enough people to justify the size of things, but when we ask our host, he doesn't say that it is more crowded other times.
A woman wearing a face covering sat at a table near her, and I watched her with fascination to see how she would eat. She delicately lifted her veil up just enough to put her food underneath it and into her mouth.
We left the restaurant at 10:40pm, and the mall was much more crowded than it had been at 7:30.
Mike pointed out that 100% of the young children here wear western clothes. It's true. Most adult men wear white robes and all adult women wear abayas, but the young children never do. I've seen a few older children wearing traditional clothes, but usually only partially, and the girls start wearing abayas around 10 or 11, but often unbuttoned and without a head scarf.
Another random note I keep forgetting to mention: Last night we drove by a construction site with a big sign advertising the towers they were starting to build there. They looked just like the twin towers in New York. A little creepy.
My workshops start tomorrow and I've got to get up early, so I'd better sign off.
Sam
First we had a tour of old Riyadh, visiting Al Masmak Fort, which is an important cultural symbol because it was taken by the king in the battle that was the turning point of the reunification of Saudi Arabia. Until quite recently, there was entire old city made of mud, but most of it was torn down to make way for new construction, and all that remains is the old fort and a tiny piece of the wall.
Then we went to the old market, which is a big block of stores that sell incense, incense holders (both traditional and electric), and traditional men's clothes. There were almost no customers at the market. I asked our host about this and he said that business is declining because most people shop elsewhere now.
Then we went to Kingdom Tower, where there is a very tall modern tower, and a shopping mall even more giant and upscale than the one we went to yesterday. At the mall, our host excused himself for a few minutes to pray, and I decided I would go check out the "Ladies' Kingdom", the top floor of the mall where only women are allowed. There was a (male) guard at the entrance to ensure that no men went there, and a sign warning that no photography was allowed. Inside, it was mostly women's clothing stores and cafes. All the women who worked at the shops were wearing western clothes, just like they would wear if they worked at a mall in the U.S. The women shoppers still had on their abayas, but many of them had removed their head scarves. Outside of the Saks 5th Avenue store there was a sign that said, "Ladies only. Please remove your face covering for security reasons."
Then we took the elevator up to the top of the tower, where there is an amazing view of Riyadh.
Chivalry appears to be entirely absent in Saudi Arabia. I have not noticed any evidence of men trying to be especially courteous to women in any way. They are not unkind, but women are definitely expected to fend for themselves. Waitstaff at restaurants and hotels are often very courteous to guests, opening doors, carrying your luggage, and taking your plate back to your table for you at a buffet. But they do this for everyone, and if anything, Mike gets this treatment a little more than I do. So I was a little surprised going to the top of the tower and the elevator operator said, "Ladies first!" However, I quickly realized that this was not actually courtesy, but a way to keep the women separate from the men in the crowded elevator. Getting into a crowded elevator first just means you're crammed into the back and you're the last to get out of the elevator. Oh well.
Then we went to dinner at a very fancy restaurant which our host kept telling us apologetically was not at the top of the tower but "only" on the 77th floor. We met three more physicists for dinner. They were really nice, and we had a great talk about physics and physics education.
The restaurant was very western (the menu advertised their French chef), and there were no private seating areas or barriers between the tables. There were still separate sections for men and families, but you would only know that by seeing who was sitting where. I did notice that although there were way more customers in the family section, the men's section was on the side of the tower that had a much better view. The restaurant was nowhere near full, which had been the case everywhere we've been. I keep wondering if we're going places at odd times because it never seems like there are enough people to justify the size of things, but when we ask our host, he doesn't say that it is more crowded other times.
A woman wearing a face covering sat at a table near her, and I watched her with fascination to see how she would eat. She delicately lifted her veil up just enough to put her food underneath it and into her mouth.
We left the restaurant at 10:40pm, and the mall was much more crowded than it had been at 7:30.
Mike pointed out that 100% of the young children here wear western clothes. It's true. Most adult men wear white robes and all adult women wear abayas, but the young children never do. I've seen a few older children wearing traditional clothes, but usually only partially, and the girls start wearing abayas around 10 or 11, but often unbuttoned and without a head scarf.
Another random note I keep forgetting to mention: Last night we drove by a construction site with a big sign advertising the towers they were starting to build there. They looked just like the twin towers in New York. A little creepy.
My workshops start tomorrow and I've got to get up early, so I'd better sign off.
Sam
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