Moving to the Rhythm of Prayer Times and Other Breaks

I try to imagine what you think life is like for us here. If I put myself in your shoes, the picture is so mirky. What does a neighborhood look like? a city street? a public square? etc. This week we passed our one year anniversary of being in KSA. Though not without challenges, this has been a good year and we praise God for it. As with any adjustment to a new place, things that at first appeared odd become normal. But here is something perhaps I haven't explained fully: the impact of prayer times on normal daily movements.

Every day there are five prayer times observed beginning very early in the morning (before sunrise) and ending after the sun has set. Basically this translates to a pre-dawn prayer time, a mid-day prayer time (around lunch time), a mid-afternoon prayer time and two evening prayer times (somewhat close together).  Businesses are required to close for prayer times so that employees and clients can pray. Most businesses will begin closing 15-20 minutes before the prayer time and many will take their time opening again afterwards. Prayer times often last around 25-30 minutes. If you care to do the math, this amounts to a significant amount of time during normal working hours that shops are closed for business.

If one plans appropriately, many businesses (grocery stores and restaurants) will allow one to remain inside during prayer times. Dinner outings become a strategic plan around the prayer times. If evening prayers are at 5:30 and 7 p.m., for example, we might plan to arrive at 6 p.m., entering just after the doors reopen, order appetizers and dinner before the last prayer time begins, hope to be served appetizers and perhaps even dinner before the last prayer, and finish the meal and pay when things open up again. Sound complicated? It can be...and exasperating if you flub up the schedule at some point (perhaps being delayed at the very beginning of the experience, merely trying to find your restaurant).

Hopefully, I haven't bored you with this description! And, I hope I don't come across as complaining. It is certainly an adjustment, but after awhile, even without the prayer card in your pocket, you get a sense of how to work the system.

As with all cultural differences, flexibility and a good sense of humor are hugely important! Earlier this week, I had the privilege of spending the afternoon with a good friend who lives in the city. Our plan was to shop at Jarir, (think: Office Depot, A.C. Moore, and Books a Million all rolled into one, but on smaller scale) after lunch. When we arrived at the store, we realized that we had hit a prayer time.

Ok. No problem. Let's hit the mall down the way where we can shop the January sale at Pottery Barn. Then'll we'll come back. 

Thirty minutes later (and a $1.25 PB sugar bowl richer) we returned to Jarir to realize that the bookstore would be closed until after the mid-afternoon prayer time. Oh, did I forget to mention that many businesses close between the noon and mid-afternoon prayer times. Not all, just some. Don't ask me how to keep track who!

Ok. No problem. Let's walk through the rest of the shopping center and see if we can find a coffee and a pastry. 

Thirty minutes later we were sitting at Paul's with danish and coffee (Starbucks) in hand. It was a really lovely chat and we had the perfect excuse not to rush.

Two hours later we returned to Jarir again. Time to reopen, but the doors are still closed. People are gathering and lingering outside the door. Apparently, the moment of reopening is just around the corner. A well-dressed employee slowly starts to unlock the doors; he stops to tie his shoe; he lingers as he checks his phone. People are impatiently fidgeting outside, checking their wrist-watches, shifting their weight from foot to foot. Finally, our moment comes, the doors open and the crowd breaks through and dissipates throughout the store like a wave crashing on the beach.

It truly was a good afternoon, but long and not what we expected. Of course, I don't often have such a good outlook on the situation, but I'm thankful for this one that I can laugh at and tell you about to illustrate a little better what life is like here.

A visit to the Riyadh Zoo, another tricky place to visit because of prayer times and family times.

An Innate Longing for Beauty

Recently our family returned from a wonderfully refreshing vacation to South Africa. This was not the kind of vacation where we got to spend long mornings sleeping in, long hours chatting over coffee, or long hours reading a book on the beach. It was also not refreshing in the sense that it was intellectually stimulating, although I did learn a good bit about the history of Cape Town. Moreover, we didn't pack our trip with a flurry of entertainment. And, yet, in a deep, hard to describe way, it was refreshing.

What made it so? Jeff and I often talk of our longing to experience natural beauty. This appetite for beauty is so deeply embedded in our hearts that when we are deprived of it for a period of time our souls become restless. I will be the first to say Saudi has its charms and beauty, and I look forward to discovering more of these. However, the dispensation of beauty across the globe is not equal. And, part of the charm of desert beauty is that it is long sought after and easily missed.

The Cape Town peninsula was richly adorned in beauty. Some of my notes from the trip follow.

     Right now I am sitting on our front porch in Simonstown overlooking False Bay, trying to appreciate in every detail the beauty before me. South Africa is an over-indulgent feast to the eyes. The flora is abundant and richly colorful. I'm not sure I've experienced a place so diversely colorful! There are flowering bushes of every color (oranges, yellows, pinks, reds, blues, purples) and flowers as big as melons and as small as snowflakes. There are flowers shaped as fountains, fireworks, foxtails, paintbrushes, duster brushes, woody tulips, and so many others that there isn't time enough to describe them. I don't know the names so I am reduced to childlike descriptions in order to lock the look of this place into my mind. Even the rocks add color - red, grey, brown. And there is some kind of lichen that reflects brilliant orange. A series of mountain ridges slope down to the shore all along the bay, like giants sleeping, waiting for some approaching great event. This one to my left reminds me of Elephant Butte, but green and with a vast ocean before it. We've seen small glimpses of the fauna: baboon, bontebok, turtle, lizard, ostrich, hummingbird, sun-bird, whale, and of course, penguin.
     Yesterday we rose early and drove to the Cape of Storms/Cape of Good Hope. Both names tell so much of the story of the cape. What a rugged and beautiful place! We made our way through the park in an unhurried way marveling at the seemingly endless gorgeous vistas. This one on the Indian side, that one on the Atlantic, this one with a piece of both impressive oceans. We eventually made it to the lighthouse, rode the funicular train up the backside of the peak, and hiked up the final stairs to the precarious top. What an awe-inspiring moment to look over the very tip of Africa to the turbulent sea below. The wind was so powerful I was afraid Ellen would be blown clean off the continent, much as Eustace was blown into Narnia. Over five hundred years ago Vasco da Gama successfully made it around the cape and continued on to India. The road was paved for him by scores of shipwrecks in the stormy two ocean waters. We spent the day driving the park, picnicking along the shores and watching for wildlife. 

C.S. Lewis speaks about the compelling nature of beauty. But he warns that our love of beauty (as of all good things) can turn into an idol, if we don't seek the One behind the beauty.

Listen to this quote from The Weight of Glory:

"The books or the music [or the scenic views in Cape Town] in which we thought the beauty was located will betray us if we trust to them; it was not in them, it only came through them, and what came through them was longing. These things--the beauty, the memory of our own past--are good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshipers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not hear, news from a country we have never yet visited."


If the vibrant colors of the fynbos (wild bush), the shapeliness of the cliffs and the loveliness of the Cape Town shores are enough to wow my heart. How much more the God whose mind created them in all their detail and glorious grandeur! And that "something" that stirs in our hearts as we marvel is our very longing for Him.

I wish I could have had long conversations with God on the beach. Instead the reality was often an exclamation of "Wow, this is so beautiful" along cries of "Benjamin's about to fall off that cliff!" So I will just have to be content with being a passing observer of how the heavens and the earth declare the glory of God in South Africa. This was enough. And, it was wonderfully refreshing!

Ramadan: Joining an Iftar

Through much of the month of July, we are surrounded by the observance of Ramadan. In the KSA fasting restrictions are strictly enforced, which means no eating or drinking between dawn and dusk, even for non-muslims. Thankfully this excludes young children, so when Benjamin was fussing around the grocery store for a cracker, I was able to oblige him (though I felt bad for all the hungry people watching). This is the time that Muslims commemorate the revelation of the Koran to Muhammad. It is a time of heightened devotion and reflection. Many shops and business have shortened hours and no restaurants are open before the final prayers of the day.

While we recognized that this would be the case in Saudi, we neglected to consider the implications of this for our trip to Bahrain. We assumed the freedom to eat during the day would be greater, and it was; however, we had a heck of a time finding places to eat during the day. Thankfully, our western style hotel restaurant was open 24 hours a day. Our first evening we joined an iftar (breaking of the fast dinner) in a tent along the beach. As you can imagine this was quite a spread - I wish I could have taken a picture. I did pass on the pot with the sheep skull in it (Jeff said it was tasty!), but the rest was wonderfully delicious - roasted meats, dozens of salads and spreads, fresh fruit and pastries.

The iftar meal begins with dates, which are a local point of pride. Dates have been farmed in Arabia since ancient times. There are more varieties than I can count, in colors ranging from brown to red to yellow to orange. The dates are ripe from June - August depending on the variety. When they are ready to be cut, a strong farmer climbs the trunk with a knife in hand and chops down a large clump. No easy task in the hottest months of the year! There is a date souk (market) in Riyadh that I have yet to explore. The dates in the photograph below were brilliantly orange. Trees can be seen all over the city now heavily laden with fruit.

This is what much of the drive to Bahrain looks like.

Qal'at al Bahrain

Last weekend we broke away from Riyadh for a fun time in beautiful Bahrain. Our favorite part of the trip was a visit to a 16th century Portuguese fort (Qal'at al-Bahrain). Actually, the fort is layered on centuries of civilizations, starting as the capital of a Dilmun civilization, (mentioned in the Epic of Gilgamesh). Archeologists love it because it is a classic example of a tell, a mound showing layers of development over time. Archeologists have identified at least seven civilizations including Sumerian, Greek, Portuguese, and Arabic. 

The fort shows three distinct phases of development. The last and most apparent developments were added in the 16th century to protect the Portuguese from possible future attacks from the Ottoman Turks. The Turks attacked just before the additions were made and were forced back across the land.

The fort was originally developed to protect settlers from attacks from the sea. However, over time the bay became too shallow for large vessels to enter so additions were added to protect from land attacks. The fort includes rooms for canons, a large courtyard, a moat (never filled with water), and a couple of madbasa (rooms for the development of date syrup).

Most fascinating for the kids and me was the strategic trading location of the fort, as we have just begun reading stories of the Age of Exploration starting in the 15th century. Dates and pearls would have been important goods from the region. 

The Persian Gulf is gorgeous. I don't know if you can see how many shades of blue are present in the photographs, but I counted at least five. 

The day was incredibly hot. While we are currently in Ramadan, there are not the strict rules in Bahrain that there are in Saudi. We were able to drink and douse ourselves with water along the way.

Living Under the Abaya - Part I

Driving to a friends home last evening, with my abaya draped over my shoulders and my exposed knees peeking out before the air-conditioning vent, I had a renewed sense of just how restricting this place is for women. I saw a picture the other day on the news of a Saudi woman getting rescued from a flooding car in full abaya and head-covering. (This was from a winter story of sudden rainfall.) If you are a Saudi woman, there are few to no occasions that are safe to go unshrouded. Even life-threatening emergencies are not reasons to uncover. The weird thing is that many women don't think like American women (imagine that!). Many Saudi women are extremely conservative themselves - they have no desire to uncover, or drive, or push the social norms. Their religion and cultural/tribal norms teach that following God and protecting their family honor demands these practices. How does wearing the abaya do this? I'm learning more about this so look for a follow up post.

Saudi women can take off their abayas in their homes if they are with close family or female friends. However, with extended family or male guests they remain shrouded and often segregated. Even going to open the door for a female friend, where you may be observed by curious neighbors, is an occasion to cover.

We are the lucky few -- living on the DQ (diplomatic quarter) is like living in another country. I wore my shorts and tank top up to the swimming pool the other day. Jeff and I walk down the street holding hands. I run the wadi trail in comfortable exercise clothes. We are free to be seen, to express our personalities and emotions publically, to have ideas and opinions, to live full lives.

Even more than this, we are spiritually free. Free to follow a God who knows exactly what we are. This is Yahweh, who created us whole - body, soul and mind and intended us to live rich lives in relationship with Him. However, He sees us fully and knows what we are capable of doing in the darkness of our hearts. This God wants our heart's affection, but will not coerce, restrict, or squash us in order to win us. This God (if we let Him pursue us) gives us a new heart, new desires, and the power to live a good life. When we are made new in Him, we don't have to create rule upon rule upon rule in order to live safely in His blessing. When His favor comes to us through the work of his Son there is nothing we can do to lose it.

Why I Love A Saudi Floor Plan

We have grown to love the floor plan of our home. The homes in Riyadh are designed to facilitate the separation of sexes. While our DQ (diplomatic quarter) home is more open and less parceled up than a home in the city, it carries some distinctively Saudi features. Sliding wooden doors allow for easy closing off of the front of the home. In theory Jeff could have a male friend over, they could chat in the front sitting room and eat a separate dinner in the dining room without ever seeing me. We have several Western friends who live according to these social rules. In a lot of ways it makes life easier for the woman of the house. When her husband is entertaining, she can continue to take care of business in the back of the home or she can relax and not worry about the condition of the back rooms or her personal presentability. In other words the kitchen can be a wreck and she can wear yoga pants all day. It doesn't matter.

Our purpose in liking the floor plan is different - we homeschool. In the front of the house we can maintain a certain atmosphere of scholarship, creativity, productivity, discourse, while the back of the house provides a place to play, cook, do laundry, be entertained. While schooling the older kids in the morning, my boisterous toddler can play, dance, growl, and wrestle in the back (which is exactly what he needs) without disturbing our thoughtful environment (which is exactly what we need).

As an aside, there are several other fascinating features of Saudi homes to note. Many homes have separate entrances for men and women. Also, many have maid or driver quarters, as foreign household help is extremely common here. Many have private courtyards with high walls for privacy and many have roof-top terraces for enjoying the cooler evening air.

It can be hard to move into a home that you have never seen before. We weren't sure how this home would or wouldn't meet our needs, but God has given us a good home. We are content and ready to welcome any adventurous friends who'd like to visit!

Kingdom Tower Skybridge at Dusk

Last Friday evening we went on a family outing to the top of the Kingdom Tower Skybridge, (think Space Needle remolded into a bridge shape). On a clear day the Skybridge affords fabulous views of the city. I walked away with a deeper sense of the vastness of Riyadh. Thanks to some extremely long wait times in line, we hit the top just as the last vestiges of daylight were fading. It was worth the wait!

Impressive!

Yep! Past dinner time! Dad has the hard job!