The Bank

Bank-October

On the Bank application there is checklist to determine if we have any personal limitations.

Some of the conditions you may check are:

Are you…

·         Blind

·         Illiterate

·         A Veiled woman!!!

The whole process of trying to open a bank account is a lesson in patience.

There was one chair available and the banker invited Phil to sit down.  There was no acknowledgement of my existence. I know this is culturally appropriate; however it just doesn’t  feel right. After spending about 40 minutes filling out forms, the banker told us, “Too many customers. I’ll try later to open your account.  Inshaalla.  God willing.  Mabye Monday.  I will try. Inshaalla.”

(it was Wednesday when we were there.)

After waiting a week, we went back in. There was no recollection that we had even filled out the paper work. So we started over again. It’s just the Saudi way. Everything has to be done many times. Once we completed the applications, Phil received his bank card about week later. Not me. We had to fill out an application again. When I went in to retrieve my bank card, he asked me (because I was alone, I presume he could talk to me) if I had filled out the application. I replied, “Yes, twice.” He asked me again. I repeated myself.  He couldn’t find it, so he looked in the mail on his desk, and lo and behold, Inshaalla, it was there.  Everything requires so much labor and persistence, that even the small accomplishments like getting a bank card, seem like a monumental triumph.  Above all, we must have a sense of humor or else we would go mad.

Shopping Malls

September 11, 2010

There are beautiful malls about 45 minutes away. They carry all the latest fashion and every brand name imaginable is there. The window displays are exquisite. There are such beautiful clothes for women to buy, yet these fashion statements are never allowed to be seen, except by other female company.

I needed a product from Clinque.  When I entered the cosmetic store, something didn’t seem right. As I looked around it was void of any female sales clerks. It was just another sad reminder that there is no employment for females. I obviously have not been involved in all areas of commerce or professions.  I do know what I have seen up until this point; few females have ever attended to me and of those females most are not Arabian.

As we continued walking through the mall I realized why women are not allowed to try on clothes in the stores; all male sales clerks.  If a woman wants to buy clothes the easiest thing to do it is buy 3 sizes of the same item of clothing; leave the store and go the female bathrooms, which are equipped with changing rooms. Then try the items on and decide which one fits best, then return the other two. One woman I work with has 2 elementary children, and when she wanted to try on some clothes, she left her two children as collateral in the store so she could run to the bathroom and try the clothes on!!

When we lived in Hong Kong, and sometimes even in the states, I would slip clothes over my outfits to see if they fit. It’s a bit more difficult to make that judgment call when you slip a blouse over 4 yards of loosely fitting material called an abaya!