!In Shallah!

And I live.

Main Entrance, King Abdullah University

After 5 days of acclimating, I finally found some time to share my first impressions.

I left Germany on Thursday evening with British Airways. With a stopover in London (yeah I know, makes no sense), I landed in Jeddah, Saudia Arabia, at 6 in the morning on Friday. And what a sight it was! As the plane descended through a shimmering barrier (which later proved to be thick misty blanket of hot air), I set my eyes upon the desert where Aladdin found the magic oil lamp when he was tricked by Maghreb the Sorcerer.

I can prove this with two statements:

1) Since Aramco claims that all oil comes from Saudi Arabia, magic oil lamps must come from here as well.

2) Only a genie could turn such a wasteland into a country where people not only endure, but prosper and grow.

As far as the eye could see, rolling smooth sandy hills with a speck of dark brown and a dash of lighter brown. And then I saw Jeddah, a remarkably dreary agglomeration of dusty brown cement houses. From my Saudi neighbor (who actually studies in Boston but has never even tried a drop of alcohol) I learned that, contrary to its looks, Jeddah was the most open-minded city in the whole Kingdom with a high percentage of expatriates.

Upon arrival at the Airport, before Immigration, I was greeted by a Saudi standing in front of the King Abdullah University Desk, who must have noticed my lack of direction. He shook my hand, bade me welcome in the name of the King, and took my passport. I was brought to customs, where they fingerprinted each one of my fingers, and then taken to get my luggage. My Saudi friend, who was very friendly and dressed in all white with a red and white checkered head covering, carried my bag and my football, and took me to the taxi stand. There, a guy holding a sign displaying "Tello Schaller" shook my hand and opened the door to his oversized Ford.

An hour later, without ever seeing Jeddah, I arrived in the middle of nowhere. Well, except for a wall and a security house, which is where we were heading. Welcome to the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, said the sign in bold and colorful lettering. I had made it.

My taxi driver, who was a Phillipino,  took me to get my ID badge and then brought me to housing. From there, another lady accompanied me to show me my Apartment and to see if everything was okay. A nice spacious apartment that I would be sharing with a Mexicano.

So as I said, I arrived on Friday, which is actually the weekend. For all of you who dont know, which is probably most of you, weekends are on Thursday and Friday, a fact that will probably take me at least 3 months to come to terms with.

Thank god my Mexican flat mate was there, he took me around to all the important places on his little scooter, including the supermarket, the Gyms, the pools, the Marina, the Academic buildings, the other houses.

(By the way, the King had this University built in less than 2.5 years. Over 30,000 constructions workers worked here simultaneously...)

He then asked if I wanted to go play golf. Heck why not? Never hit a golf ball in my life, but can you think of a better location than in the middle of desert?

That evening, we went to a "gathering" (there are no parties here, since there is no alcohol, and having fun is looked down upon) where Edgard (the Mexican), introduced me to 20 other Mexicans! Apparently, the Latinos make up a large portion of the campus (10%).

And finally, I could sink into a well deserved slumber. But not for long! Saturday morning had come, and it was time for my first day of Lab! A story that will be continued soon...