from bullets to bazookas

rules? in the desert?

It's been a little over two weeks since I arrived in Kuwait, and Iam still trying to get used to the Arabic week where my Thursdays become Saturdays and my Fridays become Sundays. Aside from the treacherous dust storms (I missed the Harmattan in Sierra Leone, but caught the storms in Kuwait), there's really not much going on out here. I drove around Kuwait City and took in some of the Arabic architecture, I have been to the Kuwait Towers, and had Caesers Pizza (not the Little Caesers "Pizza, Pizza"). I was told their pizza was worth trying. It's not bad for little bite-sized pizzas, but nothing spectacular. Aside from that, I've been in church at least four times a week. Going to church in a Middle Eastern country is quite interesting. Of all the Middle Eastern countries, Kuwait is considered rather liberal when it comes to tolerance towards other religions. However, the tolerance comes with segregation. There are about five churches in Kuwait (by church in this instance, I mean, built structures). There is the St. Paul's Anglican Church, the Catholic Church of Kuwait, right next to which is the Vatican embassy, the Orthodox Church, a Coptic church, and the National Evangelical Church in Kuwait (NECK). The Anglican and Catholic churches from what I understand, are for Kuwaiti nationals only and not for expatriates. All expats and some nationals attend church either at the Orthodox church building, or at the NECK facilities. There are about 37 different churches meeting at the NECK. The campus consists of several small halls each given a different name ("Hall of Joy", "Hall or Peace", etc). Each hall has to be reserved in advance for a church to be able to meet there. Services are scheduled throughout the week, and at different times each day to be able to accommodate all the churches. Someone who is not a "member" of any church can choose to attend an English service with the Pilipino population, an English service with Malayalam, Tamil, and Hindi interpretations with the Indian population, or any of the various expat congregations. The halls are usually tightly packed, and in the New Testament Church in Kuwait, we always sit on the floor. I can't help but think of Indian Reservations when I attend church at the NECK. It's not so with the expats in Kuwait; they are grateful that they are allowed to gather together.

There are separate public schools for Kuwaiti nationals, and separate private schools for expats. The public schools all have an Arabic curriculum while the private schools use the curriculum from their local countries (Indian, Iranian, Pakistani, American, British, and Australian). Private schools are open to anyone, and students are admitted in through an interview process and the results of a written test. Both public and private schools are regulated by the government. The government supervises the schools, and regulates the fees. Arabic public school education is offered free of charge to Kuwaiti nationals, and only Kuwaiti nationals and the children of teachers in those schools are allowed admission. All foreign students must attend private schools. These private schools are obligated to incorporate Arabic culture and the Arabic language into their curriculums. Private Arabic schools receive government support in the form of free textbooks, or land to build the school upon. All other private schools receive little or no support from the government.

At workplaces, Kuwaiti nationals, and Americans are paid significantly higher than any of the other foreigners - even if the job is same or much easier. Foreigners take up jobs in every area - from cleaning streets, being maids to the Kuwaitis, to becoming managers, but they never really have authority over a Kuwaiti national. All foreign residents are required to carry their "Civil ID" cards, and all visitors are required to carry their passports and visa with them where ever they go. If caught without such identification, you could be questioned and detained. There are regular checks, and you could be approached for a check while waiting for a haircut, or sitting in your car.

From reading the Kuwait Pocket Guide (www.kuwaitpocketguide.com), one can ascertain the various laws and rules that govern Kuwaiti nationals, residents, and visitors. Though it may not be an entirely accurate picture, images of America in the 1800's come to mind; along with George Orwell's 1984. It's a weird mixture of the past and the future.

I have often been told it's not good to go into something having expectations beforehand; be it relationships, going into a new job, exploring a new country, etc. Just dive in, go with the flow, and enjoy the ride. Here in Kuwait, diving in was not a problem; it's the enjoy the ride part that's a bit hard to do. The drivers on Kuwait's roads are maniacal!! While London was just plain confusion, Kuwait is a bit more of an organized confusion. I am sorry, but when you see beautiful roads, clear road markings, and damn good cars, you would expect people to drive a bit more civilized - this is coming from a New Yorker with road rage, so I hope you can feel the gravity of the matter.

There are long enough lanes designed to allow a driver to merge smoothly into the highways, but merging is a concept that just doesn't work well out here. No one bothers to yield while merging, and it's literally an inch by inch battle to the end of the lane; and then you close your eyes and dive into free flowing traffic. That's just what goes on. The lane at the extreme left is the fast lane; the speed limit on that lane is 120km/h. All other lanes move at 80+km/h. The exits are on the extreme right. I have seen cars fly in from the extreme left all the way out to the exit, past three lanes, without signaling, while on their mobile phones.

If you're driving above 120km/h - on any lane - and there are people who do this even on the right lane, and someone else behind you wants to drive faster, they either tailgate you, flash their headlights, and honk, or they cut into the next lane even if there is another car just slightly behind on that lane. If you're a foreigner driving at a decent speed, and a Kuwaiti national wants to get past you, you get all of the above, and once they get to your side, they'll gesture as if to spit at you. Intersections are a whole other story. I barely see motorbikes on the roads. Bikes are for rebels and misfits. Besides, why would you need a bike when you can drive a car just like you would drive a bike? Somehow, none of this comes across as road rage. It's just their way of life.

The other day, my uncle and I walked out to the car and found a grocery delivery truck parked perpendicularly just behind our car. He had his trailer door swung open and had slightly nicked the paint off the "dikki" (that's trunk for Indians. Called "boot" in England) of our car. My uncle yelled at him in English and the driver of the truck yelled back in Arabic. Neither of them understood each other and both knew that to go on would be futile. The day went on as usual - with slight agitation of course. It doesn't really matter if the foreigner knows Arabic or not. The result is the same. You always think the other person is alien.

Kuwait depends on foreigners to fulfill their human resources needs, and foreigners come to Kuwait only because they get paid relatively better than they would in their own countries. The foreigners in essence, take home peanuts compared to what their Kuwaiti coworkers take home. Somehow, both sides seem happy. But when you speak to the Indians, they just want to save up enough money to build a nice home back in India, get their daughters married off, and then jump off the wheel and retire back home. It's quite a life to look forward to.

posted by bthomas24 @ 11:04 AM