Living and Flying out of Riyadh

[ccjetpilot]

Hey guys - just picked up a contract on a private bird out of Riyadh. Looking for some tips on living there and any general info you might want to share. Thanks.

[mutt]

Good Luck.......... bring lots of sun tan lotion and an Ipad packed with books :):)

On a more serious note, do some investigation into the employer, make sure that they have a good reputation and are known for paying salaries on time. Toooooooo many people have taken jobs in this part of the world and depart poorer then when they arrived.

Good Luck.

Mutt

[vtwo]

Grape juice, Yeast, sugar and patience.

repeat as needed.

[desertopsguy]

Hope you like shopping! :}

There are some great restaurants around and the local food is good. You gotta check out Mamma Noura's, great shwarma etc

Depending on your nationality you can go to some grrrreat parties in the diplomatic compound where all the embassies are. This is one of the very few outlets for fun in RUH. The UK / US & Aussie embassies are some of the best. These are the only places where you can really let your hair down and drink real booze; not the local moonshine.

Ironically some of the drunkest nights I have had in my life have been in RUH. There is a great little bar in Seder compound too, bout 15-20mins drive from city centre. They have regular discos and if you get in touch with the compound manager Richard (nice old Brit guy) he can sort you out with entry.

As a previous poster suggested, learn how to brew, it's not as hard as you might think and with practice you can make some pretty decent stuff.

The driving is insane, no other word for it. Recommend you get a driver and use him for a few weeks til familiar. RUH is a mass of low level tan coloured buildings and once out of range/sight of your 2 major landmarks (Kingdom Tower and Faisaliah Tower) you can get hopelessly lost as the whole city looks the bloody same!

Keep water in your car in case you break down somewhere in the summer time as the temps will touch and sometimes exceed 50C.

Mutt is dead right one the employer front. For one guy that his treated well there are several that are treated like camel sh1t so do some homework if you can.


Enjoy

D.O.G

[ccjetpilot]

All right - thanks for the general info. Eventually I'll need the hook for the ex-pat weekend scene (PM me, I'm already bored...) but for now...

Does anyone have any recommendations on flats/apartments or other living arrangement tips? Perhaps an agent that you could pass along the info for? I am looking to get a month to month furnished flat type of deal if possible with 2 bedrooms. Corporate type with gym/wifi would be best. There is a paucity of adverts on the web for these type of places. I'm not a total noob to the ME having done about 4 years over the causeway in late 90's/early 00s but I find it a bit different here. All info is greatly appreciated.

[Panama Jack]

Based on what I've seen, you will go long way towards maintaining sanity, and perhaps even enjoying yourself, if you look towards living on a compound. Back 5 years ago this was pretty much considered a necesity because of the terrorist threat. At least there were armored personnel carriers and heavy machine guns behind sandbags around the compounds.

There are some really nice compounds in Riyadh. I would try to negotiate either the providing of the accomidation or a housing allowance that will cover your stay in one of these places.

As Mutt said, beware of some employers in KSA as there are plenty of horror stories (including in other GCC countries). I recall a few years ago one Saudi multi-billionaire figured that a pilot of a plane is just like a driver of his limo, and he could cut his costs of flying his 3-engined Falcon jet and get more motivated personnel by advertising for "type-rated and experienced (on type) pilots, preferably Indian or Filipino nationality. Pay $4000 USD/month." Needless to say, it became a bit of a joke and I don't think anybody applied. I call it the "souk mentality." :}

[desertopsguy]

You would still want to consider living in a compound because there are restrictions on where single guys can live. Neighbourhoods are segragated into family and bachelor accommodation. Bachelor accommodation is not suitable for westernised professionals, believe me! The areas they designate for this are total crap and half of em dont even have paved roads!

Compound is the only way to go. I stayed at Seder village excellent quality western style compound & corporate accommodation in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia : Seder Village: expat community (http://www.sedervillage.com/) and loved it. Good mix of nationalities, a bar that opens at weekend plus a few midweek nights and they show all the big games on their projector screen TV. They brew a half decent beer and it's a welcome treat after a hard day. They have a restaurant, gym, pool, decent internet and is not far from down town if you're tempted. I paid 1,000eur0/month for a one bed place plus utilities which were negligable.

Getting into these places can be hard however as the waiting lists are getting longer. After the terrorist attacks in 2002/2003 etc the compounds were like ghost towns as everyone fled and units were rented out for whatever they could get. The times have changed now and unemployed victims of the global recession are starting to head back that way out of desperation so there is no shortage of people who need a place to stay.

Furnished apartments, or 'aparthotels' as they sometimes call them are fine for short stays but they will be thronged with reclusive locals at the weekends who arrive from the boonies with their 2 wives, 12 kids and Indo maids. They'll all go out to shop in RUH's multitude of malls and then keep you up half the night while they run amok inside the apartment.

Apart from Seder there are Al-Hamra (one of the best in RUH) and Arabian Homes. Both are very central to down town and the airport highway however they are very very expensive to rent. FAL compound is another option however it is 2nd rate, quite dated looking and not so many westerners live there anymore.

If you need any more info then feel free to PM me..

D.O.G

[ccjetpilot]

Thanks for the info. My goal is to not make any sudden moves through the probationary period, ensure that I enjoy the job, make some ex-pat contacts and then find suitable living accommodations. I'm still amazed at the differences between flats available here compared to over the causeway. Any other links or info folks have is appreciated.