Bahrain

Frolicking Lamely in KSA
We took a morning flight to Bahrain and arrived at 10 am. Following our usual plan of not planning anything too much, we asked the taxi driver to take us to a reasonably-priced hotel. I can’t remember the name of it now, but it was very nice and had bars and restaurants overlooking the pool.

Now this is where it gets weird. This is the first chance I’ve had to get a beer in over four months so I immediately head for the bar. It must be some minutes short of 11 am, but the bar is not only open, it is packed with Saudi men! Not only that, but the hypocritical little bastards are all drinking beer! I am absolutely gob-smacked. I always suspected that the supposed piety of Saudi society was a bit bogus, and here was the proof.

I elbowed my way to the bar and proceeded to consume as much beer as I possibly could. We had lunch sitting by the pool, and once again the Riyadh paranoia was banging away at me. I shouldn’t be doing this. That woman in the tiny bikini should wear a swimming abaya. Those Saudis shouldn’t be here at all. That woman in the thong should cover her ass.

But you know what? The world didn’t end at that moment. Most of those people are probably still alive and well. I think my visit to Bahrain was a turning point in my attitude to the mad burghers of Riyadh. I had spent months trying to understand their culture, trying to imagine how it could make sense and how it could make them happy. Trying even to fit in. But it was no good. I now knew that it was all a sham.