Probably Saudi Arabia is the only place on Earth that the world stops 5 times a day. When I first came here, it didn’t bother me. Not even a little bit. All I could think is ‘oh how relaxing it is to take a break 5 times a day’ or ‘mashaallah, how great is it that people do this?’

TBH my views have done a complete 180 and I really think it’s the biggest freaking nuisance ever okay. I kind of hate it. It’s so annoying when you’re in the supermarket 20 minutes before the athan and suddenly the lights go out and the employees come to shout at you in Arabic to tell you to make your way to the checkouts because they checkout lines are so crowded they have to close way in advance to get everyone out.

Maybe it wouldn’t be such a big deal if people actually prayed during the scheduled closings for prayer. But it seems no one does. The workers don’t pray- they just lock the door and hide out in the shop/restaurant and don’t pray. The customers? They form a line outside the restaurants, or they occupy the  benches outside the businesses so they can enter as soon as they reopen. Even the religious police aren’t praying, because they’re too busy making sure that everything is closing for prayer time… I mean I guess appearances really are everything.

Salaam,

KC