These two men were sitting outside a bedding shop. They each have a mug of tea, a very popular drink here in Saudi Arabia. Note the thermos on the ground, ready for refills. These men look as though they are brothers to me – they look quite a bit alike. My impression of men in this society is that they are more social with each other and more conversational than lots of the men I knew in the states. It seems that they would rather spend time talking with other men rather than watching sports on TV or playing around on the computer. Both men are wearing the traditional white thobe with loose white pants underneath.
About This Blog, and About Me: Susie of Arabia
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, is KSA's 2nd largest city and is located on its west coast, right on the Red Sea. I moved here in 2007 with my Saudi hubby. This journal reflects the things that I see here, life through my eyes, my lens.
Please be sure to also visit my other blog, SUSIE OF ARABIA (formerly SUSIE'S BIG ADVENTURE), which relates my experiences, thoughts, and observations about living in Saudi Arabia.
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JEDDAH DAILY PHOTO 
lovely shot that capture an important element in everyday life in the region: tea & talk
Great shot. There is so much to be seen in it.
They sure look comfortable there.
This photo captures all my impressions of Islamic countries.
Susy, are these men outside? I would think when it cools off at night it would be nice to sit outside.
Yes, they are sitting outside. In the winter months, it does cool off outside in the evenings, however during the rest of the year, there doesn’t seem to be much of a difference to me between daytime and nighttime temps. I’ve been out at 2am in the warmer months and I’m still hot!
These 2 men look very comfortable. I would imagine there is as much conversation between husbands and wives in Saudi marriages as in any other traditial marriage structure, with more between modern style marriages in Saudi, ie ones where partners have chosen each other for shared interests, intellectual pursuits etc.
I wonder how often they actually talk to their wives.
I doubt that there is much conversation between many husbands and their wives here…
Some people think that TV (with games) and the Internet is negatively impacting our ability to interact with one another…I’ve not seen any studies that have confirmed that, although there may be some.
One question I have is whether the TV and Internet is censored in Saudi Arabia, so maybe neither one have sufficient content to interest the men in SA?
There is censorship of TV and Internet here, but there is still plenty that is allowed. The censorship is rather haphazard, and sometimes seems ultra-strict and other times seems pretty lax. My impression is that men here are much more social and interact with each other and engage in conversations more than what I’ve seen in America.