Saudi Arabian urban life unexpectedly normal by U.S. standards
Unbelievable but true: An American exchange student in Saudi Arabia, explicitly in Riyadh, discovered much to his surprise that “urban life is unexpectedly normal by U.S. standards” over there.
In a blog entry that happens to be a namesake of my blogMiddle East Messenger, the American student Cody Knipfer writes about his experience in Saudi Arabia, a desert state widely unknown to the Western audience./p>
As in Western media as well as in Western fantasies associate Saudi Arabia with backwardness, suppression of women, oil richness, camel driver and similar stereotypes it comes as a suprise and as a sign of hope that Knipfer states: “Change is coming. Saudi Arabia is in conflict with itself, torn between the global culture and Islamic tradition. The younger generation has grown up with the Internet while the older generation hasn’t experienced outside influence.”
Two thumbs up for Cody!
Recommended readings: McDaniel students help demystify the Muslim world at international conference
Middle East Messenger
