Music

I recently met an Omani who plays in the Omani Orchestra, and he reminded me of how confusing the issue of music is in the Arab world. Flip through the satellite channels and you'll find tens of music stations playing anything from Shakira to Nancy Ajram (a popular Lebanese singer) to more traditional Saudi men singing and dancing in a circle. Most Arabs I have met are familiar with American and Lebanese popular music. Yet there is a really large cultural gap in appreciating music that lies between the Gulf and other Arab countries.

When I lived in Egypt, I regularly went to concerts (check out Wust al Balad for a taste of my favorite Egyptian band). There were several clubs that featured live bands and a cultural center and opera house that hosted various concerts. Bahrain had a number of bars which had Pilipino bands, but aside from a few talented musicians most were simply background noise for scantily clad female dancers. Oman and Dubai also have dance clubs, some including the dancing girls, but I have yet to meet a local musician from any Gulf country except for ironically, Saudi Arabia, the one place where it is technically illegal to have concerts so they happen privately. Most of the Saudis I met were educated in the West or not Saudis but residents of Saudis.

Local musicians are rare in the region because some Muslims see music as wrong, because it is seen as competing with the musical poetry of the Quran. Even more Muslims see any instrument involving blowing (this includes trumpets, clarinets, or any other wind instrument) as being un-Islamic, so therefore wrong. I had a friend who taught in an upscale private school in Muscat who always had a hard time convincing Arab Muslims to play any wind instrument. Even traditional instruments are rare, such as the oud.

This brings me back to my Omani friend, the one who plays violin for the Royal Oman Orchestra. They are building a new concert for the group, which is comprised of Omanis and visiting guest soloists and conductors. Or at least that's what he told me, because they have no website, not many articles available in English, and their Facebook page was last updated 6 months ago. It frustrates me that it is so hard to find these local pockets of art and expression.

Back to Basics

After a nice, long extended holiday, I'm coming back to blogging. I've done a lot of thinking in my time away from blogging to think about what blogging is. I'm restarting this blog for one major reason: I want people to understand my experiences and perspective on the Middle East.

I've been reading a lot of blogs lately on the region, particularly Oman. I've found some good ones which I'll share and some poor ones which I hope that I won't be like. I want to try out some new topics and styles and formats to see what works, so I can't tell anybody exactly what the blog will become.

However, I can say that I don't want to regurgitate other writers work, pass on hearsay, or mindlessly bitch/praise about Oman, Arabs, Americans, or anybody else. All countries, parties, groups, organizations, and people including myself have flaws and strengths, and any criticism or praise should not be taken as a personal attack on a group. I like living in Oman, I liked living in other countries that I visited, and I like America too.

Pro-Saudi, anti-Israeli, and economic doom-saying

Reading the news has been overwhelming lately. The AIG bailouts, Obama and really all governments seem to be bogged down with economic problems, but 3 articles caught my eye this week.

First of all, yet another article on the transformation of Saudi Arabia. This one is from Newsweek, and it talks about King Abdullah and his building response to extremism since 9/11. It's a good read, and it does a good job of talking about what his efforts mean and the obstacles he faces. If you don't have the time, it talks about how bizarre it is that the reforms of Saudi come from the King and not the people. It is a good reminder of how far Saudi Arabia has come in the past 90+ years. It would have been nice to see more on how the government created this ultra conservative society through adopting one of the most conservative interpretations of Islam around (Wahabi) but hey, at least it talked about why the US government has taken to calling Saudi Arabia a "moderate" Arab country.

Next, John Mearsheimer comes back for more in Foreign Policy, I wrote about his (and Walt's) book before, and it recieved a lot of criticism. Here he talks about Israel's election of Netanyahu, and the rise to power of Avigor Lieberman, a man who openly advocate the removal of all Palestinians, even Israeli citizens, from Israel. I think that's called genocide by most people, but I might be mistaken. Great article, but just like his book, he really could have used more sources because its such a hot button issue. The real question that he is asking is not about what Israel should do, but at the end, how America should respond to an Israeli government that is not willing to compromise to make a peace deal.

On a third and even more depressing note, I have to mention the Rolling Stones article by Matt Taibi. Honestly, this doesn't have much to do with the Mid-East, but it does have to do with my mini rant on AIG from before. He talks about all the garbage that went down leading up to the current crisis, and I think its a really good long explanation on what people did to cause the situation. If you can understand the economic lingo thats in it, its awesome. Hunter Thomson would be proud.

AIG part 2

So, it looks like I spoke too soon, people in America are pissed. I just hope that something fair can be done about this situation that returns at least the majority of the money and that Wall Street understands the gravity of the situation. 

Also, I don't advocate any sort of violence whatsoever. I do think that people who are clearly acting in a unethical manner should be punished by any legal means available, and I think the outrage in this situation is 100% justified. That said, people shouldn't be stupid. That goes for angry people, and bankers too.

WTF is going on in America

So I know that the whole world is in what many call the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, but what are people doing? I follow the news pretty regularly overseas, and from a distance I so I really only see the media’s responses. In general, they are pretty fluffy in my opinion. The first real, widespread and widely publicized response that caught my eye was Jon Stewart. This is not surprising, as he was one of the first people in the media to start talking about Bush’s massive mistakes and daily hypocrisy. His roasting of CNBC has been so pointed, so spot on, and oh so funny cause its true. Yet it leaves me with one question…

How can regular Americans not be absolutely furious with Wall Street Bankers and high level CEO’s today? I don’t understand it. We blame the government for trying to save the capitalist system, but when it comes to the investment banks shelling out millions of dollars to idiots and criminals, that’s ok? And while some of them might be decent people (I have my doubts), they are certainly all idiots or criminals because they must fit into one of the two categories below:

a.       They got paid millions of dollars to not understand the market and lose more money in a year than many countries have as their GDP. Or

b.      They manipulated the market to make as much personal money as possible and then screw over the companies they worked for by leaving them with the bill.

There is no letter C here. That’s it. They either weren’t as smart as they claimed to be (and were paid to be) or they were, and scammed us all out of billions of dollars. Why aren’t people angry? If people understand that the government needed to give them money to fix the system, why aren’t people grabbing pitchforks and torches and walking to New York City? AIG is giving their executives 100 million dollars worth of bonuses? I don’t know, maybe I just get angry too easily, but I can’t wrap my head around this stuff. I would think that there would be people trying to get either legal claims against these guys or try to harass them. 

Israeli Lobby

There it is. I said it. Talking about Israel is the third rail of all politicians in America and even elsewhere in the world. I'll get to international countries later, but let's start at home. Charles W. Freeman Jr. withdrew his name for consideration from Obama's National Intelligence Council, largely over concerns regarding his positions on Israel. Here was the comment that cost him his job:

 He said that "Israeli violence against Palestinians" was a key barrier to Mideast peace. (As seen here)

While exiting stage left, he also blamed the dreaded "Israel Lobby". Oy.

If I had a dollar for every time somebody asked me about the Jewish Lobby, I would be a rich man. Granted, the questions range from, "Why do Jews run Congress?" to "Why doesn't America care about Palestinian children? Is it because the Jews control the banks?" Seriously, these questions are normal and accepted, if not encouraged, throughout the Arab world.

First, I don't agree with these questions at all. I think saying that Israel represents all Jews and equating the two terms is as dangerous, if not more dangerous, as saying that all terrorists are Muslims or that any country speaks for all of Islam. There are numerous Jewish groups that disagree with Israeli policies on personal and religious grounds, just as there are many Muslims who disagree with Saudi Arabia or terrorists or any other country. I don't mean to leave out similar word and identity games for Christians or any other religion; I just don't have the space for it in my blog.

So back to Israel: No, Jews don't control Washington, or the banks, or are single handedly responsible for the financial crisis. However these ignorant questions don't mean that we as Americans shouldn't look at the power of the conservative Israeli lobby AIPAC in Washington. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and John McCain all spoke before AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. They donated about 2.5 million dollars to various candidates in 2008, but if you want a good idea about what most people are talking about read Mearsheimer and Walt's book. There are some problems, but it gives you a good starting point for seeing how powerful the pro-Israeli lobby is in America. Check out AIPAC's own site here.

My point is simple, and at this point obvious: For conspiracy theorists and deniers of the political influence of Jewish Israeli lobbyist organizations, AIPAC and other pro-Israeli organizations are real and powerful. It is not a clandestine organization that controls decisions people make any more than agricultural lobbies control any politician. They simply are a powerful voice that must be considered when working in Washington. They started the campaign against Freeman and won it primarily over his comments regarding Israel.

My other point is that however unpopular Freeman is at the moment, he is right in his original quote: Israeli violence is a major hurdle to the Middle East peace process, and I will go one step further. If Obama wants to see peace in the region, he will have to push Israel to make tough concessions for a final peace deal with the Palestinians. I am not saying that Israel does not have a right to existence or self-defense nor that Hamas and Islamic Jihad are as innocent as children. I just don't think that America can afford politically or morally, to favor only Israel on this point. This is not a new opinion, only something that I think needs to be said over and over again until it actually happens. Furthermore, denying or exaggerating the strength of the pro Israeli lobbies including AIPAC is dangerous. As I say to everybody I meet who claims that Jews control the world or that anybody who criticizes Israeli policy is anti-Semitic:

Jewish does not mean Israeli—and while they are politically significant, so are old people (AARP), farmers, and gun rights activists (NRA).

Hot, Flat, and Friedman

 

Like much of the developed world, I've read several Thomas Friedman books and many of his editorials for the New York Times. This is actually quite remarkable, because most of the time I would say I have only a mediocre at best opinion of the man's writings. This is largely due to the sheer number of stupid questions from intelligent people asking about my opinions on From Beirut to Jerusalem, and how I feel about that book and his attitude towards the Middle East in general.

Don't get me wrong, I think Friedman is an excellent writer, and probably does the best editorials on the widest range of subjects that I've ever read. His books regularly discuss the most complex issues of the day, and remarkably are still easy to read and understand. I generally read his works in order to assess where mainstream America is or is going to be soon on major issues including trade, globalization, environmentalism, and Middle Eastern Politics.

However, that's not why I read his new book, Hot, Flat, and Crowded. I got is as a gift from a friend, and didn't have much going on. I can now say, that Friedman's transition from reporter to self-proclaimed national cheerleader is complete. Once you accept this, and the fact that Friedman regularly simplifies complex ideas for mass consumption, and that he often casually takes ownership of these ideas, it's a great book and I highly recommend it. Let me explain:

Friedman is open and honest about the book being an outline for why a green revolution is necessary and how to go about creating one. I think he fully succeeds in this, namely in his opposition to passive environmentalism and poor policies by the US government. It has excellent advice on how to change America's policies to favor green development.

Friedman casually coins new terms that already exist: A good example of this is Friedman's "First Law of Petropolitics": This states that "as the price of oil goes up, the pace of freedom goes down". While I think there is an important message here, it is by no means a law, and Friedman is by no means the person who originally came up with it. It also is not unique to oil. This law is basically a corollary to the idea of "Rentier States". A staple of Middle Eastern politics, it basically flips the American rally cry of "No taxation without representation" on its head and says OK, we'll give you health care, schools, sometimes houses, and business advantages, and you let us do what we want." My beef with Friedman isn't that I think he's wrong, it is that he "created" a theory that already exists in a better form.

Finally, Bahrain: I have lived in this country. It's nice, and I'm sure the ruling family is very nice as well. When Friedman spoke ravingly about the enlightened Royal Family of Bahrain and their strides towards democracy, however, I took offence. Check out Freedom House's assessment of Bahrain. In short it describes the 100% government owned press, the discrimination of the majority Shiite population by the Sunni ruling family, and my favorite part: the regular crackdown of civil protests (Shiite of course) by the majority foreign security forces. Yup. That's right, they have a mercenary police force and yet the Shiites aren't able to get even low ranking government jobs.

In short, Friedman annoys me at times in this book, particularly his assessment of Petropolitics and Bahrain. However, I would still recommend this book to a friend. It's packed with information that is generally correct about the complexities of the world regarding global warming and the changes that America needs to make right now. His ability to explain and simplify is truly a gift, if one that needs a little more tweaking.

Getting Good News in the Arab World

When major decisions reflecting policy changes in America are made, coverage is global. You can choose between any of the four major networks, any number of news channels, or pick up one of the thousands of newspapers that abound in the US either in print or online. Economic problems receive perhaps even more attention, as the current global crisis dominates news coverage.

Yet here in the Arab world, the quantity and quality of news coverage is remarkably lacking. I suppose this shouldn't be very surprising given the lack of political and social rights in general, but it's important to consider particularly because the amount if economic activity that occurs here and its relation to the West. A good example of this eerie silence is the growing crisis (or non-crisis) in Dubai.

After reading this article from the New York Times highlighting the potential crash that is hitting Dubai, I decided to look around and see what else was there. Of the various articles I read from the Huffington Post, Bloomberg, and NPR, I got a couple new pieces of information, but nothing that gave me any official government commentary or new hard facts of exactly how much has changed or what losses individual businesses have taken. NPR had a disputed quote from the chief of police regarding cars left at the airport, but that's it. How can such a potentially huge headline lack the hard facts to support it?

The reason is probably my greatest frustration with the Middle East: information, particularly bad news, is hidden and protected at almost all costs. Note the new fines for journalists reporting on the economic crisis for Dubai. Rather than fix the problem, simply pretend that it isn't there. Newspapers on the ground certainly don't help. In the last three years that I've been in the Middle East, I can count the number of critical newspaper articles with tangible facts that I've read or even heard about on one hand. Most newspapers have the same appearance in the Gulf: half a page of advertisements, generally for McDonalds, and then glossy pictures of the latest meetings that some dignitary or leader attended. In Cairo and Saudi Arabia, most people read only the Op-Ed section of the paper, which often created elaborate theories for why certain bad things were happening, and blaming said events on Israel, America, or any other country that tensions might currently exist with.

These rumors, which are also often repeated or recreated on News related talk shows on the Arabic Satellite News Channels, are often times more trusted then official reporting on events. This used to confuse and annoy me, but the reason for this is there is no credible source for information here. The BBC or some other Western News agency will do good work here sometimes, but its fleeting and never followed up on. Official sources won't comment, or worse, will blatantly distribute misinformation to kill a critical story. People have no choice but to fill in the gaps of information with their own creative theories as to how bad the crisis in Dubai is because nobody is talking about it.

The great irony of the culture of limited information here is that it completely undermines the credibility of these countries and cities, which will further exasperate any economic crisis. Instead of being a beacon of Arab and Western development that is surviving the global economic crisis, Dubai looks like a secretive and unstable country that is unsafe to invest in. There are probably very few people in the world who understand exactly what the economic climate in Dubai is like right now, but the best thing they could do for all parties right now is explain what is happening right now honestly so that it could be fixed in order to protect the massive development and progress that has already occurred in Dubai and the wider Gulf region.

Saudi Reforms

Cabinet picks resigned, bankers got a serious pay restriction, and the stimulus bill got rewritten, protested, and then passed in the US House and Senate. These news items all received massive attention, and as well they should have. However in the Middle East, two articles unrelated to these other major headlines blew my mind and yet received little if any coverage on the major international English News channels

On Valentine's day, yes, V day, something very important happened in Saudi Arabia. While religious police were cracking down on potential romantic gifts, King Abdullah, a romantic at heart at the tender age of 84, changed the future of development in Saudi Arabia and really the entire world. According to this article, King Abduallah has modernized his country's education system and moderated their religious police, notorious for their enforcement of sexual segregation and other conservative interpretations of Islamic law. The education minister is now a moderate, whose deputy minister is now a woman. As a former resident of Saudi Arabia, a country where women are not allowed to even drive, this is truly amazing.

Yet the most important aspect of Saudi's reforms came in the religious courts, where for the first time since the creation of Saudi Arabia in the 1920's and 30's, all four branches of traditional Islamic jurisprudence will now be represented. Before this reform, only the most conservative branch of Islamic jurisprudence, Hanbali, was present. This resulted in Saudi Arabia pushing its own unique and modern view of Islamic law on the rest of the world through the importance of the Two Holy Cities and equally as much through massive amounts of oil revenues. Wahabi Islam, considered by even some Hanbali scholars to be too extreme, does not recognize alternative interpretations of Islam as valid. The official recognition of the diverse opinions by Islamic scholars will undermine al Qaeda, Wahabis, and other militant extremists who refuse to recognize the tradition of respect for contradictory interpretations of Islamic Law.

King Abdullah has been involved with encouraging interreligious dialogue for the past couple years now, and I didn't buy it until now. I think this guy may be serious in trying to undo the damage that celebrated intolerance has wrought on the world since the enshrinement of Wahabi Islam as their official state religion. If these reforms in women's rights, education, and Islamic jurisprudence stick for the next couple years, then the world will truly be a better place. Perhaps even Saudi Arabia will be able to develop past its only major source of income, oil revenues.

dogs

Exploring the mountains and wadis (valleys) of Oman is an excellent way to spend time and learn about traditional Omani culture. The natural environment is unlike anything I have ever seen before, and despite having lived near the mountains and traveled extensively through them, they still offer stunning views. A further benefit is the ability to talk to Omanis that are more traditional than conservative. This may seem counterintuitive, but after talking to numerous locals from very small and isolated mountain villages, I think it's true.

Contrary to popular belief, the Arab world has not always been this conservative. Across the board, it is probably more conservative in its approach to Islam now than it has ever been. Comparing Rustaq and any of the mountain villages is a good barometer of that fact. In the isolated villages and rural homes, Omani women do not where the black abaya, hijab, or niqab (cloak, headscarf, or face veil). They wear colored floral patterns of a similar cloak and headscarf, but never a face covering or any black colors. This is in stark contrast to the markets of Rustaq, Nakhal, or other regional cities in the area. The women are all modestly dressed, covered in a conservative fashion, yet village women who are often uneducated or unfamiliar with even the regional cities would appear to be far less conservative than their semi-urban counterparts.

A different but also telling example of this traditional vs. conservative reality is the pet. In the cities, it is extremely rare to find people keeping animals that are not exclusively for food or transport. Goats, sheep, chickens, donkeys, and camels are plentiful and seen as a symbol of wealth, but cats and dogs are chased and seen as dirty. Dogs are even mentioned in Islamic texts as being unclean animals. I have a friend with a dog who cannot take it outside without being extremely careful to avoid local Omanis in the city where we work.

In the small wadi towns this is very different. At numerous villages, I have seen both cats and dogs living in close proximity to the houses and interacting with the people in a very friendly way. Furthermore, I even spoke with one Omani who kept a dog as a pet. He named his dog Diwan, after the bureaucracy in Muscat. The dog was healthy, friendly, and the Omani regularly pet him during our conversation. He said that indeed dogs are dirty animals according to Islam, yet so long as you wash your hands three times before eating or praying, it isn't a problem. In my opinion, this is a far more moderate and thought-out interpretation of Islam compared to the mainstream view that dogs are dirty and not to be touched.

In short, I think there is a wealth of information about the resurgence of Islam in the modern world, but all too often reporters and Westerners call this a resurgence of tradition when really it is a new brand of modern conservative values.

Screws

In the backcountry of Oman, life is much different from Dubai. Aside from the major cities in the region, most things are slow going. Trying to understand how to live and work overseas is a difficult task, and anybody who has traveled for extended periods of times certainly knows this. Yet even after living abroad for 3 years and specifically in the same town for 6 months, life never seems to get easy. A good example of how complicated a simple errand can be was my quest to find 8 screws to replace my car speakers. Because it's very difficult to get our landlord to do anything to fix up our apartment, we've taken the initiative on everything from cleaning up leftover dust when we moved in, to building shelves and repairing toilets that leak. Not surprisingly, this gives one extra insight into Omani and broader Arab culture.

The first challenge is the timing of local stores. Almost all businesses, except for large stores, operate on a flexible time schedule of 8am -1pm, and then 4pm – sunset or 8 pm. This varies from place to place. Most towns, including mine, have a market for fresh foods, and all of the other stores are grouped according to their goods. Tailors, jewelry, hardware, homeware, and mechanics are all located next to their direct competitors. Though there is a growing number of "hypermarkets" or what Americans call big box stores (i.e. Wal-Mart or Target), most of the shopping is still done through small, locally owned stores.

It's a much more personal way of doing business that allows the customer to interact with the employees or often times the owner of a specific type of store. It fosters good community interaction and almost all people are on a first name basis, much like how I imagine small town America used to be. It also keeps prices fairly competitive for common goods, as all the stores that carry the same items are so close to each other that price comparisons are easy. Most of the time, I enjoy this surviving traditional market.

Yet some days it is absolutely excruciating to deal with, for example, when buying screws. Most of the competing stores in town are stocked with goods from the same supplier, and because the population in rural areas is very homogenous, that means that stores only carry what's popular. Despite the fact that there are no less than 5 competing hardware stores in town, all of these stores only carry wood screws. For those of you who aren't amateur carpenters, wood screws work great for wood, but crack or bend metal and plastic because they are shaped differently. Wood screws have a flat top and a triangular head, while plastic/metal screws have a rounded head and flat bottom, similar to a nut. Now don't say you never learned anything from my blog.

What does this mean and why does it matter though? A lot of things. First, it gives you a good idea of how few people are working with anything other than wood screws, which means that people aren't doing any sort of home projects, they are doing them poorly, or that they travel to Muscat to purchase screws. Also, it means that even though neighboring shops compete, that doesn't necessarily imply that there will be any more products at those stores. Most importantly, it means that I couldn't buy any screws for my speakers and have no music in my car.

Dubai

Countless articles have been written about Dubai. It's every news outlet's answer to the dark, dramatic and depressing conflicts of Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine. Every single article I have read has showcased the city's development, architecture, and shopping, complete with surreal photographs to compliment the rhetoric. This past weekend I went to Dubai for the first time, and though I only spent a short time there and cannot comment on much of the reality that is Dubai, I can say one thing: They are unique in what I have seen, and are the only place that has pulled off an authentic and truly enjoyable pub comprised almost entirely of expats.

This may not seem like much of an accomplishment, but I think it's a sign of how cosmopolitan and generally authentic Dubai is. As I've said before, I've been to most of the countries in the Middle East. While living abroad, I have always craved for a local bar like America, complete with a noisy crowd, good beer and food, and most importantly a relaxed feeling. This last part is the most important, because traveling with my wife in even the most "open" places like Bahrain and Muscat, "Western" bars generally consist of local and expat men ogling the waitresses, dancers on stage, or few Western women who do go out. Drinks are overpriced, dress codes exaggerated to keep out less trendy single men (myself once included), and house music overplayed. This is exactly what I expected from Dubai. However, I was wrong.

Going to a good pub in a hotel in Dubai is almost exactly like going out in Chicago or any other major city in America. Wide selections of drinks, competent and casual waiters with a sense of humor, and an even more classy clientele that is far more concerned with what they are drinking and who they are talking to then staring at whatever Western woman they can find conservatively dressed or not. For those of you who have not traveled to the Middle East, this is incredibly rare outside of gated 5 star resorts in Sharm al Sheikh or Beirut that only have tourists.

I really believe that this is a testament to the fact that many of the expats call Dubai home, and thus hold it to the standard of their original homes. Our Indian taxi driver complained about the government taxes on taxis and how that affects getting picked up in different neighborhoods in the same groaning matter of a Chicago taxi driver complaining about the high gas prices. Customers demand clean lobbies, food, and good service from their establishments rather then put up with Budweiser and rude ineffective bartenders who overcharge and under pour because they can go somewhere else. There are so many hotels, bars, restaurants and clubs that get reviewed in weekly local magazines critically that they can't afford to be cheap or rude.

Furthermore, the positive cosmopolitan feel of Dubai is due primarily to the fact that it is almost entirely expatriate workers. Only 10-20% of the city's residents are UAE nationals, and that doesn't even account for the massive tourism industry present. The city is more international than any other city in the region by far, and because the Dubai government is so open to maintaining its status as a cosmopolitan business and tourism hub it is one of the most politically open cities as well.

Traditional Arab Values: and the story of how Badr saved Christmas

Not that it needs to be said, but getting into a car accident anywhere is always a bad idea. However, getting into a car accident while living in the Gulf is a really bad idea. Because of the nature of laws here (many exist but with selective enforcement), you really don't know what will happen. Aside from the obvious injuries and damages, the red tape here is completely dependent on who you are, who you know, and who or what you hit. If you hit a local or if a local hits you, it is almost certainly your fault, and if you happen to be in Saudi, it is certainly your fault. Hope the damages aren't bad and insurance covers everything. According to one lifelong resident of the Kingdom, Saudi Arabia has an interesting take on deciding fault and covering damages: both drivers must stay in jail until they come to an agreement. In Oman, it's less severe, but if you can't phone your employer to come immediately to the police station, you also go to jail. Also, driving a car without repairing even minor cosmetic blemishes is also crime resulting in jail, as is trying to repair said blemishes without the correct paperwork from the police station. If you even have a hint of alcohol on your breath, it's the same story: jail time.

Of course, having a friend or making a friend in the police will result in no paperwork, fines, or jail as well. In fact, after finally settling all of the consequences of my own minor car accident in Oman, I planned on writing a massive post much in the style of the above paragraph. I would detail the comical yet painful experience that lacked reason, explanation, and logic much like any Kafka novel. Yet after my Christmas Eve encounter with my new friend Badr, the following is far more interesting an approach to describing Oman.

Outside of Muscat, Oman is still quite rural, and many Omanis have little interaction with Western foreigners either as tourists or expatriate workers. English speakers are rare, and if you are dealing with common employees such as shop owners, mechanics, or general merchants, it's gonna be sign language or Arabic. Hence while replacing pieces of my damaged Land Rover at the local garage, the knowledge of Arabic is absolutely critical. This is a pain if your Arabic is lacking, but it does result in a far better experience then the average international city in terms of customer service, price, and attitude. I had first met Badr trying to replace a small in dash logo in the event I forgot what type of car I was driving and needed to look down and read my steering wheel. He ran a local junkyard for old cars, and happened to have a number of Discoverys around which made him quite useful for parts. After my accident I quickly realized how useful he was. After receiving quotes in Muscat for new rims, he routinely gave me parts for at least half the price of his counterparts in Muscat. Additionally, I always got a free cup of tea and a good conversation about life in America. Unlike my mechanic in Muscat, he could say immediately if something could be done, do it when he said he would, and then give me the local price.

On Christmas eve, I had just gotten my car back from Muscat after a month of repairs and red tape, only to suffer a blowout driving around town. Yet this was no ordinary blowout. This blowout happened to sever the gas line between the fuel cap and tank, resulting in a trail of diesel accenting the tire shrapnel now littering the road. Despite it being during the local naptime (similar to Siesta, but occurring between 1 and 4 pm when everything closes), I called Badr, to ask about a possible repair. Within, 5 minutes, he was there with a tow truck, two friends, and a smile.

"small problem we'll be done in 10 minutes" he said calmly in Arabic. Small problem and ten minutes in Arabic is almost always completely inaccurate and could be said for how long it takes to make a cup of tea to you'll never see your car again. Yet he was completely right. It took exactly ten minutes counting the tow, the reattachment of the fuel line, and the new tire and wheel he game me. In addition, he asked for no money, told me to return the next morning to get a new spare, and offered to personally go with me to buy new tires in order to guarantee me a good price.

Some would call this a Christmas miracle or his gift to me for buying most of my parts from him and talking with him in Arabic every time I came by. Yet really, it's the Arab hospitality that I really think is at the root. In most of the Gulf, Arab hospitality is thrown around and seen as being an obligatory cup of tea or coffee. Yet in the mountains and small villages without foreign fast food or malls, almost all of the customers are local friends and family. Anyone else is a traveler, and according to the true rule of hospitality, they must be helped. In a harsh climate, it makes perfect sense. Without any help from other locals during travel, you will die. After so many cold experiences seeing foreign workers treated inhumanely and western expats being continually ripped off, it's incredibly uplifting to know that admirable and altruistic traditional values from the Arab world still persist outside of the boom towns lining the coast.