Ah, Its time for Saturday Morning Blues, but the cozy hotel pool is a delight to fix all this. Morning swim and then a nice breakfast and ready to go to office. The wind is a bit stronger than usual. The forecast is for low temperatures and some wind for next couple of days. Lets see what the weather has in store for us in this desert land.
In office had some casual discussions with a few folks who had taken up jobs in IBM Saudi Arabia. Everyone agreed on trade-offs and compromises they make. But everyone was unanimous. The cost of living overall is low. Groceries and other stuff is pretty cheap. Expats even from US et all come here because of money they can make here without paying any taxes.
Another factor that I have noticed is lack of buses. Public transport is primarily taxis and that is not very costly too. When fuel prices for 91 Octane Gasoline are less than INR6.3 or just 45 Hala or .13 US$ taxis too do not cost much and the drive is usually very high speed. When we were being driven from Airport to hotel, our guy was topping 180 Kmph, but have seen cars driving even faster at night. The only time our chauffeur had slowed was when there was a police patrol on the way.
At these prices, I can drive any SUV in here and its running cost will be comparable to Esteem's in India, Phew. Another factor that makes cost of living cheap is lack of taxes. Most items are without tax. You do not need to search for Duty Free shops. Every shop is a virtual Duty Free store. Inspite of this some essential items are costlier compared to other stuff, starting with Water.
Water is a scarce in this region. You get desalinated water available. Bottled water of half a litre costs around INR 28 or close to 60 Cents. The country in-spite of its size and expanse has no rivers and no lakes. With just sand around, water would be a costly affair.
Anyways with temperatures running low, is there an indicator for a Sand Storm. You never know, but forecast does not say that. Lets see whats in store for next few days.
In office had some casual discussions with a few folks who had taken up jobs in IBM Saudi Arabia. Everyone agreed on trade-offs and compromises they make. But everyone was unanimous. The cost of living overall is low. Groceries and other stuff is pretty cheap. Expats even from US et all come here because of money they can make here without paying any taxes.
Another factor that I have noticed is lack of buses. Public transport is primarily taxis and that is not very costly too. When fuel prices for 91 Octane Gasoline are less than INR6.3 or just 45 Hala or .13 US$ taxis too do not cost much and the drive is usually very high speed. When we were being driven from Airport to hotel, our guy was topping 180 Kmph, but have seen cars driving even faster at night. The only time our chauffeur had slowed was when there was a police patrol on the way.
At these prices, I can drive any SUV in here and its running cost will be comparable to Esteem's in India, Phew. Another factor that makes cost of living cheap is lack of taxes. Most items are without tax. You do not need to search for Duty Free shops. Every shop is a virtual Duty Free store. Inspite of this some essential items are costlier compared to other stuff, starting with Water.
Water is a scarce in this region. You get desalinated water available. Bottled water of half a litre costs around INR 28 or close to 60 Cents. The country in-spite of its size and expanse has no rivers and no lakes. With just sand around, water would be a costly affair.
Anyways with temperatures running low, is there an indicator for a Sand Storm. You never know, but forecast does not say that. Lets see whats in store for next few days.
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