When you arrive at the airport of Riyadh, you immediately notice a large number of migrants from the Philippines, Bangladesh, India, lined up in a long queue for passport control. They all look a little discouraged. This is understandable, they are not really expected here. I asked one of them what he was here for, and he probably got the standard answer: "My brother works here, and he told me that you can earn a lot more money in Saudi Arabia than in Bangladesh. I want to get a job in a hotel."

I was driven from the airport to the city by a cheerful Pakistani taxi driver. He stepped on the gas, ignoring the traffic rules. When I naturally asked him if the traffic police would stop him, he looked at me quizzically and said that he was a master driver - and increased the speed a little.

In the capital of the kingdom, almost no one goes on foot, and there is also no public transport, except for taxis. Self-respecting citizens travel by car, and women in this country are prohibited from driving. Although local beauties do not have to regret this especially, since many husbands also provide a personal driver.

The hotel where I stayed was surrounded by luxury mansions that were impressive, on the one hand, for the simplicity of their geometric forms, and on the other, for the splendor of natural stone finishes. Everywhere in this country there is a sense of prosperity, stability and a certain slowness. Somehow I even thought about it... those who have found oil are not in a hurry in life.

Walking through the center of Riyadh, I noticed a small restaurant that served what turned out to be a very delicious shawarma. Its owner, a native of Istanbul, proudly remarked that only the Turks in this city are able to make real shawarma, and the rest still need a long time to learn. In general, the people here are friendly and very friendly. One of the distinctive features of the country is a significant number of visitors from different countries to do business here. Remembering that I had promised a friend to bring a hookah, I went to the store, where a bored Yemeni merchant threw me a call on duty: "Hello." When I said, "Alaikum hello," he brightened up a little, realizing that even if I didn't buy anything, at least I could talk about life with him. I was interested in local hookahs, which I told the seller. To my surprise, the merchant replied that, unfortunately, if I need a traditional hookah, it is better to go to Egypt, Lebanon or to his homeland in Yemen, and he sells Chinese-made products. After that, he said with a serious look that he had hookahs from Russia, and brought out a luxurious crystal product, on which was written "Bohemia".

I have heard a lot about the Saudi religious police, which strictly monitors the observance of Sharia precepts by the faithful, in particular the exact observance of prayer times. And now I had a chance to talk to one of its representatives. It was about five in the evening. A man in a special uniform was walking towards them, and the sight of him made others quicken their pace on their way to the mosque. When he reached me, I greeted him with the traditional salam and added that I was a Christian, so as to avoid any further questions on his part. Then I asked him, " Why are you forcing people to go to the mosque?" Surprised, he said,"It's prayer time, isn't it?" Seeing that he was ready for a dialogue, I continued the conversation, asking: "But if a person without faith in his soul prays, then for the Almighty this is nothing more than"daily physical education classes." Will a prayer uttered under a stick be accepted?" To this, the guardian of religious order replied that the beginning is half the job and a careless Muslim, obeying the example of other believers, may become angry and pray sincerely during the service.

But Riyadh is not only mosques, there are also such attributes of the modern capital as huge shopping centers. While walking through the "Sahara" shopping complex, I looked into a perfume shop called "Arabian Oud", the fragrance from the doors of which was carried for several tens of meters. Having decided on my choice, I decided to bargain a little for the sake of decency. Showing a slight reluctance to lower the price, a Yemeni merchant named Ali asked me what country I was from. Taking advantage of the moment, I suggested a condition - if he guesses my origin the first time, then the price for his product is doubled, but in case of an incorrect answer for each error, Ali will have to reduce the price by 20 rials (about 170 rubles). Taking into account the initial cost of 300 riyals, Ali accepted this option of bidding without a shadow of a doubt. At this point, his assistants came up to us and watched with interest, slightly encouraging the merchant. The first attempt discouraged me: "From Austria?" For some reason, I didn't expect such an answer. Why this particular country? The logic of the answer turned out to be more than peculiar: "I have a cousin who works there, and I would like you to be from Vienna." On the second attempt, he named Turkey. It was only the third time he guessed, and then, with a sly smile, he added that he would have made such a discount anyway.

In one of the huge halls of the shopping complex, I noticed four girls in black veils. They were almost the same height. Wrapped up so tightly that you can't even see your eyes. At the same time, they were enthusiastically photographed together and apart. Similarly, their peers behave all over the world, but... These young Saudis in their robes are completely indistinguishable!

This is the life of this city - the capital of an Islamic kingdom frozen between the Middle Ages and the present.

Permanent link to this publication: