Ả Rập Saudi là một nước giàu mạnh tại Trung Đông, có nền kinh tế dựa trên dầu lửa với sở hữu 1 tỷ barrel dự trữ dầu, chiếm khoảng 24% tổng lượng dự trữ dầu mỏ đã được chứng minh của thế giới.

Dân số Ả Rập Saudi được ước tính khoảng 26.4 triệu người, gồm khoảng 5.6 triệu người nước ngoài sống thường trú. 100% công dân Ả Rập Saudi là người Hồi giáo

Có khoảng 100.000 người phương Tây ở Ả Rập Saudi, đa số họ sống ở các khu riêng biệt hay các khu kín cổng cao tường.

Trong chương trình “Người Việt Đó Đây”, Hồng Vân hân hạnh đón tiếp và phỏng vấn anh Lộc Võ, một kỹ sư dẩu hỏa, làm việc tại xứ Ả Rập Saudi từ 12 năm qua.

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Bấm vô đây, xem thêm

Lộc Võ, an Aramco Petroleum Engineer Technical advisor has been working in the Oil Industry for 30 years. He used to work for Mobil Oil Corporation, now ExxonMobil, for 18 years in the US. He is working for the biggest oil company in the world by any measures.  He has been living there for 12 years. His job involves various aspects but mainly focuses on the Production Engineering side.

In the interview he states: As for the living condition in Saudi Arabia, I live in the camp provided by the company. These camp houses were built with US standards so they are very comfortable.  It is a Country Club type of living with beautiful landscapes.  Among other things, it has tennis courts, swimming pools, 18-hole golf course, exercise room and a super market. 

The regular work week goes from Saturday to Wednesday with Thursday & Friday being the weekends.  The working hours are from 7AM to 3:30AM.   On the weekend,  I go to shop via either driving my own vehicle or taking the company provided bus service. Saudi Arabia has many beautiful shopping centers and also local markets that sell things from all over the world.   Everything they sell is imported from outside.  So its quality is good and the price is very reasonable, especially if your salary is paid by US dollars.   (NOTE: Saudi Riyal and US dollar exchange rate is 3.75)

Since Saudi Arabia is a Muslim country, its people obey the rules very religiously.  They pray 5 times a day, every day.  Men and Women (as strangers) are not allowed to talk to each other in the public place.  Women have to cover their heads with black veil and wear black abayas when go outside the house.  Only Men can drive but not Women as they are not allowed.

Pork, Drugs, Pornography, Prostitution and Alcohols are strictly prohibited for selling, exchange and/or consumption in Saudi Arabia.   If get caught, jail term could be very severe and unbearable.

When talking about Saud Arabia, people often ask:  how hot it is?  Well, to give you an idea, in the summer, its temperature could reach up to 125 degree F (June, July and August) but don’t worry, the air conditioners can bring that outside temperature down to a comfortable level in the 70s, without having to worry about paying the electric bill.   In the winter time, the outside air is very pleasant and of course, you don’t have to turn off the air conditioners inside the house.

There are no spectacular sceneries there since most of the land masses in the country are sand dunes.  However, these dunes have their own good features created by the mother nature.

For all of the Saudi people that I know, they are very polite and generous. To some of them, I became  a very good friend with.  I am sure there are some negative perception about that via media in the US, but for me, it is a good place to live and work, especially if one works for Saudi Aramco. Overall, I have enjoyed working and living in Saudi Arabia.  I plan to live and work there a few more years.   Bottom line, it provides very good financial and health benefits to its employees, especially towards retirement.

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 16th, 2010 at 10:02 am and is filed under Show Notes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.