Open Writing

The irrevocable promise of a visit home each year and several shorter trips outside Saudi Arabia were sworn by my husband before we moved there.

So, eight months after my last visit home, it was with great excitement I set off in February with baby Faris so he could meet the Kiwi side of the family.

With much fussing over Faris I was free to enjoy my couple of weeks at home. The freedom of being able to go anywhere I wanted, anytime, was liberating after my limited solo mobility in Saudi Arabia.

At home I became possessive of the car keys and was the first to jump in the car to go and buy a carton of milk. I even hoped I would get back home and discover we were out of bread, just so I could make another trip to the shops.

The first week felt strange at the supermarket and shopping malls with no abaya to trip over or scarf to adjust. But it is a strange feeling: even in jeans and t-shirt I feel somehow indecent, as if I have forgotten to cover myself and am venturing out only partially dressed.

For the first time ever, supermarkets are an interesting place. I wander happily up and down the the aisles, comparing products and prices to those in Saudi. Surprisingly, they are not that dissimilar.

Many supermarkets in the Middle East carry New Zealand lamb and cheeses which retail for a similar price at home. If anything, the selection in Saudi Arabia is far greater than home, with products from Europe, the United States and from all around the world.

I enjoy the local cafes. it is great not having to worry about whether it provides a separate family area or bachelor seating only.

Living in a desert capital, I miss the beaches of home. I spent an afternoon on the hot, black iron-sands of New Plymouth's beaches where the rolling west coast surf pounded salt spray high into the air to eventually settle on parched driftwood. Oil tankers cruised off the coast, ferrying Taranaki oil on its way to foreign ports.

I could spend all day on the beach, just listening to the waves, tasting the salt and enjoying the views of city, port and mountain. I memorise it all so I can mentally transport myself there at a later time during my later occasional homesick sessions.

New Plymouth is one of my favourite cities and one of New Zealand's best kept secrets due to its relatively remote position. It is situated halfway down the north island on the western-most knob and boasts excellent surf and swimming beaches, beautiful parks, lakes and rivers as well as the world's second most symmetrical mountain after Mt Fuji. Mt Taranaki, also known as Mt Egmont, was used as the backdrop for the Tom Cruise movie Samurai.

I went to the movies, a rare treat for me these days. Saudi Arabia has no cinemas so I always try to cram in a few movies when I am home. Meet the Fockers provided us with great entertainment for a few hours.

I wonder why there are no cinemas in Saudi? Surely they could provide separate male/female theatres? If they showed both Arabic and English films it would be an ideal opportunity for budding Arab filmmakers to showcase their work as well as providing Arabic speakers with an opportunity to improve their English.

The shebaab - teenage boys - would also be off the streets and out of the malls.

In order to protect Saudi women from `unwelcome' advances some shopping malls have actually banned shebaab.

Satellite television is extremely popular in Saudi Arabia so I imagine the locals have just got used to staying home for their movie entertainment.

I have just one more week at home to store up precious memories before flying back to Saudi, where my abaya and scarf will make a reappearance in an increasingly sweltering summer heat.