Bahrain From an Expat's Perspective

A March 2006 trip to Bahrain by mikiks

Quote: An insider's perspective from numerous visits with my sister who now lives in Bahrain.

Bahrain From an Expat's Perspective

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Overview

Quote:

When you travel to the Middle East, mention Bahrain to any local person and undoubtedly a smile will come to their face and they will say, "Good people, in Bahrain... good people." The people within Bahrain make the country a gem of the Middle East. They are incredibly friendly, good-natured people, which makes traveling there a joy. Bahrain is a more liberal country that takes pride in being a financial hub of the Middle East, and is for the most part accepting of Westerners. However, although many Bahrainees seem to embrace Western culture, many abide by strict social norms that must be respected, such as being discrete in dating.

The highlight for me was in seeing how modernity and traditionalism mixes in Bahrain. Bahrain is a very comfortable place to live and travel, (if you avoid the hot summer months - see more in the Quick Tips section) with all of the modern amenities that one would expect at home, such as excellent roadway systems, enormous malls and mega-grocery stores, restaurants galore, and upscale hotels.

Clothes: If you walk around, or go to a mall, you will see people wearing traditional clothes, where the women are entirely covered in black, and the men wear long, perfectly white clothes that also cover their entire body, to people in conservative Western clothes (where shoulders and legs are covered).

Restaurants: You will find that the restaurants in Bahrain are trendy, modern, and delicious. You will be able to find everything, from Lebanese food to Italian, Thai, Indian, French, sandwich stores, Japanese, you name it. The only problem is that there are very few Bahrainee restaurants, as the locals eat at home if they want to eat Bahrainee food.

Landscape: Bahrain visually is not necessarily the most beautiful country in the world. The landscape is a dull mix of beige sand and rock. However, many locals and expats make up for it by maintaining emmaculate gardens of lush greenery and beautiful flowers, which is a sight to see within itself.

Quick Tips:

Most people speak English in Bahrain, because English is the language of business. Even when two Bahrainees speak to each other in a business setting, they will speak in English.

DO NOT travel to Bahrain, if you can help it, between June to September. The temperature will go up to 130ºF, with an average of 100ºF, and the humidity will be so bad that at times drivers literally have to turn on their windshield wipers in order to drive. However, between November and March, it is very pleasant, and can actually become chilly in the evenings.

Ladies, bring a scarf or a pajmina with you whenever you go out because there may be times, such as when you go into a mosque, that you will need to cover your head. It also becomes useful when you go inside a restuarant, museum, mall, etc., because the air-conditioning is usually blasting.

Best Way To Get Around:

Depending on how long you will be in Bahrain, and how much you want to see, either rent a car or use the readily available taxis. Read Less

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Tree of Life

Attraction

Quote:

This supposed miraculous 400-year-old sprawling tree is out in the middle of the desert, with no known source of water, and is "without any other vegetation in sight." However, when we drove up there, and got a tiny bit lost due to virtually no signs, we saw another smaller tree about 200 yards from the Tree of Life. That kind of ruined the miraculousness for us! BUT the drive out there through the desert was worth it, because we were able to see other parts of Bahrain throughout our drive through towns, the desert, past industrial sites, and a couple of small oil wells. Unfortunately, the tree itself is not very well kept, as there is graffiti on it and cute kids climbing all over it....Read More

Member Rating 3 out of 5 on May 19, 2006

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About the Writer

mikiks
Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida

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