Biography 30: Riding on an open truck

 After the marriage ceremony, the bride's family brought a truck to drop the guests at their homes. Or more car... I don't remember. We didn't get a chance to sit at the front. They offer us to sit on the open backside. I felt humiliated. But I saw other people didn't care. They jumped on the truck and were very happy to be sitted. Later I understood why.

This was one of the most amazing rides that I ever took.  At night the desert area became much cooler, the sky was full of stars and our journey on the sand starts. It was amazing. Some started girls started singing, we all enjoyed every bit of that moment. I wish we lived far away that we didn't get down from the truck soon.

Biography 29: A small black door

In Alkaseem (Saudi Arabia) sometimes I and my older sister went out for a walk. But we had a fear that we may get lost and will never make to come back home. So, we always follow a simple straight road, following the boundary wall of our clinic and walk to the end of that road. Then a big open space. As it's a desert area, the road and that open area were fully covered with sands. There were many other roads that also come and end at that open space. At the end of the open space, there was a small black door. We use to come to that open space and watch people. Never get the courage to pick one road and go ahead. 

But the most interesting thing was that door. We have seen all people who walk and come to that area go inside that door. Then missing. Never seen anyone come from that door, like a black hole. You have to understand you are watching Alkaseen with a small girl's eye. We, the sisters discussed, what could happen here. But couldn't find a solution.

Later, we got a chance to solve that misty. A Saudi family invited us. We went there with other people by walking through that door. It's was a small corridor to go to another open space. Kind of a shortcut. But, because of the shadow, it looked like a black door.

Biography 26: My first home in Saudi Arabia

In Saudi Arabia, I have started living in a small village "Alkaseem". I heard, later it became a good big city. I, my older sister and my newborn younger sister started living with our mom in a local clinic. My mom was a family planning trainer, she has to work as a senior nurse. It was a government job. My dad has to work in another city. First, he worked in "Tabuk". Later moved to "Umlej". He was an engineer in the Telephone Department. This was also a government job. I heard from him, that Tabuk's weather was very extreme.

My mom got her living arrangement from the government in the clinic. It was an extended part of the clinic's building, separated by a wall. It was a one-storey building with two (As separated by a wall) big ground. The whole ground was covered by small stones. It is in the desert, so I guess, stones were to prevent dust. The washroom was at the end of the field. The main door was at the clinic's section. A big iron door. Just beside the door, inside our boundary wall, there was a big sand mountain. It was very high that we (I and my sister) use to afraid to climb it up. Later as we tried so many times, the sands fell on the ground and made it easier to climb it up. My sister was the hero in this activity. See, when she does anything, nobody noticed. But when I do anything like that, Oh what a girl.

Our furniture was from the clinic's furniture. Iron bed and chair. the floor was made of concrete. As we were living in the desert, the floor always felt covered with sands. In winter, mom uses to covered the ventilators with plastic. Maybe windows too (I don't remember). But I remember the weather was very dry over there, I felt my skin became toasted.