ninme

Bubblehead has a rather improbable story about a Saudi hot shot in Bahrain. I guess it could be true, but I doubt the guy would be so indiscreet to an American sailor. I mean, come on.

However, it made me think of my own story:

This French Swiss guy, Alain, spent a few months with us when I was in …sixth grade? I think. He lived in Switzerland but spent all his time in France, where he worked, and somehow had the option of joining the Swiss or French army, he chose the French army. Now he works in computers, but between being discharged from the Army and his current state as a responsibly employed grown up, he spent a summer as a limo driver in the south of France.

So a bunch of Saudi Princes show up in the area, and they need their wives driven around. So Alain gets to be one of the chauffeurs, while the men are out being big shots and golfing or whatever it is that Saudi Princes do when they’re in the south of France.

Alain actually befriended one of the younger ones, who wasn’t quite so cynical about her lot in life, yet. But he was telling us about it later, that these women would sit with their husbands for those few minutes they weren’t being ignored, completely veiled and very meek, and as soon as their husbands were gone, off came the veils, on came the Versace, round came Alain’s limo, and off they went shopping. All day. Every day. Lots and lots and lots and lots of shopping. Then they’d go back to the hotel and off went the Versace, on came the veils, and back to being the meek and dutiful wives.

The younger, less cynical one that he befriended ended up having him drive her to go sight seeing, because she was so bored with shopping with the other women, and when she wasn’t at home being suppressed, she wanted to see the world. Alain thought she was really cool.