Anyone with a wife/is a wife living in Yanbu? RC?

engroves wrote:

I would love to find someone to talk to about what it is like to live in Yanbu as a wife of someone working in Yanbu. We will be living in RC and would like to find out what it is like? How do you meet other expats? Is there a good support group of other westener? What is it like for children there? I have a newborn coming along. Are there things I can do with my son? Are you able to get around as a female? Do you get harassed for being female and expact? Can you go out? What do you do when you go out? Are there gatherings for expats? Can you order things online and have it shipped to you? Are baby books ok to bring?

I'm so sorry for all the questions but I am having a hard time finding answers from someone in RC Yanbu. I would definitely be open to email exchange if you are willing to put up with my 101 questions!  Thank you.

Hello, first of all, welcome to Yanbu RC.

Most Western expatriates live in the Cove compound. Some live in Arabian Homes in Yanbu city.

If your husband or you are an employee in a company I assume there are other expatriates there. So you could join the connection and get to know people around you as well.

My adive to you is not to limit yourself with westerners. Get to know other expatriates and perhaps some locals. Friendships should not be restricted, your call.

For children, I assume they are placed in an international school. So, the school will take care of their trips and assist them to know one another. Also, schools arrange parents meetings and activities; there, you get to see more people as well.

With your son, perhaps you could go shopping for him or sit with him at the beach. You could read a book or listen to music together. I don't know what much could be done with a newborn, other than feeding, communicating, taking care and doing simple activities in his presence like singing and watching TV! Perhaps you could buy a pet, but there are some safety risks associated with that to newborns. I leave medical analysis to professionals.

Regarding getting around as a female, my answer is yes, but sometimes it depends on how you see and perceive things outside. If you are tolerable of differences (Saudi Arabia is very different from the US), your chances of having fun is greater. Lots of expats I talked with were very skeptical about what I say, so you go out, look around and decide for yourself if it is suitable. I say 90% you will like it. It gets a little boring, however, after some time.

As to going out as a female, I want not to misunderstand your question about the behavior of the locals. They are nice people. Most of them in the RC are professional employees having their own lives and affairs to mind and focus on.

Things to do when out I wrote it in an earlier post. Please read earlier posts of Yanbu. I am sure you will find lots of suggestions there.

Gathering for expatriates you will find out after you get to know some people.

Yes, you could order things online. In fact most delivering companies (DHL, FedEx, and ArAmEx) are there, in addition to local mail. The good thing here is that they call you on your cellphone to tell you they are there. You have your tracking number and could also call to inquire the status and whereabout of your shipment. You could reschedule and tell them to come again in the same day. It is unbelievably convenient, especially in the RC!

Babybooks are OK to bring.

Feel free to ask more questions, and to help others having questions.

Regardss,