Kuwait's international reputation

Hi.it is a sad reality but  the stuff you wrote are true..

you are english, you wont have to worry about it that much as asians. be Optimistic.

Most new comers to Kuwait get bored as they find restrictions here, but you get to enjoy tax free salaries,subsidies like water and electricity.luxury with out tax charge.cheap fuel costs and you can also find nice food almost everywhere.

you can join some activity clubs here.meet some of your country people and go on picnics,but picnic season is over.go fishing in the bay.

there are things to discover here.

Thank you, Ace. I am British, but I am black - I'm not sure if this makes a difference?

it will still be fine. dont worry

Thank you. What is your experience as an expat in Kuwait? How long have you lived there?

i have mixed experiences,some treat good,some give too much negetive responses.but its been fine.

I have lived here since child hood.lool

Wow, that's a long time. So, everything that I have read about Kuwait: unwelcoming/arrogant locals, filthy streets, a tiny social scene/few activities, runaway Teachers, constant male harassment towards women, mistreatment of Asian expats, deadly driving - would you agree with this? I know these problems may happen in any country, but Kuwait seems to have very bad reviews compared to Dubai, Qatar and Oman.

most of it is true.some of it is exaggerated by people or newspapers.but no one talks too much about positive things here,only when they visit their countries do they realize how easy and less painful life in Kuwait is.although experience varies,but still its fine here if you have a decent job and life is going as you like it. i think its the nationals that their personalities are not as expected of Arabs.but all of them are not same.Some are extremely friendly and have good nature towards everyone.

much of problems arise because some residents do not have education related to tolerance,respect and cleanliness.There are many married men here,but their families are back in their country.Unlike uk,the nationals here are not less income earners,also they are few in number compared to expats,so government helps them to their full ability.this creates differences and jealousy.

That is too grim of a description for Kuwait and I believe it's quite unfair. There are many people here in Kuwait (both families and singles) having a very good time here, some negative experiences here or there but not extraordinarily so. So if you have a good offer, get to Kuwait, live in a good place, create a network of good friends, you'll be just fine.

Kuwait has ups and downs as most developing countries have. There are so many things to do here but tourism is not a priority although they want to bring 2 million tourists in the next few years. I've been here for more than 10 years and can say 10 years ago it was better but one has to deal with the changes.

loll,2 million tourists!!,what do they want to do with that.

2 million is the number of expats they want to get rid of. I think it's easier for them to turn expats into tourists ... job done

long term turists,lool.

Hey Newbie25

Like moving to a new place, you need to know what you want and what you willing to pay.  I have been here about 9 months.  I knew it was not that great but not this bad (compared to UAE, Oman).  However, I tolerate the place because I need to be here. It adds weight to be considered a regional expert if I have lived and worked in three countries and gained my doctorate. For my family and I three years is a sacrifice but hey afterwards things will significantly improve.

How to handle the negativity? Get active. Mentally prepare yourself to be selectively blind.  So leave the country during long weekends and holidays.  Meet and interact with different social groups. Keep telling yourself why you are here. Some of the stuff of abuse maids, drivers and staff are regional.  How it's handled or tolerated vary.

Give it a shot, then tick the "been there, done that" tab.  It could only get better.

Everything you've heard about Kuwait it true.  I've lived here since October of this year teaching at an international school.  They could not pay enough to make me come back here.  The only reason to be here is the money.  Many of the students have no interest in learning.  Parents want to hear only good things about their children.  If you catch them cheating, you can't call it cheating (they are "sharing" answers or "copying").  There is no mandatory reporting laws for child molestation, so if you see any students there's almost nothing done.  If you send a note home for misconduct, the parents may use that as "justification" for beating their child. 

DO NOT come to Kuwait.

Hello newbie25
with all these replies I wouldn't assume my reply will make a big change lol, yet  I'll still share it for self satisfaction, I'm a citizen here and as you mentioned there are good and bad stuff everywhere, in the end the judgement is yours to come,  I'll get directly to the points.
The bad stuff >>> reckless young drivers at specific areas "esp weekends", rents could be high and over heated summer.

good stuff>>> No taxes, cheap car fuel, food everywhere "including junk food of course" gyms everywhere etc etc 

help me out if I'm missing a point here guys!

Talking about the food and tax free stuff is enticing enough. I can't wait to come to Kuwait. Any help to?

sailorj is right,also the the luxury you get to experience which is affordable here.Damn,the life is so nice here.

Life is great here if you can close your eyes to the hypocrisy, the rampant materialism, the abuse towards Filipinos and Indians, the restrictions on women, and the illegality of being gay ... so yeah life is great here for American, British, Aussie, Kiwi, and Canadian straight men who don't mind the subjugation of others.  Life is great here if you are rich.  Life is great here if you can afford to travel and leave here at every opportunity.

Many thanks to all who replied - SailorJ, your response was still useful!

Gringo1970 - may I ask why you continue to live in Kuwait? If life is as intolerable as you mention, then surely you would have left before the end of your contract? Materialism, hypocrisy, better living conditions if you're wealthy (London is an awful place if you're poor) and children who have little interest in learning are also apparent in the West, but there are, of course, positive things to note about Western countries. However, you live in Kuwait, so of course know more about it than me, and I respect your point of view.

I did not leave because my students need me and I have something called integrity.  I was brought in because of my experience into a class that had broken their first teacher.  There was an emergency temporary teacher for a couple of weeks, so I was the third teacher for the class by early October.  I saw how 3rd grade boys disrespected their nannies and drivers and was able to put a stop to it.  I saw a class lacking cohesion and direction and I brought it.  But one teacher isn't enough.  When administrators allow cheating to happen because of parental bullying and threats to the Ministry of Education, when for-profit schools care not about the inability of students, there are too many structural problems to overcome.  They need teachers like me to role model integrity and then to decline contract renewals as I did because of their dysfunctional system is beyond the ability of few good teachers.  Most of those who stick around do so because of the money, the most crass of extrinsic motivators.  Thus newly arrived teachers such as myself are surrounded by optimistic fellow newcomers who quickly sour, long-time teachers in it only for the money, and an administration that bends over backwards to accommodate monied interests over learning.

What keeps me here is my integrity because of the signed contract and because my students need the continuity of me finishing the year with them.  But I write this to discourage anyone else from coming here.  Teachers with integrity need to avoid Kuwait until there's a cultural change in education.

wow,i love your energy and courage,only someone like you can make a change because they will listen,but for south asians they will take action.

Gringo you are my here, I wish I had your principles!

I'm here for the money, lifestyle and warmer climate. Fortunately whilst there are things that I do not agree with I am not blind enough to the fact that most of these things go in all countries just in different ways. I'd rather be here than back in the UK........ forget everything you have read and come and see the country for yourself, if you don't like it leave after 12 months and go somewhere else, simples! I came here with an open mind and whilst there are places i'd rather be i.e. BVI, Bahama's, Mauritius, Maldives ... but if you go to Qatar/UAE then you have other issues like cost of living, less security and the little green monster, I have seen a lot of people get over there and then they try to live like the wealthy expats they see around them and it ends up badly!

i don't think anyone should be attacked for their views; the man is not a hypocrite; he came here and decided to leave given the situation through his eyes which I do not necessarily disagree with. he left a cautionary tale for any that share his sense of morality and have not had it numbed by the thought of earning money hand over fist.

more people should explicitly share their view in my opinion.

Gringo is a good guy, it takes a strong willed person to handle the children in this country. The children test the teachers to see how far they can get, if the teacher is weak they will demolish that person and he will end up leaving. On the other hand if you show strength and your not taking their crap they will eventually back down. I know, I've scared Kuwaiti boys with a cricket and never had a problem when teaching them, they knew better than to try me. Show no weakness, ever, even if you are scared on the inside. My daughter told me about an American teacher who came to her school. the kids picked on him and drove him out after 2 weeks. I think ex-military personnel would make great teachers here.

come on people, there is nothing interesting here in the country apart from very warm  summers and cheap fuel. Surely you have a big advantage being european but there is no social life what you have in UAE or Qatar.
All the things he mentioned are true and (Moderated: inappropriate comment).... You can ignore the things for a while but on the long run you get fed up with [moderated: do not generalize] always trying to cheat you and charge westerners much higher prices than others....
Try if you have an adventure spirit, if you don't like disasters stay away from Ku....wait (wait wait wait)

@Bridget-in-q8 it's not really that bad with a nice group of friends. Also the harassment against ladies is much more than that against men. I have seen ladies being harassed many times but I have been on the receiving end only a few times in my long stay in Kuwait.

why do i feel that most expats with grievances that look down on kuwait in comparison to qatar/ UAE are only doing so because the other two are more liberal with their alcohol laws?

Its not about the alcohol its is Kuwait is backward compared to Qatar, UAE and Oman. Simple as that. Having lived in UAE, Oman and visited Qatar several times I could say so. Even Oman, which is poorer than Kuwait, offers greater social options than Kuwait

Visa processes, Kuwait three months, UAE three weeks. Social options Kuwait limited, UAE unlimited. Kuwait few international concerts, UAE many.  Kuwait few international cultural concerts, (ballet, dance, opera, etc) UAE many.  By the way the Royal Opera House in Muscat, Oman is one of the best in the world and have a great shows. I highly recommend checking it out via the web or in person.  The interantional language of English is used and understood more.

And this does not include partying at nightclubs and drinking.  Kuwait is a limited place. One just have to learn to live with little it offers.

I don't feel that to be the case either alcohol isn't even an issue for me but having been to UAE I can say that it's the way I am viewed and treated here. I'm an Asian American expat who's pretty much as American as one can get yet I don't get treated equally here and I honestly feel like it's simply because of the fact that I am Asian. I didn't get that sense while I was in UAE and for me that's been one of the hardest things to cope with.. being looked down because of your ethnicity

I have been to both the UAE and I live in Kuwait. Yes, I feel the difference (a good difference) right at the gates of the terminal in Dubai airport. However, there is a point to consider here. The best of friendships are the ones formed in hardships. So, I endear very much the people and get to know here in Kuwait and we have so many sweet memories IN KUWAIT. Of course this doesn't mean that we don't go to Dubai to chill out every once in a while

I have lived in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and am about to move to Bahrain.

Kuwait is the one country in the GCC where I have always been reluctant to move to and have turned down job offers at times.  I have visited quite often though and stayed for extended periods.  So I think I can give a relatively good comparative view vs. the other GCC countries.

The issues:
1) Horrible, slow and openly discriminatory visa processes (For example, bans on visas for certain nationalities or their dependents).  I have experienced visa processes in Saudi which are supposed to be the most convoluted but really, Kuwait takes the cake
2) The most arrogant and nasty local populace in the whole of the GCC.  The nicest are the Bahrain / Omanis followed by Saudi, UAE, Qatar and lastly Kuwait
3) Very limited social options
4) Harassment of women and open discrimination in everything for people who don't look western (irrespective of how much they earn or look like)
5) The least developed infrastructure wise or even from an aesthetic sense point of view

Everything Kuwait has to offer; you can get easily in ANY other GCC country minus the above hassles.  My advice, stay away and if you have to work in the GCC; the prioritization from a quality of life perspective (in descending order) is:

UAE
Bahrain
Oman
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Kuwait

Oh and yeah, Kuwait are debating on how to bring down the number of expats from the current 3.5 mn to around 1.1 mn over the next 5 year and the proposal that is on the table is to deport a quarter million every year.  Go figure

that deportation thing will take more than a decade to complete.

tinataitlyn wrote:

I don't feel that to be the case either alcohol isn't even an issue for me but having been to UAE I can say that it's the way I am viewed and treated here. I'm an Asian American expat who's pretty much as American as one can get yet I don't get treated equally here and I honestly feel like it's simply because of the fact that I am Asian. I didn't get that sense while I was in UAE and for me that's been one of the hardest things to cope with.. being looked down because of your ethnicity

sorry about that Tina, I know it must suck to be judged based on your looks. it is what happens to all non-western expats here ALL THE TIME. some of them do not have a safety net of a passport to fall back on; think about it. you have managers that earn thousands here being treated as laborers whenever they strive to get any government thing done.

I take back what I said; you are right. its not the dryness of the country at all; its the treatment.

No need to be sorry legacy, you've been anything but that but thank you!

People who need alcohol to make friends or have a fulfilling social life just need help lol on a serious note it does upset me that non-western expats receive that sort of treatment however there isn't anything I can do about it except be optimistic and surround myself with good people which I'm glad to have found

likewise Tina

we may not be able to change the world (yet) but we can definitely start with ourselves

Well, if Kuwait sucks so bad feel free to stay where you are, less traffic and crowds for us to deal with. UAE is owned by foreigners that's why there's no discrimination, Dubai looks nothing like an Arab country. Good thing UAE has emirates where the citizens can go to instead of everyone being crushed together in Kuwait. I still think a lot of the complaining has to do with no alcohol since a lot of Western expats rely on it to socialize.

@kuwait411 When did I ever say Kuwait sucks? Legacy asked a question and I answered, I don't see why I am being attacked for commenting on my experience here in Kuwait? Maybe you didn't have to deal with being looked down upon or treated differently because of the way you look but I did and I'm sorry you feel that I should leave because of it.