This post needs a disclaimer. I make some frank observations below about cultural differences and other difficulties of life round here. It's an inevitable part of getting to know a new location and I want to talk about it honestly, just like everything else in this blog. I remain a committed member of my team at work and overall am happy to be here.

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I just ordered lunch for about $4. It consists of two pastries, shaped like pasties but with puffy pita bread type bread. One has falaffel stuff in it with goats cheese the other one I'm not sure of as I haven't eaten it yet :-)

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Whilst on the whole my work is worthwhile and rewarding... on my more tired/grumpy days I'm sick of feeling a bit racist all the time. I know Australians have a reputation for being racists but I don't mean it like that. 
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My other one is a cheese and egg toasty mmm mmm!
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I notice that the Westerners are subtly condescending to the, admittedly usually junior position, Easterners. I also note that not many Easterners and Westerners seem to be friends. I bought a dishdasha (see pic of me in front of mirror in last post with white robe/head dress on) and jokingly showed a picture of it to a couple of colleagues. None of them had one, which of course means nothing about whether they're racist, but I don't know it just seemed to contribute to an emerging picture of separateness. Inevitably, I am meeting people who hate the place and are only here for the money. This is fair enough too, the place is a desert inhabited by often overweight Kuwaitis filled with a sense of entitlement (see how they drive!) and whom I have observed violently beating and verbally abusing Eastern expat workers (bus driver and supermarket worker respectively). As you can see in the photos I have a couple of Indian friends, or 'Easterners'. They're new starters like me. They're cool. We've done a lot of things together like sailing, visiting malls, going to Friday market, just getting takeaway ... they even came with me to pick up my bike wheel in the first week when it was fixed.

I do like to be better than others so I'm probably a little bit proud I have some Easterner friends just so I can say to myself I'm not a racist, however am really not that much different. I can understand wanting to be separate as cultural differences can lead to disagreement and even disgust at times, making one want to avoid others. For example, different cultures seem to sometimes deal with rubbish in vastly different ways, a potential cause of significant displeasure.

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My lunch always has this little bag of spicy pickled radishes and carrot slices, see last pic

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Um where was I. Oh. Depression, lol. No, it's not that bad, but sometimes I wonder if I really want to be here. Yes, I've gone from the highs to the lows! As I was always saying to everyone, I was so keen about this job as I was finally making it into the clear in terms of my conscience. I've always wanted to have my work revolve around sustainable behaviour rather than the usual mining crap that GIS people in Australia get involved in. I'm not deluding myself, I understand that it's all about mining here and I'm basically in the epicentre of the oil industry in Kuwait - but I was happy because I thought I'd finally found a well paid job that involved work that was good for the environment. On the whole, it is. 

BUT there're all these social issues that annoy me a bit. I am left wondering if I've traded one major ethical no no for another in coming here and having to figure out if I'm a racist or not and how to navigate the whole social segregation without feeling like I've well and truly departed civilisation (of back home at least). I guess I needn't force myself to relate to everyone - certainly it's impossible. I genuinely dislike people who throw rubbish around. Sure there may be cultural differences explaining it, but basically it's ok not to like it and to choose friends accordingly. Not that I will be being a unreasonable about it, but I can understand how all of these differences direct people to associate with who they do and I don't blame them. 

Wow, that was long winded. Again I emphasise how happy I am to be here overall, it's good to know my interest in this place can survive a little introspection :-)

I think another thing that needs to be considered is that I should to take my time to understand Kuwaitis and other expat cultures. Everyone has a story, a reason behind who they are. l have plenty more time to find out about all of this, so more reflections will be written :-)

For one, I'd be a pretty assertive individual too if my country was invaded not too long ago.