Impressions from Jeddah, Bornem and Arbon to Konstanz
I visited these three cities for work, I couldn't experience them as much as "Impressions from Constantinople (now Istanbul)" but I think I got an idea.
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
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Places
Huge Airport, it took us 15 minutes to go from one side to the other by taxi.
Overall the place is clean with huge roads but if you aren't bored in seeing supercars, skyscrapers with LED effects and huge empty malls, nothing much more to see. Seeing the F1 circuit was a cool experience though. Somewhat random architecture and always focused on excessiveness.
Lots of humidity and very hot for December, the Red Sea wasn't that inviting.
Cost and Food
Cost wasn't that bad, more expensive than Greece but not by much.
For food, the only option is fast food and even this is generally of lower quality than in Europe.
People
Arabs seemed lost in their world in general, I had a conversation with an Englishman and a Jordanian but not one local Saudi. They also didn't seem to sleep, at 1 AM you will still see people come and go.
They saw us totally as workers who were there to do some job more than anything else.
Very mindless on the streets despite their facilities.
Walking around the F1 circuit, a group of teenagers driving a jeep stopped near me. I thought they would rob me or something but they were just waving and laughing like idiots, I guess cause I looked foreign or something.
No woman was uncovered and most wearing a full niqab despite Gucci heels. Even some girls that I think they were escorts they will still wear a pink burqa.
Last but not least, don't be surprised if a Saudi (no matter how rich he may be) washes his feet in a public mall sink.
Anthrotadrism
Overall, Saudis are ectomorphic, quite dark pigmented and rather short.
I said to a co-worker "curls make you rich". Despite the difference in their local social status they look very much like Pakistanis with curly hair and sometimes Negroid tendencies.
Migrants/Workers from all around the world not excluding East-Asia.
Overall
I couldn't live there for more than a month unless the money was really really good.
Brussels to Bornem, Belgium
This was the busiest trip so I couldn't really say much.
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Places
Brussels airport was huge and quite impressive to see.
Bornem despite being a rural town in a rather uninteresting landscape looked to feature medieval elements mixed with very nice modern wooden and brick houses, reminiscent of high-class North American houses. With January's snow, the whole village looked like it could be "Santa's village" with its bakeries and all.
Cost and Food
It was slightly more expensive than Greece but slightly so.
Food wasn't the best experience, at some point I ordered a Greek Salad, the feta tasted like gum and there wasn't a drop of olive oil in it.
Nevertheless, I tried some chocolate truffles that remain the best dessert I have tasted in my life.
People
People looked quiet (introverted maybe) but very helpful and friendly if you addressed them.
I once ordered a beer and the guy went on to explain the whole history of the varieties he was offering and charged another one on the house.
Heroes for cycling in the snow btw.
Anthrotadrism
Mix of phenotypes including a relevance of blondes albeit certainly not the Nordic stereotype on average.
The "brunn" type in brunette form also seemed to be a thing.
Rather taller than Greeks, especially women.
A lot of MENAs but not really so many blacks as I expected considering the national team and all, not even in Brussels. A couple of Central and East Asian as well.
Overall
I still don't think I could live there for a long time but certainly worth visiting.
Zurich to Arbon, Switzerland
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Places
Even before landing to Zurich, the view of the Alps from the airplane looked impressive.
Zurich airport, not as large as the previous ones, looked luxurious and clean.
Then followed a trip to Arbon going through towns with rivers, waterfalls meeting urban life and beautiful well-maintained chalets.
Such was also Arbon, a picturesque town meeting Lake Constance and its wildlife.
The railway system was always on time (albeit somewhat complicated) and looked like it was built the day before we arrived.
Cost and Food
Cost was obviously higher than the previous locations but not totally prohibiting.
Swiss chocolate was Swiss chocolate and tasty as hell.
Not totally impressed with the rest of the food but you can get decent one with notable diversity.
Certainly far better than the previous locations.
People
I would say that the people were more loud but not necessarily as friendly/welcoming as Belgians (maybe wealth has to do with it).
I mean you would hear a cold loud "guten morgen" than a shy smile.
Very strict with the rules to the point of stupidity, I mean you would see "Athenian-like" traffic jams in huge roads with supercars just because the speed limit was stupidly low.
Decent bikers (not as much as Belgians) and huge dog lovers.
Anthrotadrism
More or less the same pigmentation and height as Belgians, with Dinaric/Nordic influence showing.
Not as many migrants as in Belgium but still quite a lot from everywhere.
I also had the impression that I saw more blacks there.
Konstanz
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From Arbon I took the train to Konstanz, a city in South-West Germany.
Beautiful city, it gave a more industrial impression than Switzerland but it also has a very welcoming vibe.
The cost in both the train kiosk and an "upscalish" restaurant near the lake, looked...cheaper than Greece.
Overall
I think I could easily live in both Switzerland and Konstanz.
