THE SAUDI

Last night I was talking to Fayez, my Saudi Arabian student. He is my oldest student at 25 years old.

We were talking about his home and city, Riyadh. He wants me to come visit him out there and marry his sister. Tempting, but can anyone say Cultural Differences? He mentioned his 15 siblings and I said, like you just did, "What?!" Then I continued in that vein, "You didn't tell me you had 15 brothers and sisters! I thought you had like three or four." See, I told him one time that I thought most Saudis were rich, and how I heard they all have a Mercedes Benz. Obviously that is not true, but he proceeded to tell me that his car is a Lexus, his brother's car is a Lexus, his other brother's car is a Mercedes, his dad owns a Mercedes, and I think his sister has an Infinity or something like that. I guess I thought he had covered all his siblings.

Apparently not.

Then, get this. Oh man. I never ceased to be amazed. THEN he says "Yeah man. I have 11 siblings from one mother and 5 from my other mother. My father has two wives." His dad has two wives! In one house! An "older wife and a younger one." I was floored. Still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that he has 15 brothers and sisters. Then he just drops the mother bomb on me with his father's two wives. I mean, do you know ANYONE who has two spouses?? After discussion I calculated that his father has been making babies for about 30 years now.

Fayez hiding in some roses.