Golf, Holidays, Hobbies

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Were you one of hundreds of thousands of British, American, Canadian, German or Fillipino expats working in Jeddah and/or Riyahd ? Are you still one of those expatriates?
Did you ever live on, or use the facilities of Hochtief Camp, part of Jeddah International Airport? Were you a member of the King Abdulaziz International Airport Golf Club or a member or patron of The Off Runway Players (ORP) Theatre Group? Did you play football on the camp's floodlit pitch? Did you work on the construction or operation of Riyahd Airport ?

Here's a few esoteric words and expressions that will strike a chord with those of us WHO WERE THERE and to no-one else on the Planet

This is all about thee and me,
Friends in good ol' Saudi
We were all employed by IAP,
With Bechtel sponsorship, or else, PD
Went on leave with an 'Exit/Re-entry'
Got a big fat 'fee' from GOSI
There was no shortage of activity
For a play that we really wanted to see

We'd book a table at ORP
Or go downtown to the Embassy
Nothing to watch on local TV?
There were always tapes from TVC
Some would run in the sun, risking big C
At the Hash, getting brown, not to mention, sweaty

It was of course very sunny
But when it rained it would really pee
As you can see <<<<
(It destroyed the theatre of ORP)
We lived in boxes on Hochtief C
A place designed by Walt Disney
And built by those chaps from Germany
Economically?
Yes, all rent free
Furnished by pieces, going buckshee
Who had a glass table and a rattan settee?
Good place to raise a family
Great schools available readily
Continental was the place to be
Unless Jeddah Prep was your cup of tea
Did you play squash or tennis when you were free?
At night, with floodlights, so you could see
And those footy floodlights helped the referee
And the golf course suited us, down to a tee

Perhaps you played bridge from breakfast 'til tea?
Then quickly lit the Weber bar-bie
Did you quaff liquids, copiously
Some illegally, allegedly
B**r, w**e, and of course, si**que
As for me, I drank all three
Did you fill your boot/trunk (I'm being PC)
To the gunwales, with Malt Mountain bountee
Was that not a great free facility ?
Thanks to Government generosity
Or sat round the pool, lazily
Who broke a leg, apres-ski?

Who appointed that dumb TweedleDee?
Having appointed 'Dum, originally
Savings? in more than one currency !
Gold? Sovereigns, ingots and jewellery !
Investments? Shares and property !
Who nipped away for a game of rugby?
And duty free liquour in the UAE

Some administered Airport property
While others dabbled in Accountancy
Some were more engineery
(Who liked Haj Patrol? not me
I blame that bloke DG )
Or risk management and safety
And loads of blokes were doing I.T.
And learning I.T.( when they shouldn't be !)
And using software as if copyright free

We'd sing 'Auld Langs Syne' staggeringly
At 12 o'clock, then again at 3
Cos that was 12 GMT
Then one by one, eventually
We got that visa 'Exit Only'

Looking back, t'was a nice place to be
Then, not now, oh no siree
Some now live south, near the sea
The Geordies are north in Party City
While Falkirk's even more northerly
Some are still in the UAE
Some travelled miles and malls to see
All of the States, the Land of the Free
Illi, indy and SC...
...to name but three
And perhaps now, finally,
They've planted roots in Tennessee
Close to some of the family

This is not the usual style dit-ty
It's now a wrap to this rap.. by yours truly
Except to say I can't wait to see
Yawl again, for some bon homie
And a hug and a kiss and a howdi-do-dee
I'm now acting deliriously
It's far too long and getting sil-ly
It's ended now, I guarantee
It's 'on the roof', a fait accompli

Entirely,
by me
(JB)