January 16, 2008
Saudi Arabia 101: A White House Producer's Tale
CNN Producer Becky Brittain traveled to Saudi Arabia for the first time as part of the White House press corps. She sent me this account of a day spent following the U.S. president and Saudi Arabia's king and her first hand look at the palaces Saudi's petro-dollars can buy:
-- Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, January 15th, 2008 - It's dinner at the King’s Palace. And I’m not talking about a Chinese food buffet. Or dining with Elvis. This time it's at the palace of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.  A view of the royal guest palace. We are staying at the Marriott in Riyadh and being at the hotel for just a few minutes shows me a lot. We are told that we don’t have to cover our heads unless we go out to the market or on the streets. But if we stay on the hotel property and remain with the US press delegation, we should be fine. Even so, I could immediately sense a slight bit of insecurity in being a blond here. For the second part of the day, I join the so-called "travel pool" in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Each day, it's one TV network's turn to be right next to the President, whether it means being on Air Force One, in his motorcade or covering presidential meetings and events. We then share our material and information with the other four networks in the "pool." Today is CNN's turn to cover the President's Middle East visit.
We load up in the vans and go through Saudi "security". It’s a little intimidating because the men all have machine guns hanging around their necks, but the security itself does not make me feel secure. We weave through traffic and I can’t tell you how many almost-accidents almost occur. I just have to close my eyes and not watch. We get to the airport, and are ushered into a holding room in the royal terminal for a couple of hours. When I need to go to the bathroom, I asked an embassy escort to direct me. The Saudi folks (with guns) have no idea where the women’s bathroom is because they have had very few women in this part of the airport before. When I get there, it's obvious the women's bathroom hasn't had much use. Two of the stalls just have holes in the floor and the other stall has a toilet but no sign of toilet paper. I walk out of the stall and - all of sudden - a man with a machine gun (do you see a trend?) walks in and looks at me like I’ve invaded his space (his weapon wasn’t drawn but it was startling nonetheless!) He really doesn’t care that he’s just walked into the women’s bathroom! So I hightail it out of there being thankful that I don’t experience that too often! After that experience and a bit more waiting, it's time to go outside with the rest of the "pool" journalists and wait for Air Force One to arrive. And it may be Saudi Arabia but it is freezing outside. They say it hasn’t been this cold here in thirty years and they have real snow in their forecast for the first time that anyone could remember. I, of course, didn’t bring a coat on this trip. I didn't think I'd need one in the desert. Wrong! I packed one sweater and I’ve worn it every single day. The President’s handlers decide it is too cold for the ceremony to take place outside so the President and King Abdullah quickly make their way inside to a very large room packed with Saudi men and a strong smell of incense. I was one of about ten women (all American in the press corps or with the White House) in the room. There is a formal receiving line and a bit of tea and coffee drinking; then it's off to the waiting limos. I've been covering the White House for years and this is the longest motorcade that I have ever seen: well over 100 cars. We are so far behind the President’s limo that we can’t even spot him. All we see for miles ahead of us are taillights! At one point, another motorcade joined ours and we get pushed even further back. We head to the King’s guest palace where there is an arrival ceremony that involves dozens of horses. We spend several hours waiting for the President in an ornate lounge in one of many wings of one building of the Guest Palace. There are many chandeliers and gilded furniture. I'm guessing this part of the palace was decorated in the '70s. It has that feel. After dinner, there's more waiting (pool coverage usually involves running and waiting, running and waiting) but only see the President for a very short time. First in a room that about 300 Saudi men had exit when we arrive. There's more marble and more chandeliers but nothing compared to the room we got to next to film President Bush and King Abdullah. I’m not sure if I can adequately describe how lavish but let’s just say that if I picked something up and broke it, our overall national debt would be even more astronomical. The King and the President come out to say hello and drink some coffee. The King gives Bush a huge necklace, bestows a Saudi honor on him, before going off to have a private meeting. One more country to go! We head to Sharm el Sheikh tomorrow for the day and then we finally head home. -- Posted by Hala Gorani 3 Comments
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A White House Producer's Tale: Making my way back home to home sweet home.
Hala.I dont think people are interested in whats in a womans washroom. this trip is supposedly more important than talking about womens Washrooms.In Israel you did not mention washrooms, you probably will not mention it if you were traveling in to any European country,in Particular the Vatican.
Israel gave up Gaza in 2005, seeking peace. The next day the daily rockets started flying. They number in the thousands into a civilian area, including schools, hospitals, businesses, homes, etc. If Sderot were Detroit and the rockets came from Canada, how many hours would it take for the US to respond? Why should Israel not destroy the war making capability of Gaza? Gaza has an administration and the power to stop the rockets. Why should Israel supply Gaza anything? It was asked to leave and it did. Gaza has the money to buy arms, smuggle what it needs or wants from Egypt.
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