When we were told to watch Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations I was so excited!! I absolutely love that show and couldn't wait to see how this was going to tie into our discussions and teach us about the Saudi Arabian culture. First, I was really impressed that he even chose to go there, I wasn't sure if that was because of things I have heard in the past or if that was really the truth of this culture. If I were him I would have been nervous going into the country knowing what I do about Saudi Arabia and how those who are not Muslim are viewed. I wasn't sure at first how welcoming and open people would be to talk about their culture, or even their food for that matter. Obviously, the food is available at restaurants and such but I didn't know if he would be able to get people to tell him about the types of food that the citizens of Saudi Arabia make and not necessarily only what is served in restaurants. We all know that food is often times different in a home than what a restaurant serves which always seems to be more of what the culture deems as it's food. It was nice to see this and get a feel for what the people of this country truly eat.

It was also surprising to me that a women would have been allowed to walk around with Anthony and that others wouldn't view that as a bad thing, especially for someone who is married. It doesn't seem like women have many freedoms especially walking around with a man who isn't her husband and talking about their culture. I would think that those seeing this would have a problem with it and that questions about it would probably arise. I think it was nice though that we could get the perspective of a women and not necessarily always from a man's point of view in Saudi. It isn't too often that people are able to hear what women think and their views on things and I think Anthony did a good job of showing what this culture is about not only with the food but with thoughts and beliefs as well. It was good to watch a show that didn't talk about all the negativity about women and the culture of Saudi Arabia, but a show where people were having a good time and enjoying each other's company without the stresses and problems that arise for people there, especially women. It gave me a totally new perspective on what the people not only eat, but their culture as well. Seeing all the food made me want to go there as well because it all looked so delicious!!!!