Meeting Nasser

I sat down today to speak with Nasser Almousa or as he informed me Nasser “Moses”. At first it was a bit daunting where to start with someone so culturally different than myself. We of course started with introductions and a little bit of background. I learned that Nasser is from Saudi Arabia and has been living in the US now for 2 months. He informed me that his intent was to major in sociology with a minor in political science upon completion of the intensive English program. I wasn’t quite able to determine when he began speaking English, but I had not trouble understanding what he was trying to say. It became apparent that I am not exactly the best English teacher either, which was no surprise to me, however I was able to help with a few things such as “pronounce” and “poem”.

Gradually we learned more and more about each other and he encouraged me to ask him questions about his home and his background as did I. We talked about Saudi Arabia and I told him I was interceded in visiting the United Arab Emirates. Nasser said that he had been there before and that I should definitely go if I get a chance and that the UAE is a lot more exciting for tourists than Saudi Arabia is. He also suggested that I visit Qatar, as that was one of his favorite places to visit. I asked him if he had been to a rodeo yet and he told me that he went about a month ago, I then told him that I grew up on a ranch and ride horses and he told me that he also had horses back home and enjoyed riding. He explained to me that Arabian horses were the best horses, and that was not just because he was predisposed to them. I told him that we mainly had quarter horses and he wasn’t quite sure what I meant by that so we had a good discussion about different breeds of horses and their qualities. In the end he stood by his Arabians.

I really enjoyed being able to sit down with someone from a completely different background and learn about them and what their life was like. It’s not everyday that you get an opportunity like that.  Even now I can think of several questions that I would like to ask him about what his life is like back home. I am also interested to learn what he thinks of my life and of life in general in the United States. I feel that we now have some basic background that will facilitate more in depth questions. After all I didn’t want to interrogate him or anything the first time we met. I am looking forward to learning more about Nasser “Moses” Almousa.