Through Our Stomachs

The episode starts with presenting Muslims as ordinary people. They watch Scrubs they sit on couches. Bourdain even says he could have been in the Mid-West it wasn't that much different. He established Danya (spelling?) as an important woman by saying she is the only woman granted permission to run a production company. Basically establishing she knows what she is talking about.  Bourdain balances the information with snarky comments. So it’s funny and informative. He points out the differences between the cultures for example in dress and food, but he also shows the similarities of family values and entertainment. When talking about clothes the conversation could have gotten uncomfortable but it wasn't a big deal to Danya. She laughed it off. Also when they were on the boat Danya wore bright colors showing women don’t only wear black. “Faith Governs Life”  Bourdain does state that it is weird for westerners to grasp that concept but if you just observe the experience and remove your opinion its beautiful. Throughout the episode he shows all the food, but he also seeks to show the culture and prove some stereotypes wrong. They go to the mall. Saudi Arabia is not just desert. And women don’t just wear abayas (spelling?) I know about this because of Nine Parts of Desire, but for people who have not read that book that part is a little bit of a culture shock. Their audience is just your common man watching the travel channel so the education received from this episode could be shocking. And judging from Bourdain’s language he seeks to shock. The trip to the fast food restaurant shows that they eat food just like we do but the restaurant is separated into families and the singles section (aka the men). Bourdain asks a lot of question that the common westerner would ask which is a great way to prove many assumptions wrong.  I also really appreciate Bourdain wearing the thobe (spelling?) and driving around in the desert. Another commonality between western culture and Saudi Arabia except we don’t do it in the desert.  Lastly when they show all the women they prove for a fact that Saudi Arabians do actually wear western clothes and the men do too. He concludes by saying the news doesn't present the whole picture and what he saw were a great set of people that are more like us than we think.