One of the most intimidating aspects of going to Saudi Arabia was the prospect of learning Arabic. From the outset, the language is incredibly intimidating. I think most of my fear was rooted in the new alphabet and reading/writing from right to left. While this is a huge barrier to entry, it wasn't as bad as I feared. After you learn the alphabet, the language becomes a lot less intimidating. That's not to say it has become easy. I still have to sound out words like I am a 6 year old. There is no skimming in Arabic. It requires complete concentration.
Speaking the lang
