"I am an African American female, considering a job in Saudi school where 90% of the staff are local hires, is that wise?"

There are a lot of very dark skinned Saudis who look African or African American. My African American friends have been embraced with open arms by the Saudis even more than I have as a caucasian. The ones who have medium skin tones actually get mistaken for Saudis/Arabs all the time. I do not think it would be a huge concern but I guess it might be school or city specific.

As others have said, it's still very early. Lots and lots of schools haven't reached their contract due date yet. I know people who have had interviews and a few who have had offers. They were all in very specialized positions or they were teaching couples who were both specialized or in very high demand.

Aramco does as well, at least on the trip over. I do not know about the return trip since we have not left yet. :)

Yes I was referring to the positions that are currently posted. They have already been doing a lot of interviewing, though, and I have no idea if those positions are all still available.

My personal outlook is that due to Aramco's hiring trends (the company, not the schools), there will be an increase in Learning Support positions available in the future.

Yes, SAS hires LS/SN teachers. I believe there are a couple positions open for next year. Like most international schools, we don't have students with severe disabilities. Most students have mild or moderate needs.

All women, Saudi or expat, can drive on the Aramco compounds.

In most international schools I have worked in, there has been some type of summer school program. There have always been plenty of current teachers who want to work over the summer. Sometimes there were too many and it came down to seniority.

I can't answer your question about AISR. I haven't heard any news about work visas for spouses. Regarding your question about Aramco, I do not believe that is the reason for so many open positions. It is because the company is expanding - rapidly. More engineers and employees means more children. This year there were at least a few dozen new teaching positions across the five Aramco schools. Not teachers who replacing those who had left. NEW positions. From what we have been told, we can expect this rapid company expansion to continue for the next couple years. I would expect there to be many open positions this year and next year, possibly for subsequent years as well.

British spelling makes your horny?

Just kidding. In my part of the US, that's what "hot and bothered" usually means. :-)

"The vast majority of "Wide and varied activities" that involve shopping (which you can do anywhere) and eating out (and the regional food typically involves uninspired forms of grilled meat) all very ordinary things to do."

Psyguy, for the benefit of prospective international school teachers, why don't you provide a list of activities you require/desire in a city/contry?

I don't live or work in Bahrain, but I do go there frequently. I live in KSA, and expats (and Saudis) frequently head across the causeway to go to Bahrain on weekends. We all love the "freedom" in Bahrain, but again, we're coming from a more restrictive country. If Bahrain is your first experience in the Middle East, you may find it restrictive.

Yes, there are beaches, some of which seem very nice. They're not the best beaches in the world, but they're sufficient. There are tons of bars and restaurants in Bahrain, and there's a pretty active nightlife. There are also plenty of malls, sports opportunity, clubs/activities, and special events (comedians, concerts, theater, arts). You can wear normal clothes (while still being respectful), drink, and socialize/date. Yes, there is still a strong Islamic influence, but Bahrain is a relatively liberal area for the region.

Unfortunately I'm not famililar with the Riffa area. I looked at a map, and that's further south than I usually go when I'm there. Bahrain is a tiny country, though, so everywhere is relatively close.

I personally wouldn't worry too much about the protests. Of course there is always a chance of something happening, just like there is almost anywhere. But for the most part, if you stay out of it and use common sense, you'll be fine. The fighting is not targeting westerners at this time. What we read on the news seems to be far worse than what we see when we're actually in Bahrain. Expats still travel to Bahrain every single week, and the recent protesting hasn't stopped people from crossing the border. My husband and I just went last weekend and life seemed normal. We noticed a few more police cars around, but that's it. There are certain political "hot spots" that the embassy tells its employees to avoid, but the touristy/shopping/dining areas are mostly fine right now.

If you have any other specific questions, I will try my best to answer. :-)

I mean no disrespect to you, but honestly, I don't know if I would want to work under and admin who is only doing it as a last resort. That person might do a great job with the position, but I think that you really need to WANT to be an administrator. It's a tough job. It is usually pretty obvious when someone is doing something that is not their passion.

I'm surprised that you weren't able to find a job in special needs. I know that those positions aren't available in a lot of schools, but there seems to be a good demand for learning support teachers overseas. Maybe with your special needs experience, you would actually do a GREAT job managing a bunch of teachers. :-) I kid, I kid.

I agree with Psyguy and Heyteach. I prefer to book directly through the airlines because of the potential problems already mentioned. It's just simpler to deal with the airline if there's a cancellation.

I haven't found airlines' websites to be more expensive than 3rd . sites. I like to use websites like Kayak to find the flight schedules and prices, then I use the link to airlines' websites rather than the links to sites like Expedia.

"If I was really going to pick somewhere from the West coast Chang mai airport in Singapore is probabley the best airport in the world.."

I didn't realize that the Chiang Mai airport relocated from Thailand to Singapore. :)

I tried to look mine up and it just says "Visa Signature." Not sure if that's actually the name of the card or not. I remember browsing through lots of Capital One choices when I got that. I vaguely remember seeing that the cards with annual fees had higher rewards percentages, but I opted for the free card with no foreign fees. It also came with 0% interest for the first two years! :D