AIESEC in Bahrain Reception Booklet
Welcome note………... 4 Country………... 6 Climate and geography……... 7 Money and exchange ………... 8 Culture ……... 9 Places to visit……….10 Phrasebook………11 Things to Know………...12 About AIESEC in
Bahrain………15 Contacts………16
Congratulations with your decision to go Congratulations with AIESEC your decision to go on exchange with to Bahrain! onNow, exchange AIESEC all youwith have to do istotoBahrain! get to know Now, you have dotoisbe to a get to know the all country well to and proactive thelearner. country well and to be a proactive learner. Enjoy diversity and have an incredible Enjoy diversitywith andus! have an incredible experience experience with us! Best regards, Best ICXregards, & Projects team ICX & Projects team AIESEC in Bahrain AIESEC in Bahrain 2012-2013 2012-2013
Welcome note
Kingdom of Bahrain
Country Bahrain or Bahrein, officially Kingdom of Bahrain, an archipelago in the Persian Gulf between the Qatar Peninsula and Saudi Arabia. The two main islands are Bahrain (the largest) and Al Muharraq, which are linked to each other and Saudi Arabia by causeway. The capital and chief port is Al Manamah.
مملكة البحرين [Mamlakat al-Baḥrayn] Capital – Manama Official language – Arabic Government – Constitutional monarchy King – Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa Area – 765.3 km2 Currency – Bahraini dinar Time zone – GMT +3
The economy has been based on oil, and oil revenues have financed modernization projects, particularly in health and education. Oil reserves are expected to be exhausted in the near future, however, and other industries such as shipyards and aluminum smelting have been established. Bahrain is an important financial center and the site of a major U.S. navy base. About 75% of the population are Shiite Muslims; most of the rest are Sunnis. Arabic is the official language, but English, Farsi, and Urdu are also spoken.
Climate and geography Bahrain consists of a low desert plain rising gently to a low central escarpment. As an archipelago of thirty-three islands, Bahrain does not share a land boundary with another country but does have a 161 km coastline. 92% of Bahrain is desert with periodic droughts and dust storms the main natural hazards for Bahrainis. Due to the Persian Gulf area's low moisture, summers are very hot and dry. The seas around Bahrain are very shallow, heating up quickly in the summer to produce
high humidity, especially at night. Summer temperatures may reach up to 50 째C under the right conditions. Rainfall in Bahrain is minimal and irregular.
Money and exchange
The dinar is a fully convertible currency, and there are currently no restrictions on its import or export.
You can exchange dollars to BD in the airport or in every bank.
5
10
25
50
100 1 BD = 1 000 fills
Culture Bahrain is sometimes described as "Middle East light" due to its combination of modern infrastructure with a Persian Gulf identity. While Islam is the main religion, Bahrainis are known for their tolerance towards the practice of other faiths. Rules regarding female attire are generally relaxed compared to regional neighbors; western clothing is common in the country. In common with the rest of the Muslim world, though Bahrain has taken strong strides for women's rights, it does not recognize lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights. Another facet of the new openness is Bahrain's status as the most prolific book publisher in the Arab world, with 132 books published in 2005 for a population of
700,000. In comparison, the 2005 average for the entire Arab world was 7 books published per one million people, according to the United Nations Development Program.
Places to visit Bahrain fort
Tree of life
Manama Souq The Basics Yes / Ay-wa/naam No / La’ Thank you / Shu-kran No thanks / La shu-kran Please / Min fadlak / min fadliki (M/F) Let’s go / Ya-llah God willing / In-sha-la Sorry, excuse me / Af-wan, muta’assif Hello / Salam alaykoom Hello (in response) / Wa alaykoom salam How are you? / Shlonek? / Shlonech? (M/F) Fine, thank you / Zayn, shu-kran / Zayna, shu-kran (M/F) What’s your name? / Shuw ismak?/Shuw ismik? (M/F) My name is / Is-mee [your name] Where are you from? / Inta min-ayn / Inti min-ayn? (M/F) I’m from / Anaa min [country] America / Ame-ri-ki Britain / Brai-ta-ni Europe / O-ro-pi India / Al hind It’s a pleasure to have met you / Forsa sai-eeda I’m honored (in response) / Ana as-ad Goodbye / Ma-salama
Al Fatih mosque
Phrasebook
Questions What? / Shuno? Why? / Laysh? Who? / Meen? When? / Mata? Where? / Wayn? How? / Kayf? May I? / Mumkin? Could you please? / Mumkin min fadhlak? Where is / Wayn al [thing] the grocery store / ba’ala the gas station / mahattat betrol What does that mean? / Yanni eh? Where’s the nearest . . . ? / Wayn aghrab? How do I get to / Ana unzil [place] zay?
Pronunciation A: as in 'had' E: as in 'bet' I: as in 'hit' O: as in 'hot' U: as in 'put'
Directions ala yameen / to the right ala shi-mel / ala yassar / to the left fo’ / up or above wara’ / behind wara es-shams / middle of nowhere uddam al / in front of [thing] khush / go ala tool / straight henna / here khush yameen min henna / go right here
Numbers 0 - sifr 1 - waHed 2 - ethnein 3 - thelatha 4 - arba'a 5 - khamsa 6 - sitta 7 - seb'a 8 - thimania 9 - tess'a 10 - ashera
Things to Know Although it has a heavily petroleum-based economy, its more relaxed culture has also made it a social and shopping mecca. Everybody speaks English here American culture (especially series and reality shows) are very popular here. Alcohol is legal here. Officially 220V 50Hz. Most outlets are the British standard BS-1363 type. Don’t forget your adaptor. Official weekend is Friday and Saturday with Sunday-Thursday as a work week. The working hours can be different as well. They vary from 7-9 am to 2-6pm. 52% of population is foreigners. Not all women are wearing hijab (head scarf). There is no public transportation in Bahrain. Most of the people own a car or two. 1 liter of petrol is way cheaper than liter of water. There is Formula 1 track in Bahrain.
6 years of experience 2 Local chapters, 1 OE
AIESEC in Bahrain 143 Members 9 universities 100+ exchanges with: USA, Switzerland, Jordan, Turkey, Italy, India, Indonesia, Colombia, Morocco etc
Contacts MCP MC VP ICX and Projects
Member Committee Essa Esam Hadi essa.esam@aiesec.net +973 39080025 Tatiana Pershina Tatiana.pershina@aiesec.net +973 39229803
LCP LC VP Project LC VP ICX
Shahad Al Zaki Saud Al Hiddi
LCP LC VP Project LC VP ICX
Adel Shafeeq Latifa Abdulla Semreen N. Ahmed
Expansion Manager Projects
LC Manama shahad.mohamed@aiesec.net saud.alhiddi@aiesec.net bader.albalooshi@gmail.com LC Skheer adil.shafeeq@aiesec.net latifa.mutaywea@aiesec.net semreen.ahmed@aiesec.net
+973 39200907 +973 39134113 +973 33777389 +973 39200058 +973 39098160 +973 34197599
Najma Ghuloom
OE Awal najma.ghuloom@aiesec.net
Ahmed Samara
ahmedsamara92@gmail.com +973 33 146 246
+973 66336869
coordinator