Anton Ptushkin in the new issue of the travel show “Big issues with Anton Ptushkin”
In the new issue of the travel show “Big Issues with Anton Ptushkin”, which will air this Sunday, November 22, at 10:45 on the channel “1 + 1”, a famous Ukrainian traveler-documentary will travel to Saudi Arabia.
According to the press service of “1 + 1”, Saudi Arabia has long been one of the most closed countries. It was almost impossible for a foreigner to get here – only if you have relatives living here or for business reasons. And tourist visas simply did not exist. However, in 2019, Saudi Arabia opened its doors to people from around the world and opened the possibility to come on a tourist visa.
Travel documentary artist Anton Ptushkin will be one of the first tourists to visit a country about which little is known and little is filmed to show viewers what revolutionary changes have already taken place in Saudi Arabia on the way to openness.
Top 5 facts about the “era of change” in Saudi Arabia by Anton Ptushkin
- Large-scale construction. First of all, Anton Ptushkin will go to the largest city in Saudi Arabia – the capital of Riyadh. Now it is a 7 million metropolises, which is developing at a rapid pace. Huge investments are being made in the city. At first glance, it seems that the entire local center is a continuous construction site. At the same time, subways, roads and individual skyscrapers are being built, as well as entire neighborhoods. And the cost of some objects is equal to the annual budget of a small European country. Anton Ptushkin will show the most interesting sights of the capital and tell why local authorities want to make Riyadh a “second Dubai”.
- Changing government policy. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is one of three countries in the world named after the ruling dynasty – the Saudis. The founder of the country left behind a huge family – 45 sons. Now this family is one of the richest and most powerful on the planet. Images of King Anton Ptushkin will be found everywhere: on buildings, fences and even banknotes. The power of the monarch has always been absolute and limited only by Sharia law. The secrecy of Saudi Arabia was the main policy of the dynasty for a long time, until the new Prince Mohammed came to power. It was he who opened the country to tourists and began to carry out democratic reforms.
- Oil. One of the reasons for the radical change in policy was the global crisis and falling oil prices. Saudi Arabia has a quarter of the world’s oil reserves – and its sales form a major part of the budget. After oil prices fell sharply, the government decided to take a course on the development of tourism, which in the long run will bring large revenues and replenish the budget.
- Removal of strict prohibitions. The perestroika of one of the most conservative countries began with the lifting of seemingly absurd bans. The fact is that until recently, Saudi Arabia banned the operation of cinemas, nightclubs and entertainment venues, music at school and concerts by foreign artists. But with the beginning of the “era of reforms”, the government has made some concessions. Thus, Anton Ptushkin will show the work of modern shopping centers with cinemas and entertainment, as well as get to a big concert of world-famous artists.
- Revolution for women. But the real revolution happened for the female population. Saudi Arabia is a highly religious country, which is very strict about Sharia law. Alcohol is prohibited here. And women wear long dresses that completely cover the legs and head. For a long time, local women could not only work, file documents, play sports and travel abroad, but even move outside the home without a husband or special escort.
But recently, women have been allowed to get a job, file for divorce, travel to other countries and open special fitness centers, which are forbidden to men. And in 2018, women were officially allowed to drive a car, which was a big event for the entire Muslim world.
In the new issue, Anton Ptushkin will witness the historical processes in Saudi Arabia and show what has changed dramatically in the last few years in the conservative country.
“Saudi Arabia has enough arsenal to surprise. And I can say that this is one of the most interesting countries I’ve been to lately. And I only negotiated for 9 months to get permission to film, ”Anton will share his impressions.
The traveler will also visit the historic cities and districts of Saudi Arabia mentioned in the Bible, get to the “edge of the earth”, fly a biplane from World War II and show the space landscapes of local deserts.
unian.ua
