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RIYADH: Joshua Van Alstine, an American who has called Saudi Arabia home for more than a decade, has dedicated his career to exploring and sharing the Kingdom\u2019s history, culture, and natural heritage.<\/p>\n
Better known as \u201cAmerican Abu Mutib,\u201d he has become a familiar voice in telling Saudi stories through an authentic and respectful lens.<\/p>\n
Growing up as a Muslim, Van Alstine says he has always felt a special connection to the home of the two holy mosques. This connection eventually brought him to Saudi Arabia which became a place of refuge and belonging.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, I grew up as a Muslim American, and when you grow up as a Muslim in the West, you kind of by default, you\u2019re the odd man out, you know.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd by default \u2026 you feel like there\u2019s some sort of connection between you and Saudi Arabia being that it\u2019s the home of the holy lands.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the US he did not know much about Saudi Arabia, its culture, society, cuisine, or language, but like many Muslims around the world, it was an important place for him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m imagining it\u2019s how you know, Italian Americans talk about Rome. Maybe, you know, Catholic Americans talk about Rome that way. Perhaps, you know, Buddhist Americans think about India that way.<\/p>\n
\u201cOr Shinto Americans think about Japan in that way. So we (Muslim Americans) think about Saudi Arabia in that way. I was very drawn to just knowing more about the history of the religion I was raised in and makes us connected to one another, but also what makes us different from one another.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought that was also very interesting too even as a very young adult.\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Alstine initially started learning more about the Kingdom through Saudi students he met while studying in Texas. Their generosity, confidence, hospitality, and pride in their country left a lasting impression on him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose Saudis (students) were very, very enthusiastic to teach me about their country.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I was very lucky that I got to meet young people who are very enthusiastic about being diplomats because there are also young people who were more interested in entertainment, for instance.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd these guys were very, very interested and getting me oriented with my soon-to-be home, which I didn\u2019t know was going to be my homecoming year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Alstine said they were grooming him to become a part of Saudi society. \u201cI think they did a really good job, to be quite frank, and I was mesmerized.\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Alstine said he was impressed by these students because they were from humble origins, small villages in Saudi, and they were intellectuals.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey weren\u2019t metropolitan or cosmopolitan in any way and yet they behaved like they were so comfortable in this new setting that they found themselves in America.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd they were able to ask for help. They didn\u2019t feel any shame in asking for help. They didn\u2019t feel ashamed asking for directions. They didn\u2019t mind, you know, spending their last $5 to invite you out for, like, a burger. They didn\u2019t care.\u201d<\/p>\n
The story behind the rise of American Abu Mutib started with a YouTube video that Van Alstine made almost as a joke. Then, seemingly overnight, everything changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone was encouraging me to do it and I did the YouTube video. And then overnight, I became like a viral sensation. This was in 2011 and I was the most-seen video on YouTube for that week in October.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was either like No. 2 or No. 3 overall on YouTube, and so that was a complete shock, that the internet has that kind of power.\u201d<\/p>\n
When Van Alstine came to Saudi Arabia for work, his friends refused to let him live alone. They welcomed him into their home, and eventually into their family.<\/p>\n
What started as a few days staying with his Saudi friends turned into eight years of living with them. \u201cSo I came to work for the Ministry of Higher Education, at that time, and the ministry afforded me accommodations.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey afforded me a lot of creature comforts, and my friends who taught me Arabic in college, they were my roommates. They pulled me out of the accommodation and they said, you\u2019re not gonna live there. You\u2019re gonna live with us in our house.\u201d<\/p>\n
As co-founder of the Saudi Arabian Botanical Society, Van Alstine has helped spearhead initiatives including a national botanical garden, seed bank, and herbarium \u2014 while supporting the training and employment of Saudi talent.<\/p>\n
The society has a mission that continues to inspire him.<\/p>\n