As I have mentioned previously, women in the Kingdom are required to wear an abaya anytime they are in the presence of unrelated men. For expats, this rule applies only to when we leave the compound (when we go shopping and spend our husbands' money, which, by the way, is the only thing to do around here). Saudi women tend to be completely veiled so you can either see just their eyes, or often times, their entire faces are covered with a sheer veil. Some women wear gloves, others dare to show off their beautifully manicured and jeweled fingers. To this day, it is unusual to see - these bundles of black fabric gracefully shopping for make-up, texting on their Iphones, and fingering through sale racks.
You might ask, why don't you just not wear an abaya? Well yes, it would be nice to walk around in jeans and a tshirt, carrying shopping bags, while chatting on my bluetooth headset. Unfortunately, being covered is a very much enforced law. There are policemen everywhere - at every mall, at every grocery store, at every Ikea, Chili's, Applebees, and KFC. There are also a specific group of religious police whose very job is to enforce the strict customs and regulations of the Kingdom. They are called the mutaween and they are commissioned by the Committee for the Propogation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (and yes, they do exactly that!).
Officers of this committee can be seen along the souks, markets, and sometimes even in the malls. The mutaween are typically escorted by an actual policeman and are patroling for women with their heads/bodies uncovered, unrelated men and women socializing (I can only imagine what it must take to go on a date in the Kingdom!), any consumption of pork and alcohol, and any other activity that may be against the laws of the Kingdom. They are also responsible for ensuring that products in the Kingdom are not un-Islamic. Should an import of goods be deemed "risky", the mutaween take out their handy black markers and remove any Western influence. See below. This is a pool item that evidently had a woman in a bathing suit, the handy black marker throws a burqa over her and the product is now ready for shelves everywhere.
In all honestly, since I don't plan on making out with R at the mall while eating bacon and drinking a beer, the only thing that I should be worried about is making sure my abaya is on and I have a scarf handy. So I am making a whole-hearted effort to embrace the abaya.
I've discovered that the Saudis have discovered the answer to the age-old question "does this make me look fat?". Well, the Saudi answer is "yes, you look fat and that's exactly how you are supposed to look". There is nothing flattering about wearing a giant black gown. Women here never have to worry about "what to wear?". We can wear whatever we want as long as we cover it up with an abaya. We do not need to worry about bra straps, muffin tops, jello arms, panty lines or any other vanity item when leaving the compound. Not only do we not have to worry about said vanity items ourselves, we don't have to see any of it either (which is also a benefit!). So here is a picture of my abaya, my friend :)
Cheers!
M
You might ask, why don't you just not wear an abaya? Well yes, it would be nice to walk around in jeans and a tshirt, carrying shopping bags, while chatting on my bluetooth headset. Unfortunately, being covered is a very much enforced law. There are policemen everywhere - at every mall, at every grocery store, at every Ikea, Chili's, Applebees, and KFC. There are also a specific group of religious police whose very job is to enforce the strict customs and regulations of the Kingdom. They are called the mutaween and they are commissioned by the Committee for the Propogation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (and yes, they do exactly that!).
Officers of this committee can be seen along the souks, markets, and sometimes even in the malls. The mutaween are typically escorted by an actual policeman and are patroling for women with their heads/bodies uncovered, unrelated men and women socializing (I can only imagine what it must take to go on a date in the Kingdom!), any consumption of pork and alcohol, and any other activity that may be against the laws of the Kingdom. They are also responsible for ensuring that products in the Kingdom are not un-Islamic. Should an import of goods be deemed "risky", the mutaween take out their handy black markers and remove any Western influence. See below. This is a pool item that evidently had a woman in a bathing suit, the handy black marker throws a burqa over her and the product is now ready for shelves everywhere.
In all honestly, since I don't plan on making out with R at the mall while eating bacon and drinking a beer, the only thing that I should be worried about is making sure my abaya is on and I have a scarf handy. So I am making a whole-hearted effort to embrace the abaya.
I've discovered that the Saudis have discovered the answer to the age-old question "does this make me look fat?". Well, the Saudi answer is "yes, you look fat and that's exactly how you are supposed to look". There is nothing flattering about wearing a giant black gown. Women here never have to worry about "what to wear?". We can wear whatever we want as long as we cover it up with an abaya. We do not need to worry about bra straps, muffin tops, jello arms, panty lines or any other vanity item when leaving the compound. Not only do we not have to worry about said vanity items ourselves, we don't have to see any of it either (which is also a benefit!). So here is a picture of my abaya, my friend :)
M
No comments:
Post a Comment