"So I've been working on the clothing issue...when you're waiting for the items to show up in used clothing stores, you have to be patient and often... and I've already found one perfect pair of
lightweight, loose [pants] that come nearly to my ankles..and yesterday I found the most amazing find: an actual burka! How could I NOT buy it ($11.99, St Vinty's). It is not one of those absolutely hideous blue ones you always see in movies...it is a rather nice sort of pinkish beige in color, and made out of some light material that is kind of slippery. It does NOT have a screen over the eye slit, which in my mind is what makes it wearable. I think it will actually be a good thing to have along. That way, if my regular clothes ever seem too provoking for a middle aged woman, I can just pull the damned burka over my head and no one will be the wiser. It doesn't even take up a lot of packing space, surprisingly...it compacts into a pretty tight little roll. I am getting SOOO excited! Does it still get cool at night there?xx Mums"
Mady and I then spent some time discuss what Mady should reply to this e-mail ultimately deciding that she would tactfully tell Susan not to bring it because it would just be inappropriate.
This happened to be an excellent April Fool's Day joke played on Mady by the incredibly clever Susan Hering who apparently has been a mastermind of April Fool's Day pranks for years. When Mady received the response we couldn't believe how easily we were fooled.
This did however get me to thinking about the style and dress of Egyptians and people in the Middle East in general. One of the things that I think people, mostly women, stress out about when coming here is the way they should present themselves. Some of the tips I received were to keep my knees and shoulders covered and not to wear anything too tight or revealing which I think are pretty common sense going to a country you have never been to before.
Since I have been here for two months I have see a great number of different fashion options for locals and foreigners and I will begin by saying that things here are more conservative and more liberal than I had imagined. I will start with the conservative (mind you this is all my understanding and may not be 100% accurate).
The women of the local Tarabin Bedouin tribe do wear the jellabiya (pronounced galabeya), a
long black robe that sometimes is adorned with sequins that covers their arms and legs leaving only the hands and feet exposed. They also wear the hijab which is the head covering but is also the term for the modest style of Muslim dress in general. When a Bedouin woman is in a place where there is a chance that a Bedouin man could see her then she also wears the niqab that covers her nose and mouth, at this point only leaving her eyes exposed. Young girls do not have to start wearing this style of dress until they become a teenager generally and can shed it all if they are in the presence of only women or their immediate family. Women take pride in the clothes they wear beneath the jellabiya and dress up for occasions like weddings in long ball gowns. Men also wear a white or blue Jellabiya most of the time which is not well portrayed in the picture but you can begin to understand. There are extreme cases like a woman I saw in Amman last weekend who was completely covered and still wore sunglasses at night and had to be lead around by another woman because she couldn't see anything in her attempt to be modest.Egyptian women do generally wear modest clothing such as long skirts reaching their ankles or loose-fitting pants and generally wear at least short-sleeved shirts if not, long-sleeves. But we do live on a beach and many liberal Egyptians from Cairo and other big cities vacation here and have a more western-style of dress that includes shorts, tank tops and of course, swim suits. There are many foreigners here as well who, staying at a beach, wear typical beach attire that are not all too modest.
It is getting much hotter these days and is beginning to be difficult resist just throwing on some shorts and a tank to hang out outside. Being a teacher here adds to the desire to respect the Egyptian customs and attempt to blend in a little. I generally brought modest clothing but can get away with a little more on the weekend when we are hanging out on the beach though we try to stay further away from the main hut and fellow workers.
And for the record, I have not seen any Egyptian women wearing a burqa.
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