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Guttrah in a GMC Suburban
Joined: 29 Nov 2011 Posts: 12 Location: Waiting for Chicken at Al Baik
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 4:59 am Post subject: Why do some young Saudi men use perfume? |
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Why do some young Saudi men use perfume that is designed for women? I�m not insinuating anything negative about it; I�m curious and would like to see if there are different ways to better understand a possible subset of the culture here. Oh, I live in Jeddah and teach at a large university. I have seen it happen more than a few times, so I'm thinking that it seems like a popular thing to do. I asked a young Saudi man whom I worked with and he said that is smells better than men�s cologne. Maybe that's all the answer that I should expect. I recommended a nice, clean, citrus fragrance like Hugo Boss Cologne, as he reached into his desk to doused himself with Liz Claiborne. |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 5:17 am Post subject: |
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The answer is... why not?
VS |
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ultraman111
Joined: 17 Sep 2011 Posts: 148
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 6:19 am Post subject: |
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Well, from what I undrstand or inferred, its because they dont put on any deoderant and use perfume instead to mask their (phew) scent. |
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posh
Joined: 22 Oct 2010 Posts: 430
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 9:49 am Post subject: |
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They bowl round the wicket. |
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Guttrah in a GMC Suburban
Joined: 29 Nov 2011 Posts: 12 Location: Waiting for Chicken at Al Baik
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 10:33 am Post subject: |
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Yea, that would also be an OK answer VS. I'm just interested in how that thinking process came into play and why it didn't stick in other cultures. OK, maybe in Thailand. It's a lot like what Jerry Seinfeld said on his TV show: "Not that there's anything wrong with that". |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010 Posts: 11454 Location: The real world
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 10:59 am Post subject: |
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Well... Since they live in a strict, gender-segregated environment, perhaps dousing themselves with perfume simply enhances their thoughts about women and all things forbidden. In other words, the scent of women's perfume has a pleasant affect on their senses and becomes a placebo for the real thing. Hmm... |
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johnslat
Joined: 21 Jan 2003 Posts: 13859 Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 2:23 pm Post subject: |
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Dear nomad soul,
Hmm, that makes scents.
Regards,
John |
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johnslat
Joined: 21 Jan 2003 Posts: 13859 Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 2:28 pm Post subject: |
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Dear posh,
Thank you for introducing me to a previously unknown British idiom:
�Britains "most-gay-friendly employer", where 10% of the staff bowl round the wicket, is Staffordshire Police.�
http://www.wordnik.com/words/wicket
Regards,
John |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 3:39 pm Post subject: |
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I have actually known straight Western males that wear a women's perfume just because they like it.
Personally I found that after about 10 minutes, you don't smell the perfume that you put on... though everyone else does. I don't know anywhere in the world where they over apply perfume like the Middle East. One can be practically asphyxiated in an elevator or a small classroom.
VS |
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gelynch52ph
Joined: 15 Feb 2011 Posts: 132
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Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 11:38 am Post subject: Not much of a comment |
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They are either gay or frustrated sexually. They have nothing to do but drink coffee, eat more rice at a sitting than most families eat in a week or drive fast enough to kill more people than any other country, so they wear perfume and try to seduce the Filipinos. |
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freesoul
Joined: 09 Mar 2009 Posts: 240 Location: Waiting for my next destination
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Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2012 4:22 pm Post subject: |
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Male Saudis mostly wear Bukhour not perfume. Old-timers can't confuse them |
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gelynch52ph
Joined: 15 Feb 2011 Posts: 132
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Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2012 10:26 pm Post subject: Bukhoor, ouhd, perfume etc. |
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freesoul wrote: |
Male Saudis mostly wear Bukhour not perfume. Old-timers can't confuse them |
Bakhoor or Bukhoor is a great home fragrance and is brought out on special occasions like wedding , love moments , or for welcoming guests . Women use it to give their clothes an exotic seducing smell (or more likely to cover up the lack of bathing).
If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck and quacks like a duck...
Bukhoor, ouhd, perfume, if it smells like perfume then it must be perfume. |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343
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Posted: Sun Jan 15, 2012 12:28 pm Post subject: |
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The prophet did it so they are merely following his lead. |
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CamTam
Joined: 05 Jan 2012 Posts: 32
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Posted: Sun Jan 15, 2012 1:12 pm Post subject: |
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Saudi men sometimes use perfume because they prefer the smell. They also have men's fragrances and switch when they feel like it. Fragrance is a big part of Arab culture, after all. |
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battleshipb_b
Joined: 14 Dec 2006 Posts: 189
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Posted: Sun Jan 29, 2012 8:46 am Post subject: |
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It is part of the historical/religious tradition. Attar - perfumed oils - are acceptable in the religion. Don't forget historically speaking people even in Europe used perfumes and incense to cover up decomposing flesh and bad smells. Think of the middle ages.
The Arabs were the ones who introduced perfume making to the Europeans. The Bible mentions frankincense and myrrh - ancient Egyptians also used these. Men in the west use after shave and after shave balm. The perfume/toilet water industry is booming with men's products. What about all the Hollywood stars who promote such products? Wearing after shave or perfume is seen as very masculine. And the French seem to agree, check out the duty-free - you can now see a lot of men's perfumes for sale. Don't knock it. I respect people for wanting to smell good and not offend others. Haven't you seen scented men's deodorants on sale in the drugstores? Come on, don't knock it. |
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