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Susan WW · Joined: 24 Jul 2007 Posts: 60 Location: Japan

I ` ve been told that male teachers wear dishdashas.
what about female teachers?
Inside female campus, do females (teachers,staff, students) take off their abbayas and head scarfs?

miski · Joined: 04 Jul 2007 Posts: 298 Location: Kuwait

A nice Miss Selfridge bikini will do the trick- with a tummy piercing of course.

www.kuwaitrocks.wordpress.com

globalnomad2 · Joined: 23 Jul 2005 Posts: 562

Those topless dresses from 1966 are just coming into fashion in the Magic Kingdom. And that's for men.

Bob Gorn · Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 4:33 pm Post subject:

OK, SusanWW, I'll bite.

Expat men do not wear dishdashas. For them to do so would be considered disrespectful. Expat women wear the abaya in all circumstances where they could expect to encounter Saudi men, basically everywhere except the compound. Inside a female-only teaching institution, you will probably not be required to wear an abaya, but you will be allowed to do so if you please.

My wife tells me that many of the female institutions have dress codes stipulating what you can wear under the abaya to school. Most universities apparently insist on long skirts for the young ladies. In any case, nothing sleeveless, nothing low-cut, nothing above the knee, nothing too tight.

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

In KSA the name for that garment is 'thobe'. The only 'westerners' I have seen wearing them in Saudi are the more over the top 'reverts' who think that being a Muslim means adopting the Saudi lifestyle.

trapezius · Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 5:23 pm Post subject:

Bob Gorn · Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 9:24 pm Post subject:

[quote]And yes, inside a female-only organization, women take off their abayas and head coverings (DUH).[/quote]

I have an inside track on this one, since my wife has taught women in KSA. Not all women uncover inside female campuses. Some feel that keeping the abaya and hijab on all the time is an expression of their strong religious commitment. Some women even fought for their right to stay covered when it was suggested that the dress code require no abayas when in the building.

Speaking of women-only buildings, there was a recent article on Arab News about the dangers of female-only workplaces. Usually all the exits except one are locked for the "security" of the women, meaning that it would be hard to escape during an emergency. There is also the issue of the lack of fresh air and no outside views, since windows are covered and locked to prevent a male from entering. Anyone here who has experienced this and felt it was unsafe?

Bob Gorn · Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 9:51 pm Post subject:

As for the comment about it being "disrespectful" for Western men to wear thobes, I was always told that Saudis seeing us in Saudi costume perceived us to be making fun of them and their culture. I've never seen anyone do it, but I can imagine that some men (esp. religious converts) could get away with it. I think it's an identity issue more than anything. We have to be able to tell who's "us" and who is "them".

brasscat · Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 11:27 pm Post subject: Clothes & KSA

Personally, I am very comfortable and properly dressed in a guyabera shirt and slacks.

I do know of one person who did wear a thobe, because he converted to Islam. Later he told me he was sweating the whole time.
brasscat

miski · Joined: 04 Jul 2007 Posts: 298 Location: Kuwait

He was probably sweating because he felt silly. In my experience Arab men just find it amusing to see westerners in dishdasha- they aren't insulted by it. In any case a western man just can't carry it right, wrong posture-it's holding the head right, it just doesn't work, only an Arab (or possibly Antonio Banderas-a Moor anyway) can look great in a dishdasha/thobe-and believe me, when it comes to choosing between a pair of jeans/t shirt and a crisp white dishdasha, swarthy skin and good perfume, the latter wins hands down!

globalnomad2 · Joined: 23 Jul 2005 Posts: 562

I was in Saudi for four years and didn't know any westerners who wore thobes. In Dubai, at HCT, one or two westerners wore dishdasha on National Day as part of the celebrations.

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

A number of converts ( sorry - 'reverts') prefer to wear the thobe. I am not quite sure what motivates them.

Possibly the same sort of logic that makes some of them assert that the necktie is a Christian symbol.

Cleopatra · Posted: Fri Aug 10, 2007 10:33 am Post subject:

desultude · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 614

So, what is generally worn, for teaching, under the abaya? How do you dress to teach? What sort of shoes do you wear?

I thought the abaya was the dress, of course with something underneath.

Yeah, I an a newbie to the Kingdom, but I am educable! And I have served my time in Asia.

Bebsi · Joined: 07 Feb 2005 Posts: 958