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meyanga
Joined: 02 Mar 2008
Posts: 103
Location: Malaysia
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 Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2008 6:11 am Post subject: killer heels |
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Hi
I am moving to Jeddah soon and have been searching through old posts to find out about what clothes are suitable for life there.
I would appreciate it if someone could please refute/confirm the following -
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goingbald wrote
Tips:
1. Don't wear clicky, heeled shoes. You will draw unwanted and unnecessary attention to yourself.
2. Whether you're a Muslim or not, you must cover your hair in public at all times. Many women, and men, display simple ignorance of this obligation, or deliberate arrogance. One related benefit is that you are less likely to draw attention from the youth in the malls.
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Thanks
Meyanga  |
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Cleopatra
Joined: 28 Jun 2003
Posts: 3657
Location: Tuamago Archipelago
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| Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2008 7:31 am Post subject: |
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Who posted this 'advice'?????
Here in even-more-conservative Riyadh, I hardly ever step outside the door without 10cm heels!!! I reckon if I were ever to be nuts enough to run a marathon, I'd insist on doing it in heels! So yes, you can wear your Manolos in Jeddah.
Regarding the second point, even here in Riyadh, plenty of non-Muslim (and even some Muslim) women do not cover their hair in public, and seem to get away with it most of the time. Personally, I always cover my hair, not out of any sense of 'obligation' but because I feel that I 'blend in' better that way and am less likely to draw unwanted attention. I generally advise women to cover their hair in Riyadh, at least when they're out on the street or walking around alone, but it's not that big a deal. Jeddah is somewhat more 'liberal' than Riyadh so if you really don't want to cover your hair, it shouldn't be a problem for the most part.
Last edited by Cleopatra on Thu Jul 17, 2008 7:45 am; edited 1 time in total |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343
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| Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2008 7:41 am Post subject: |
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Now if you are in Buraidah or Qassim it is different. Here in ultra-liberal Dhahran I often see women in public without abayas. Many do not cover their hair. Some wear abayas. Some wear "modest" clothes.
Don't listen to what the propagandists say about KSA. Half of it is not true. |
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meyanga
Joined: 02 Mar 2008
Posts: 103
Location: Malaysia
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| Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2008 7:43 am Post subject: |
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Thank God!
There are lots of adjustments I am more than happy to make - but wearing flat shoes everyday is just not one of them! 
Thanks Cleo |
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Cleopatra
Joined: 28 Jun 2003
Posts: 3657
Location: Tuamago Archipelago
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| Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2008 7:58 am Post subject: |
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Couldn't agree more.
Abaya and headscarf - no problem. Flats every day - no way. There are some things a girl just can't compromise on, and a woman's right to shoes is one of those. |
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Mia Xanthi
Joined: 13 Mar 2008
Posts: 955
Location: why is my heart still in the Middle East while the rest of me isn't?
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| Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2008 4:38 pm Post subject: |
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Cleopatra is right. Heels are not a problem at all. The beauty of the abaya is that you can wear whatever you want underneath it, including outrageous shoes.
What you wear outside the abaya is up to you and it does depend on the norms in the area where you live. In Dhahran, most foreign women do not cover their hair. I covered my hair when I first arrived because it made me feel more comfortable. I no longer cover it at all, but I do try to bring a headscarf along in case circumstances warrant covering my hair.
If you are a non-Muslim, it can feel like you are giving off the wrong signals with your hair covered. Many people in the EP will assume that you are Muslim or the wife of a Saudi if you cover your hair. Not covering your hair, at least in the EP, is in some ways a more honest type of communication to those around you. |
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007
Joined: 30 Oct 2006
Posts: 2684
Location: UK/Veteran of the Magic Kingdom
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| Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2008 6:10 pm Post subject: |
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| Who posted this 'advice'????? |
goingbald.
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| I hardly ever step outside the door without 10cm heels!!! |
Tante Cleo, don't you think 10 cm heels is too high, and will increase your chance to an accident when walking in the streets of the magic kingdom!
Height by 10 cm! Why? Do you want to be taller than Uncle Scotty and teta Mia? 
I though only short women wear shoes with high heels so that they feel taller and 'proud' in front of the same and opposite sex!
I think, in the magic kingdom and elsewhere, a petite woman is always better with a medium to low heel ( less than 7 cm), so that she can feel that her 'silhouette' is more longer!
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| There are some things a girl just can't compromise on, and a woman's right to shoes is one of those. |
I wonder if men have the same right to shoes?
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| The beauty of the abaya is that you can wear whatever you want underneath it, including outrageous shoes. |
But, teta Mia, as far as I know, outrageous shoes are not worn underneath abaya, they are worn bottom of the abaya, and are not covered! |
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Mia Xanthi
Joined: 13 Mar 2008
Posts: 955
Location: why is my heart still in the Middle East while the rest of me isn't?
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| Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 1:19 am Post subject: |
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| Many abaya tailors refuse to make "short" abayas, insisting on making women walk around with dragging hemlines. These "modest" abayas cover most of the shoes. Therefore, I consider high heels as something worn under the abaya. |
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cmp45
Joined: 17 Aug 2004
Posts: 1475
Location: KSA
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| Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 1:24 am Post subject: |
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| 007 what are you doing???? You intrude into a woman's domain...any ways let me usher you out quickly before you embarass yourself further... |
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Cleopatra
Joined: 28 Jun 2003
Posts: 3657
Location: Tuamago Archipelago
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| Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 6:01 am Post subject: |
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| I covered my hair when I first arrived because it made me feel more comfortable. I no longer cover it at all, |
Funny, for me it was the other way round. I didn't cover my hair when I first arrived, but within a few months thought better of it, and now barely walk outside the house without putting my scarf on.
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| Not covering your hair, at least in the EP, is in some ways a more honest type of communication to those around you. |
I understand what you're saying, but I suppose it depends on who 'those around you' are, and what you want to 'communicate'. For me, wearing the scarf is a way of saying 'leave me alone' or 'don't intrude on my space'. I definately do feel more comfortable covering my hair, but of course it's very much a personal thing.
As for 007 offering opinions on the height and dress sense of women he has never met, all I can do is echo cmp45... |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343
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| Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 6:38 am Post subject: |
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| Well I want you all to know that I NEVER wear high heels in public. In Saudi Arabia or anywhere else. |
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007
Joined: 30 Oct 2006
Posts: 2684
Location: UK/Veteran of the Magic Kingdom
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| Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 11:50 am Post subject: |
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| scot47 wrote: |
| Well I want you all to know that I NEVER wear high heels in public. In Saudi Arabia or anywhere else. |
Well, Uncle Scotty, do you mean that you wear them in private?
I think you will look titanic if you wear high heels more than 2 inches! |
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johnslat
Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 13859
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
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| Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 12:30 pm Post subject: |
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Dear 007,
And we all know what happened to the Titanic.
Regards,
John |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343
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| Posted: Sun Jul 20, 2008 9:05 am Post subject: |
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| Not even in private. And I certainly do not wear a kilt either. |
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Stephen Jones
Joined: 21 Feb 2003
Posts: 4124
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| Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2008 8:06 am Post subject: |
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| If you are a non-Muslim, it can feel like you are giving off the wrong signals with your hair covered. Many people in the EP will assume that you are Muslim or the wife of a Saudi if you cover your hair. Not covering your hair, at least in the EP, is in some ways a more honest type of communication to those around you. |
This is arrant nonsense. You are unlikely to run into the muttawa with your hair uncovered if you are western, or even Philipino, but nothing will be deduced from the default of having it covered.
The Spanish wife of a colleague of mine in Riyadh used to regularly walk the baby until one day she found she had suddenly become the recipient of lewd suggestions and stares from most of the men in cars. She went inside puzzled, but on a headscarf, went out again and found things had gone back to normal. When she told me and hubby the story we burst out laughing. What had happened was she had gone to the hairdressers and had this gorgeous bouffant hairdo. It screamed for everybody's attention, and Saudi men took it as a deliberate invitation, like a tart's make-up. Often you are sending signals you have no desire to send. |
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