Going Native, Part I

Hello!

Today, finally some time to blog, because school has been cancelled. It’s a rain day! I never thought I’d live to hear these words, especially given the circumstances: it rained for no more than half an hour (albeit with some sizable hail) and now the sky is turning blue again and the weather seems beautiful. It is almost a pity we have to miss out on school and do the catching up later on when it is so nice out.

The students have just returned from a trip to Salala, and we are all thoroughly exhausted, some of us even sun-burnt. The heat is starting to manifest itself, and I personally am enjoying daily nosebleeds as a result of high BP and heat. To be fair, nobody is complaining yet, though it is tangibly warmer outside, and during group hikes, the girls are having a hard time, always dripping in sweat. The hijab and the abaya are almost a must in most situations and even on excursions, especially anywhere in the south and the interior, or off the beaten tourist track. It is tiring and unpleasant to walk in them due to their impermeability: they let in no air and let out no moisture or heat. Additionally, abayas are too long and always black, so you can imagine the heat that girls have to put up with when out in the open. The hijabs are never light enough, no matter how thin the fabric is and how much it ‘breathes’.

Yet there are advantages: because the hijab covers the neck and hair, the head is never warmed by the sun’s rays, and the headscarf absorbs the sweat on the neck. In short, there is little to worry about, in terms of over-heating or dehydration due to loss of moisture. Although drinking lots of water is still highly recommended. And the abaya lets you relax and just be you (whenever you’re not tripping on it). You can sit in it in a myriad of ways, and do just about anything, short of swimming. The garment is not see-through and you can wear almost anything (or nothing) underneath. But believe me, you would want to have short sleeves and long pants (or loose maxis) under the abaya. When you walk up/down stairs and have to lift it up, it is just rude to flash everyone with your bare ankles and calves. Additionally, having sleeves helps absorb sweat in the underarms, which, if it comes in contact with the abaya, will stain it and feel genuinely disgusting. That having been said, I still envy the [appropriately dressed] Western tourists, from time to time. Their cool cotton blouses and shorts make me reflect on why I am baking in destruction-proof, solid black abaya fabric with a massive headscarf around my head and shoulders. And then I remember: immersion. Knowing how they feel, how they think, what it is they care about, and what makes them tick. And when I say ‘they’, I am not designating ‘the Other’, but simply generalizing about a large population that is too diverse to blog about its differences. But maybe I will some day, after another month or so of walking in their clothes.