Claire CP #4

April 11^th, 7:00-10:00pm

Norah’s apartment

I met with Norah for the fourth time yesterday. I decided to bring my guitar with me, as I really enjoy playing and singing songs and I realized that Norah had probably never heard me before. She and her kids were a very gracious audience; Norah encouraged me to pursue music professionally and said that she felt filled with joy from hearing my music, so that felt nice. ;)

We talked about how new Saudi mothers often go and stay with their parents for the first 40 days of caring for a baby. She also told me about her favorite teacher from CIES and what she liked about the different instructors' teaching styles. I asked randomly whether she ever “threaded” her eyebrows, as I have heard this technique is popular abroad as an alternative to plucking or waxing. She explained to me that for religious reasons she actually never shapes her eyebrows. She explained that for Muslims it is actually forbidden to alter one’s appearance through things like removing hair from the face or using hair extensions, because it is deceptive and contrary to the way God has made the person. I asked her whether some strict Muslims view makeup this way as well, but she said they don’t. This led to a big discussion about fashion, and she corrected many misunderstandings I had about women’s fashion in Saudi Arabia. She explained that women there really take pride in their appearance and often buy western-style dresses, which may be tight or low-cut or rest above the knee. I was sort of confused as to why women would buy these sorts of clothes (or want to wear hair extensions) if they can only be seen when they are in the privacy of their own homes. She explained to me that the women really like to look nice among themselves and that in most cases when they enter the place where they are studying or working, they immediately remove their abaya and other modest coverings and have their personal style more on display. She said that weddings are another major occasion for wearing a fashionable new dress, as the celebration is separate for the men and women. I will be visiting Kuwait for a few days next month, so I asked her for some advice about what to wear there, and she said I can pretty much wear whatever I want.