Omani Dress and Breaking Down Barriers

First of all, these are not real ladies. These are mannequins in a museum. But, I took this picture because I wanted to post a picture of the traditional veils worn by women in Oman (and some other Arab countries). Many times in shopping malls, I will see ladies wearing these, but they are made of gold or brass (not sure of the material, but definitely metal). To Western eyes, these probably seem strange, but.... For me after seeing many different veil styles, these actually appear to be the most comfortable and practical. They protect a woman's modesty while allowing her eyes to be clear and to keep a nice open space for her nose and mouth as well. I would NEVER post a photo (or take a picture) of a real woman from this region. It would be VERY disrespectful. Being a woman, I understand how a woman's space is her own and needs to be respected.

I have worn a head scarf many times, and I have found that the ones preferred by local young ladies are cool and comfortable. When I am out hiking, I actually prefer my head scarf to my 'farm hat' (the blue one I usually wear with the wide brim). For my favorite headscarf, I only paid about $3 U.S. In the West, I feel that people see a headscarf as being a barrier. But in the region where I currently roam, it has brought smiles from local women and broken through barriers. When a fully veiled lady from Saudi Arabia approached me (and my cousin's wife) one day, one of her questions was why my munchkin #2 was wearing a headscarf? (My munchkin #2 is young, but we were in a mosque. Not a requirement for a young girl, but a good idea). I explained I thought it was appropriate to the mosque we were visiting (we were in with a tour group for the mosque visit). The fact that this woman approached and spoke with us spoke volumes to me about how dress and headscarves are not barriers here. We were with a large group, but it was us this lady decided to approach. My cousin's wife (for those of you who know her) can tell you more about this experience.

The cushions/pillows you see in this picture are also traditional. They are very comfortable to lean against. In our home, we have a 'reading corner' with a traditional style floor covering and cushions from Pakistan and India. I picked one from India because I liked the embroidered animals on it. We set up our 'reading corner' since we prefer books to television, we had a strange shaped piece of room to fill, and we love this traditional way of enjoying a living space. My next piece for the 'reading corner' is going to be a long low shelf/cabinet to fill with books, games and puzzles. The reading corner has also become our favorite place for games and puzzles. Not to mention, it keeps the munchkin clutter out of the main living room space.

I hope no one finds this posting disrespectful. It is my hope that with reading this, I might be able to shed some light on what many people view as barriers. If you have questions, feel free to email me and I will attempt to answer them. But, I can only speak from my own personal experience.

Peace.