While the western world is celebrating love today (happy Valentine's day by the way!), in Saudi, young people still struggle in their attempt to get to know their opposite-sex peers. I think I have already mentioned the extensive use of Blutooth to contact nearby cell-connected people randomly, or the simple display of one's BB pin on their car. Those are the tricks used to "meet" someone. But then what happens when you want to get to know her, and go out with her?
Then you're up for some trouble... Like this young Panda (local supermarket) employee who was happily enjoying a coffee with a young lady during prayer time (that's a 45 minutes break 4 times a day, yippee! But that's another story...) when the mall security guard angrily pointed at him, asking him to come out of the coffee shop with him. Once outside, he was harshly and lengthily reminded by the guard that it is illegal to meet with a girl who is neither your sister nor your mum or aunt or fiancee or wife, and that the situation was not to happen again at that mall, otherwise the muttawa (the infamous religious police) would take action. The sermon ended on a handshake, and the boy was free to go.
And what happened to the girl, you may ask? She hastily grabbed her bag, adjusted her niqab and walked off, back to the anonymity of a crowded mall, among hundreds of women looking just like her.
Wow. This is a powerful post. I lived in Jubail for almost a year and I do feel so bad for the young people who cannot mingle freely with their peers. I only hope that they do find their happily ever afters, in the end.
ReplyDelete-kala (http://mybelishabeacon.com/bananafish)