Nzingha's Soapbox
You beat me to it. I was actually planning on folding this time and letting this stupid article pass, unmolested by my indignation. I labled it as just another in an endless stream of sensationalistic Saudi-bashing articles by people who know squat! Hell, I've gotten sunburned at the beach here AND I'm going invited to go swimming on Thursday, at no less than TWO different places (no joke, Wallah!)
I looked like I was having convulsions while reading this post, belly-laughing silently trying not to wake my sleeping baby so I can read a few more blogs.
I suggest you put this one on a list of your best posts. If you don't send your link to the bimbette who wrote that article... I WILL!
Salaam Nzingha,
Wow, the writer is soooo out of touch. Tunisia! Right! Take away one form of insane oppression and replace it with another!
You should explain more about why segregation is valued and how women swim in Saudi under "safe" conditions islamically. The non-muslims reading it could really benefit and it's a form of dawah.
ROFL! Nzingha, I think you outdid yourself on this one...stripping a Fulla doll and having her dive into a blow-up pool will qualify as symbolism? hahahahahaa
Oh jeez woman *wiping tears from my eyes* you are a trip, truly lol
Way to be sarcastic - what was this woman thinking, that after 6 months she managed to do something that you or any of the other women (why do people assume Saudi women are so docile? I know a few who seriously rock the sunnah and certainly don't lay down and play dead) have desired, tried, and been unable to do, so far? I'm thinking that while she probably felt it was a major victory, maybe she should get in touch with other women in the area - they *might* have a clue, if she can step outside of her own arrogance to notice.
* incidently, how is it there's more places for you ladies to swim in Saudi than there is for me here in Kuwait? I'm perplexed.
We get to drive, you get to swim. I say we link forces and each side gets to do BOTH. We can arrange to drive to the swimming pools. Yallah, let's go - it's gettin' hot here!
Hey Huda- a 'reppression exchange program'?
Assalaamu alaikum,
I mentioned this at hijabimadness.blogspot.com. When I saw it, it was titled "The First Woman to Swim in Saudi". I don't know if anyone else wrote to them, but I did (I posted what I wrote to them) - and when I looked the next morning, they had changed the name to "Making a public splash in Saudi".
Huda, there are plenty of places for women to swim in Kuwait. There are health clubs for women only, health clubs where they alternate days for women and men, Messila Beach (with swimming pool) is usually open two days a week for women only during the summer, many families have chalets (houses at the beach) where the women can swim, and there are chalets you can rent where women also can swim. (You can buy Islamic swimsuits at any Nasser sports shop; a couple of years ago, they cost 7 KD.)
W'alaykum salaam Ann,
I don't want to take up space on Nzingha's blog but I'm reealllly wanting to know where these places are, so that I could take my girls (and me!) to go swimming? My husband told me the health clubs are around 250KD/year, per person, which is just out of sight for us. Where is Messila beach? I'm sorry, I don't know Kuwait very well yet.
SaudiStepfordwife - no kidding eh? lol
even if there ARE places for women to swim here, I don't see nice big rec centres like I'm accustomed to, and it's certainly not easily affordable here (from the info I have - I may be wrong and I dearly hope I am), nor is it culturally the norm - because I asked in my own neighborhood and I got blank looks from the women - and they weren't blank because they didn't know what I was talking about, but blank because they just don't engage in these activities.
Incidently, a lot of my neighbors have drivers - they don't drive either. And it's not because they wouldn't like to - but because their husbands say no. Even my own spouse restricts when/where I drive. That may be because of the psychoticness of the driving found here (one look at the cars that have been in accidents during the night, off to the sides of the roads and that's a little scary) or it may be because of his own stuff, but that's the way it is eh.
Women have been swimming for years in Saudia. BBC is usually pretty good, but they are way off the mark here.
Assalaamu alaikum,
About the driving, all of my husband's nieces drive, but in their mother's generation, I have SILs who have licenses and can drive, but prefer not to. And my MIL never drove. Even in places like Qatar and Southern Oman, women are allowed to drive, but you rarely see national women driving there.
Huda, Messila is where 6th Ring Road meets the Gulf Street (but it's not called the Gulf Street anymore down there - it's called Blajat Street, I think). There are expensive health clubs, and there are cheaper ones. I know the Islah society (Muslim Brotherhood) has one for women only that's fairly cheap, in Shamiya. And there's one in Khaldiya for women that's cheap, but I don't know the name of it. Shaab Sea Club has family memberships which aren't expensive, but I don't know if they have a swimming pool exclusively for women. The Hunting and Equestrian Club has a pool, but I don't know if there's one just for women. I heard there was a nice center in Qurain or Mubarak al-Kabeer with all kinds of activities for young women, including swimming. And you can always just go to the beach at night; it's not unusual to see women take a dip at night, even in their abayas at night... I don't know where you live, though - I've heard of your area, but I don't know where it is - what's it near?
W'alaykum salaam Ann, thanks so much for the information - I'll ask my husband when he returns, although I don't know how much he knows about this - none of the women in his family engage in these activities apparently.
I live in Sabah Al Nassar...it's near Ardiya and Firdous, I'm right next to the Farwaniya hospital (and yes, it's a newer town, about 5 years old, we don't have landlines yet)
- to give you a landmark, I'm pretty close to the new IKEA and Avenues mall, like 5 minutes. The closest big landmark to us is the presently-being-constructed football stadium...the big structure to your right, and you take the 602 exit to reach our place (off 6th ring road).
So basically we live between fifth and sixth ring roads.
(incidently I'm quite proud of the fact that I can even tell you that - I'm hopelessly directionally-challenged and for me to figure out ring roads etc with no maps and very few street names has taken me four months lol!)
re the driving, it's the same in my husband's family - most of the women in his family don't drive - even the younger women. The only reason my hubs is okay with my driving is because a) I've been driving for 16 years and b) it's convenient for him.
my being western-born gives me a few options that were I Kuwaiti, in his life, I wouldn't have those options.
But then again, I'd have other "plusses" that I don't have, what with being the only foreigner in the family - and maybe those would outweigh a little plastic driver's license. Sometimes I wonder.
Am I counted in the revolution if I go to the local Splash Pad (Sprinkler water park) in my hijab? technically, there is no standing water, so I am not sure if it counts. Maybe there is a "depth of water requirement" to qualify. I want to be sure I am fully bucking the system, or else, cooling off is just not worth it.
Interesting blog, your culture is much different than ours. Americans of course are all crazy.
Want me to send you some bacon? We have tons of it here in these big fancy grocery stores.
Thanks, that story about the BBC reporter starting off a new revolution is all over the news here (uk!) im glad i bumped into this website (via blogistan.co.uk) to forward your article to a fair few who may have got the wrong idea!
Jazakhullahu Khair.
Islam.
Fairuzamizna- I would say that running through a sprinkler would actually qualify. Although not technically swimming, all of the 'free western' countries have the privalege of sprinkler fun in the summer so I would say it qualifies. I would also add that any slip and slide action would also qualify in our swim to revolution as well.
BBC- I agree all americans are crazy, I am proof of that. And if bacon could survive the mail transit I would have had some sent in already. Even from a small non fancy grocery store, I don't need fancy.
Islam- Glad you found the site. We can always count on the press, no matter where they are in the world, to make a mountain out of a mole hill.
Assalaamu alaikum,
Yes, I think that BBC report was very popular. The reason I originally saw it was because it was on the list of the top 5 "Most read" or "Most e-mailed", I forget which.
And as usual with ridiculous reports about Saudi, it wouldn't even occur to the average reader that it might not be true.
Swimming is sunna for every Muslim, man and woman.
Ann, I agree there are a lot of places to go swimming here in Kuwait. I go swimming with my kids all summer long. The ones you mentiioned are good. There is also aqua park every Tuesday (woman's day).
Huda, reading some of you posts, I have to say, sometimes your husband seems very bedu - and others just plain lazy (no offense). Not taking your kids to the doctor and insisting you do it is very uncommom. About swimming at the beach at night - that is very commom here, Even the most bedu-bedu families do it.
What's your husband's family like? Other than not driving? How do they treat you? Maybe you can get an ally within the family to help you convince your husband of things you want to do. SILs are always great for this.
Nzingha: About the brown and serve - last time I saw that special treat in Kuwait was Ramadan 2 years ago. They brought some turkey sausage and my kids and I nearly gagged from the taste. I have a suggestion for you. Now I make my own:
Take 1 roll of ground beef add 2.5 tsp of ground sage, a pinch (for mild) of red pepper, salt pepper to taste and make into patties. I place them on wax paper, freeze and fry as needed. If you like smoke taste - add a bit of smoke flavor.
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