WTF Moment @ The Mall + Middle East Fashion

You call this a toilet!?



So I was at the Madinet Zayed mall the other day when I had to use the restroom. The toilet seen above is common here. I'll let you imagine how its used.

On another note.. One of the things people ask about the most regarding Abu Dhabi, is what people wear. Here's my breakdown. In the malls and restaurants non-Muslims wear anything as long as its not too revealing (no shorts, no tank tops).
Muslim women wear Abayas, the floor-length cloak I'm wearing below.



On my head I wear a sheila to cover my head. Some women will wear various versions of burkas on their face, but this is uncommon and considered "old school."

Men traditionally dress in a long, light colored tunic called a khandura or the slang term is "dishdash." On their head is a ghutra. This is commonly seen in plain white or red and white check. These days the color of the ghutra is a man's personal fashion choice, though, back in the day it denoted what area you were from.
Here I am with author, Ali Alsaloom in his camel-colored dishdash and matching ghutra.



This dress is part of the culture here and I think the people look great in it. I hope that through education people will see that a person wearing an abaya or a khandura is not an opressed woman or a terrorist, but are people like you and me who are embarrassed by the stereotypes caused by mis-information and the acts of extremists.