GOOOOAAAAALLLL!!

Last Monday, a group of friends and I went to the Serafi Megamall to watch the football match between Saudi Arabia and Ukraine. The In-10-So Family Recreation Center on the top floor had set up this huge screen by the bowling alleys for families to watch. The place was packed to the hilt, and, as was expected, filled with young boys and men in full green-and-white regalia: hats, shirts, face-paint, masks, flags, the works. We weren't really keen on watching the game; we were just glad to have an excuse to hang out after a strenuous day at work. But, unexpectedly, we got caught up in the Saudi spirit and impulsively painted our faces. It was hilarious because:

a) Half of us weren't Saudi at all; well, I was the only southeast Asian in the group, the rest were Arab-Westerners.

b) We attracted a lot of attention, being the only group of grown-ass women in hijab with face-paint.

c) Saudi lost to Ukraine 4-o. There was a man behind the counter of the Shawarma place we ordered food from who smugly pointed that out to us in a crooked English accent: "Madam, Saudi lost, no?" [No, Duh?]

d) We were hounded by the MBC paparazzi. A photographer for the leading Arab newspaper Al-Hayat approached us several times during and after the game, offering to publish our photos on the newspaper. We unwaveringly refused to have our pictures taken, quickly covering our faces whenever he aimed the offending Nikon. [Hypocrites!! LOL!!]

e) We were also approached by a couple of young Saudi men in thobes who claimed to be photographers of some fake magazine, while they held up their mobile-phone cameras. LOL! [Pervs!!]

f) There we were, 8 women in full hijab, speaking loudly in English and occasionally switching to Saudi Arabic, walking around the mall, totally asking for it.

To be perfectly honest, the attention was unwanted, but not completely un-enjoyed. We're chalking this one up to experience. It's definitely not something women do (or should do) in Jeddah, and yet we did it, and we were meted out with that amusing tolerance that locals reserve for quasi-foreigners.




I was loathe to scrub off the face paint long after I'd arrived home. On top of that, Sally did my eyes, and I loved it. I don't know what the point of this photo is.














It was a fun evening. Totally inappropriate, but that's what made it fun.




Here is Abdullah, the cutest little Saudi-American I know. He loves sneaking up on me during picture-taking sessions and giving me bunny ears. What he loves even more is rummaging through our tote bags and confiscating our packs of cigarettes and declaring, "I don't want you to die!!"





And there's my silly friend Suzann, who'd kill me as soon as she sees I posted her photo.



Go, Saudiyyah groupies!!












More where those came from!