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Hi Family and Friends -

I just found out that I have been nominated as a Best of Blogs finalist in the Travel/Leisure category! Thanks to those of you who nominated me!!!

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Documentary: Working Women in Saudi Arabia

OK - I am trying something new this time! I have actually put a video on my post for you to watch! I have to warn you though - it is LONG! At a little over one hour in length, it is well worth watching if you are at all interested in learning more about modern women in Saudi Arabia. I first viewed this film several months ago and just recently viewed it again, and this time, I thought many of you would be extremely interested in seeing it.


The maker of this film is Bregtje van der Haak, a journalist and documentary filmmaker from the Netherlands, who traveled to Saudi Arabia for two weeks in hopes of interviewing working women there. One major problem that she encountered, however, was that only 5 per cent of Saudi women actually work outside the home, and most of those would decline to be photographed or interviewed for her project. Van der Haak managed to produce an eye opening, fascinating, in-depth documentary about the slow progress being made in this strict Islamic country.

I'd like to give you a brief idea about some of the highlights and subject matter featured in the film, in hopes that you will feel excited about it and that watching it will be an hour of your time well spent:

* Suzan Zawawi, one of the very few working women journalists in the Kingdom, is filmed at length, offering insight and even giving a tour of her home, while describing some of the challenges she faces in her world dominated by men. Suzan is a young mother, well spoken, and optimistic about increasing women's roles in Saudi society.

* There is really interesting footage taken inside a factory that employs women in a separate work area from men.

* Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, the 5th richest man in the world and a champion for women's rights, employs unveiled, uncovered Saudi women in his modern skyscraper palace in Riyadh. He believes that women are severely under-utilized in the Saudi work force.

* Top Saudi female gynecologist, Dr. Zeinab, appears in a segment where she uses IVF in hopes of impregnating a young wife who has infertility problems. In a society where the average family has five children per family and men are allowed to have more than one wife, infertility can be a horrifying dilemma.

* Watch scenes from a TV station where unveiled female newsreaders have increased viewership by over 15 per cent.

* Saudi Arabia's first female airplane pilot, Hazadi Hindi, had to learn to fly in Jordan, since women are prohibited from studying this and other fields in Arabia. So now she can fly airplanes in Saudi Arabia, however, ironically, she still cannot drive a car in her country.

* It took photographer Madeha Al-Ajroosh more than twenty years to be able to open her own photography business in Saudi Arabia. A major obstacle was that women were not allowed into the government Ministries, so she could not get her paperwork and licensing done.

* Another interesting segment with Prince Bin Talal shows him at his outdoor desert camp where he receives thousands of requests for assistance from Saudi citizens.

I urge and encourage you to watch this film, but remember, it is over one hour long, so watch it when you have the time. I promise you that you will not regret it. You can watch it right here by clicking on the triangle in the middle of the screen below, or if you prefer to watch it on a full screen, click on the title to this segment above ("Documentary: Working Women in Saudi Arabia") and it will take you to the You-Tube site, where you can turn it into full screen by clicking on the rectangle within the rectangle just below the video clip on the right.

If THAT doesn't work, here is the link - you can just copy and paste:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWD4KzSpj_g&feature=email

Ex-Pat Women in Jeddah

The expatriate women’s population here in Jeddah is comprised of a lively group of remarkable, energetic, and talented ladies from all over the world. Some have come here to work, some have accompanied their husbands who came here to work, and some are the wives of Saudis. Many have become Muslims, while others have not. These women have stepped up to take an active role in the community and the welfare of its people as well as people around the globe.

This past week I attended a charity craft bazaar sponsored mostly by expat women to benefit the people of Malawi. The event was held late in the afternoon and into the evening at a lovely villa which is being rented by a group of expat female artists. My husband drove me there, and hanging around outside was a large group of men – drivers for all the women who were inside the gates of the walled villa, where only women were allowed. Outside the gates, I recognized MM’s driver, who cordially asked me if I would take her a bag filled with chilled water bottles. He immediately went over to my husband in the car to introduce himself and shake hands, since his speaking to me is not really “kosher.”

Once inside the walls of the villa, I saw tables set up all along the walls of the courtyard and inside the villa there was even more. Fortunately the weather was pleasant, not too hot, with a gentle breeze. Offerings of clothing, such as one of a kind abayas, hats, and skirts, plus jewelry, sports accessories, and all sorts of arts and crafts, from paintings to quilts to photography to wall hangings, were everywhere. Upstairs was a little cafe area where ladies could sit and chat and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and indulge in yummy homemade treats. My friend MM’s raffle table ("Everybody wins!") was filled with a large variety of donated items like perfumes and gift certificates and smaller prizes like balls and whistles. All of her prizes were numbered. She charged 10 Riyals for a matching number pick, and every person walked away with something. All the money she took in, she donated to the cause.

The British woman at the next table has been in the kingdom for 28 years. EQ met her husband, a pilot for Saudia Airlines, when she became a Saudia flight attendant. She taught Physical Education in a local school for several years and now is a personal trainer. EQ, along with a group of her friends, was instrumental in accomplishing their vision of establishing the very first children’s library in Jeddah in 2005. It is open 6 days a week and relies on corporate sponsorship, donations and volunteers. The library boasts a collection of over 9000 carefully selected books in both English and Arabic, and even some in French and Spanish, and twice daily held story times guarantee enjoyment for the kids. There are big plans to hopefully open several more children’s libraries throughout the kingdom. I’m just so impressed that these women took these steps to improve the quality of life for the children of Jeddah, but it saddens me that there was no public children’s library at all before that.

I was so excited to meet several artists at the bazaar who rent the villa space, and I hope to return there in the near future to see how the place works. One artist is from Miami and has been here for more than 10 years. She produces amazing wall hangings of photos and collages printed on fabric and then beaded. AA told me that she doesn’t cover her hair, is still Catholic, and that she loves her life here. She has household help and a driver and she is very happy and fulfilled living in Saudi Arabia. Her art business is thriving. Much of her work is done with interior designers.

There are other women here who have organized a couple of informational online groups for expats, where questions can be asked and answered, news articles and other helpful information are shared, or where women can just vent to let off some steam over issues that are bothersome.

One woman, TR, who runs an online group, is a young mother who was widowed and must remain in the kingdom because of her children. She works, is raising her kids alone, and runs a children’s playgroup. I am amazed by her spirit and her ability to make the most out of her situation.

Another ex-pat woman who has been here for about 25 years is a successful photographer and recently held an open house at her studio to show off her work. This woman actually has known my SIL Baheeja for almost 30 years when they met in the States as university students. Her thriving business includes wedding photography and portraits plus commercial.

After spending my first six months here in the caring embrace of my husband’s family and not really meeting any other American women, I feel like I have now spread my wings and a new chapter in this adventure is emerging.

Head Over Heels in Saudi Arabia

Recently I had the pleasure of attending an historic groundbreaking event here in Jeddah. In all likelihood, it was the first of its kind – a play called “Head Over Heels in Saudi Arabia,” written, directed, and performed live by “MS,” a woman professor at a local girls’ school, Effat College. Of course only women were allowed to attend, and women also ran the whole show, including lights, sound, stage, tickets, advertising, filming, etc. I was invited to go by my two new American friends (from the lovely beach). Effat College is all the way down in south Jeddah, on the road to Mecca. It must be a good hour plus drive from where I live, but to be able to attend such an innovative and revolutionary function in this country was well worth the drive.

The play was billed as "a fun light-hearted play that touches on a variation of topics concerning women in Saudi Arabia. This performance addresses many of the questions made about Saudi women. It is both informative and entertaining and will provide a live portrait of Saudi Arabia, never before depicted."

Because traffic was so heavy (it was the equivalent of a busy Saturday night in the states), we actually arrived about 10 minutes late for the 8:45pm show. But luckily for us, the show started late (as many functions here do!) and we had time to get to our seats and chat for a few minutes. I turned around and introduced myself to the two women seated directly behind me. One woman was Danish, married to a Saudi and living here in Arabia for over 40 years! The other woman was British and has lived here for about 30 years. I found these women extremely charming, intriguing, and fascinating – I cannot imagine coming to a foreign land such as this as a young bride in the 1960s, before the internet, before AC was readily available, and all those other modern day conveniences we now take for granted.

The audience consisted of mostly Western expatriate women and a spattering of young Saudi women, mostly students of the professor from the college. It was not a sold out show but a nice intimate crowd of at least 150 extremely excited and enthusiastic women, who quieted down immediately as the curtain opened. There stood the broadly smiling, elegant, impressive, and exotic looking professor, alone in the middle of the warmly decorated stage. She wore jeans topped with a plain white collared blouse over which hung a long open purple robe which was trimmed with printed accents, plus a matching scarf covering her hair and a matching long loose tie around her neck. She is quite a striking woman with large doe-like eyes, an animated on stage presence, depth of soul and impish comedic wit.

She began her performance by declaring that she had fallen in love in Saudi Arabia! The play dealt with women’s lives and loves in Saudi Arabia. The performer was born in Mecca to Saudi parents, but was raised in California, and later returned to live her life in Arabia. Somewhere along the line, she married and divorced. The elegantly furnished stage was divided into three distinct sections. Center Stage housed a lovely modern comfy living room warmed with many candles and throws. Stage Left bore a traditional relaxed living room complete with seating on floor cushions and a hookah pipe. And Stage Right was the bedroom of a young modern day Saudi woman who is doomed and duped in a relationship with a deceitful Saudi man.

Sidebar - POLYGYNY IN ISLAM: Even though Islam allows a man four wives, most Arabian women, if faced with this situation, are not too happy about it. Unfortunately, usually finances or her children affect a woman’s ability to dissolve her marriage if she is that unhappy about it. Many people don’t realize the reasons for a man being allowed to take multiple wives according to Islam. First of all, if a man has more than one wife, each wife must be treated and provided for the same. Clearly the understanding in Islam is that it is permitted to help solve social and domestic problems. For reasons such as homosexuality, women’s longevity, wars and work accidents where more men die than women, Islam allows polygyny because there are more adult women in the world than men. If a woman is widowed and left with children to raise, Islam sees a man taking the widow as his wife and providing for her and her children as an honorable action. Also if a man’s wife is unable to bear children, a man would be allowed to take a second wife. These are the main reasons for why Islam allows men up to four wives. Unfortunately, most Muslim men who DO take on a second wife do not do it for any of these reasons. For all outward appearances, it seems that they take a new younger purely for sex.

Back to the play: MS relayed the stories of three of her girlfriends in different life circumstances. The first story dealt with Miriam, a woman who is faced with a husband who decides to take a second wife. When the husband gave Miriam the typical line of bull about how it was his ”social responsibility,” she tells him, “So what’s wrong with launching a clean-up campaign down on the Corniche?” The divorce rate in Jeddah now stands at a whopping 40 per cent. Miriam finagles an invitation to a wedding where the new second wife will be and wants MS to go and get the whole inside scoop on the new wife. MS describes the typical Saudi wedding (much like I did in a prior post), where the music is played so loud that there is no way you can talk to the person sitting next to you, so her mission to uncover all the dirt on the new wife fails. At one point, “You Can’t Hurry Love” by the Supremes begins to play in the auditorium and MS comes down from the stage and engages three audience members to join her in dance while the rest of the crowd claps to the beat, singing along and enjoying the music. Miriam’s story ends with her staying in the marriage, but in name only, and demanding 10 million riyals from her husband plus the house in her name - and getting it!

The second friend’s story is about how women have to cope with not be able to drive and the various problems it presents. MS goes into a hilarious dialogue, mostly in English with splashes of Arabic tossed in, about how the rest of the world has this idea that women here are chauffeured around in limos by drivers in the official looking tidy visor cap and the uniform suit. Wrong! Her friend’s driver has a borderline-toxic body odor problem, and she tried to give him all kinds of hints, going so far as to present him with a can of spray deodorant, which he thought was air freshener for the car! She can’t put up with his disagreeable scent any longer and fires him and then sets about trying to hire a new driver, making it clear to the applicants that they must shower every day, wear deodorant, and smell good.

The third friend’s tale dealt with another controversial Islamic topic concerning women called Misyaar. Basically this is a temporary marriage allowed in Islam whereby a man can screw around without guilt, with a woman who gets none of the normal advantages of marriage, like being provided for financially or with housing, and such, and, for all outward appearances, is simply used for sex. The man may bestow gifts on her for a while, and then usually abandons her once he tires of her. All this is, as far as I’m concerned, is a way for a Muslim man to basically have an affair, free of any responsibility toward the woman. Needless to say, MS’s friend winds up deeply hurt in the end.

And MS? What about her “falling in love in Saudi Arabia?” Turns out she fell in love with tennis, but has faced great obstacles being allowed to play freely here since she is a woman. Although there are private courts where she can play, she was told by the staff at a local hotel on the Corniche where she had been playing that she would no longer be allowed to play there anymore!

The evening was delightful and cause for hope in the respect that women in Saudi Arabia are making some progress, by producing a show such as this, little by little.

The Zam Zam Well

The holy city of Mecca is the home to the famous Zam Zam water well. This well, in fact, is the reason for Mecca’s existence. The legend of the Zam Zam Well’s existence is really quite interesting. There are several versions of the story about the discovery of the Zam Zam Well. One version goes that centuries ago, around 2000 BC, the Prophet Ibrahim took his family to the area where Mecca stands today to leave them there. When his wife Hajira asked Ibrahim why he was leaving them there in this desert with no water, he told her that he had been instructed by God to do so. His wife was then fine with the decision and believed that God would provide for the family. One of her sons eventually got so thirsty, he began digging with his foot into the sandy soil. Suddenly water appeared in the hole and this source of water is called the Zam Zam Well.

Another version of the story varies a bit by telling that Hajira was seeking water for her infant who was dying of thirst and that she ran between the two hills of Marwah and Safa seven times in the sweltering heat in search of water. At this point God sent down the angel Gabriel. Gabriel dug a hole in the dry and dusty earth and suddenly there was water spewing forth from the ground. There are other little variations on the story as well. The name Zam Zam originates from the Arabic phrase “Zome Zome,” which means “stop flowing.” This is reportedly what Hajira kept repeating once the spring water began flowing and she was trying to contain it.

The discovery of this well brought people who then settled in the desolate area which was named Mecca. The Zam Zam Well is located just a few meters from the Kaaba, which is the place that all Muslims face five times daily when they pray. According to some legends, the well has never once gone dry to this day. However others believe that the well disappeared for a while because the controlling tribe of Mecca, the Jurham, had sinned grievously and that they had filled in the well with dirt out of spite when their tribe was driven out of Mecca. Muslim tradition says that Mohammed’s grandfather, Abd al-Muttalib, later dreamed where the well was located, and he consequently rediscovered it.

The site of the well has undergone several transformations over the ensuing years, from being surrounded by stones to being covered with domes of tile, teak and marble. The mosque built to house the Kaaba throughout its history has been damaged by fire, restored, and remodeled. In the early 1900s, the most comprehensive restoration occurred under the rule of the Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II, when the Zam Zam housing was moved a bit further away to prevent possible damage when millions of pilgrims perform the ritual of circling around the Kaaba. Zam Zam water is available for free to those who visit the Holy Mosque in Mecca and is pumped in to the eastern reaches of the mosque in separate locations for both men and women pilgrims.

The story about Hajira and how the Zam Zam Well originated is remembered by all Muslims during their pilgrimmage to Mecca. Men run between the two hills of Safa and Marwah seven times just as Hajira did. Women walk the distance seven times. When they are done, they then drink from the Zam Zam Well.

The Prophet Mohammed alleged that the Zam Zam water had healing effects. It has also been reported that the Prophet used to carry the water with him, sprinkling it over the sick and having them drink it. This is why many Muslims believe that the water is miraculous and “divinely blessed.” It is said that Zam Zam water satisfies both hunger as well as thirst in addition to having medicinal value in curing illness. Indeed, some people claim to have been cured of illness after drinking Zam Zam water. I read reports that say scientists have conducted tests on Zam Zam water which have concluded that there is an overabundance of many minerals in the water such as fluoride, magnesium, calcium, iodide, sulphate and nitrate contents, which makes it more nutritive and provides healing effects such as reducing heartburn and quenching thirst. Many Muslims claim that Zam Zam water has no taste at all, but it definitely does have a taste to me. My favorite drink on earth is cool water. But personally, I don’t care for the taste of the Zam Zam water. Since it has a higher content of natural minerals in it, I think this is what gives it its flavor and has an aftertaste for me.

Millions of Muslim visitors from around the world visit Mecca each year during the Hajj. All Muslims, if they are able to, are required to make this pilgrimage at least once during their lifetime. Because of the world’s growing Muslim population and the ease of air travel, the Hajj continues to grow in size every year. Since one ritual that is followed by all pilgrims during the Hajj is to wash (ablution) before prayers and to drink later from the Zam Zam Well, plus the fact that many pilgrims like to take home water from the well to give to their relatives and friends, concern has arisen over whether the well can continue to supply enough water to meet the growing demand. There is now a Zam Zam Studies and Research Center in charge of keeping the water sanitized and abundant. Also, the Saudi government has prohibited Zam Zam from being exported and sold outside the country. Consequently, because there is such a zealous commericial demand for the water, fake Zam Zam has been distributed and sold in many countries.

The Zam Zam Well is a constant source of precious water in this arid desert holy city of Mecca. The water is also sold outside the mosque and distributed to the far reaches of the Kingdom. Most homes in the KSA are not without their supply of Zam Zam water.

Paradise Found

My son had the last week off from school. During this time, we had the pleasure of meeting two American women, MM and KY, who are both married to Saudis and have lived here in Arabia for well over 20 years.

How did I get to meet these two lovely women, you ask? We were “virtually” introduced by a fellow blogger, American Bedu (Thank You, AB!), who lives in Riyadh. Even though MM and KY do not blog themselves, they regularly read Middle Eastern blogs and leave comments on them. There is an immense blogging community over here in the Middle East, as well as all over the world, that I hadn’t paid any attention to until we made the decision to move here last year. Blogging has opened up a whole new world to me that I never even realized existed! I am so pleased at the number of cyber friendships I have forged with these fantastic people who all have their own stories to tell. We read each others’ blogs, leave comments on them, share in joys, tragedies, problems, link to each others’ blogs on our blogs, and lend support and share knowledge with one another. It is a welcoming warm community of which I am proud to be a part. This is indeed what the “World Wide Web” is all about!

Anyway, back to the story at hand. We agreed to meet at a local café for breakfast. I was so excited to meet these two ladies that I could hardly sleep the night before! Up to this point, I had only met one other American woman in the entire six months I have been here. MM is a tall statuesque blonde with a quick wit and a no-nonsense approach. She met her husband back in 1975 when she was 19. As I listened to her talk about how she and her husband met and fell in love, I drew many similarities between her story and my own. MM and her husband raised their two children, who are now grown, back and forth between the US and Arabia. KY is a beautiful woman who has a gentle nature and an easy going personality. She met her Saudi husband when she was only 17 in 1979. KY and her husband have three sons, two of whom are now in college in the US. She has a part-time job that affords her a lot of flexibility with her schedule.

MM and KY have been here long enough to know the ropes. They are both comfortable speaking Arabic (Yay! There is hope for me yet!). From them I learned that there are several women’s groups and various local institutions like the Historical Society that women are allowed to join, which was really exciting news for me. There are groups for Saudi wives and British wives that meet monthly, as well as religious study groups, book clubs and cultural groups. Many of the women transplants obviously lead very rewarding and fulfilling lives over here. KY had to leave then to go to work and MM had a salon appointment to get her hair and nails done – she was attending a fashion show later on that evening!

A few days later, MM invited me to go to the beach – actually a private beach club just outside of town. There are several exclusive private beach clubs where foreigners can join and have the freedom to enjoy the outdoors without being bogged down with the strict rules of the culture outside its walls. Since it was Spring Break, I asked if it would be all right if my son tagged along and she said of course but that he would not be able to sit with us at the beach. As we drove out to the place, I recognized the route. It was the same road we take to get my SIL’s country home. The beach club turned out to be in the very same vicinity. It has an unmarked entrance with a guard gate. MM and her husband have been members of this club for several years. When her kids were younger, they had a two bedroom unit, but they downsized to a shower unit, like an efficiency apartment, once her kids were grown. The units are leased on an annual basis. Women can chuck their abayas here and wear modest bathing suits and shorts and relax under the glorious sun without fear of being harassed by the religious police.

This place is gorgeous. The grounds are lush, beautifully landscaped and well maintained. The private beach is secluded with privacy walls standing on peninsulas built up on either side, jutting out into the immense Red Sea. When we arrived in the late morning of this mid-week day, we were the only ones there. We had the entire beach to ourselves. MM told me that if this were a weekend, the place would be packed to the gills. There were hundreds of lounge chairs lined up facing the sea, bright teal blue, green and white beach umbrellas, and wooden slatted walkways over the perfectly combed golden sand. Crabs swiftly jaunted along the beach and the blue sea was a spectacular backdrop for our day of fun. Abundant flowers in shades of lavender, yellow, orange and pink were everywhere along with palm trees, banana trees, bushes and cascading greenery. On one end of the beach was an area where one could obtain small boats, surf boards, boogie boards, life vests and other equipment.

It was literally paradise. My son and I were in awe. We put our beach gear down and while MM and KY settled in to grab a little sun, Adam and I went off to explore the lovely grounds. We proceeded along the slatted path away from the beach, up some wide stairs toward the tucked away villas surrounding the attractive pool area. As we approached, I entered a huge round neatly trimmed hedge area which housed and hid four open air showers. The brilliant turquoise blue pool bottom was speckled with patterns of vivid tiles, which appeared like swimming schools of little brightly multicolored fish. In the center of the enormous curvy shaped pool was a massive rock island with a swim up bar area complete with built in tiled stools for guests to sit on. A rock bridge linked the pool deck to the island and curved above the pool allowing swimmers to swim under it. The sparkling pool was empty and inviting, so my son jumped right in and joyously had the whole pool all to himself, as I happily snapped pictures. After a while we returned to the beach to join our new friends. After another hour or so, a couple showed up and parked themselves at a spot a comfortable distance away from us.

Shortly thereafter, the four of us decided to take a dip in the azure sea. The clear water was a tad chilly and took a bit of gentle persistence in the easy bouncing waves to get used to it. We then heard voices and giggles and looked up. My son was incredulous as a group of young teenage girls with two adult chaperons made their way to the beach. Startled, he whirled around to face me, red faced, and whispered under his breath excitedly, “I don’t believe it! Those girls are from my school!” Unbelievably this gaggle of giggling girls was all from his school and was in his class no less! Adam was shy and embarrassed and kept his back to the girls. Two girls entered the water and we eventually found ourselves within earshot. I finally broke the ice and said hello, and with that Adam turned around to face the girls.

They were surprised and seemed genuinely pleased when they realized who he was. “Adam!” they happily exclaimed, “What are you doing here?” From that point on, they all chatted from a safe distance and laughed. When some of the girls went over and got into an inflatable boat with oars, Adam followed suit and got his own boat. The adults all watched as the kids enjoyed themselves trying to paddle the boats back and forth across the water – they weren’t very good at it!

For Adam, this place was indeed paradise and the day was heaven. He had a fantastic time relishing the boat, the waves, the sun and the sand, and being able to see some friends away from the confines of school. Needless to say, this day was the highlight of his Spring Break!

Pajama Party

The other night, my sister-in-law “H” invited me to go with her to her sister’s home for her niece’s 15th birthday. The theme was a pajama party - not a sleep over party - where all the guests were asked to wear their favorite PJs. We were the first to arrive, so we could help out with last minute details. Outside the lovely villa, I saw multicolored balloons wafting in the gentle wind above the gate of the soaring stone wall. The inside was decorated with vibrant multihued banners, metallic garlands, oodles of balloons, and several large multicolored disco lights and other types of party lighting with colored shooting laser lights. Furniture was cleared to the walls of the large living room so there was a big dance floor in the middle. One wall was lined with tables offering various beverages and snacks which were presented in attractive colossal shell shaped serving bowls. All the special lighting, music, smoke machine, and decorations were rented from a party place, which is a common thing to do.

Here in Arabia, when you invite someone over, you don’t usually say a particular time, like 8pm. Instead you would tell them to come after a certain prayer time. For example, “Come after Isha” means the party will start after the evening prayer, the last prayer of the day. As the guests began arriving, I was amused at the variety of cute sleepwear – cartoon characters like Betty Boop, Snoopy, Garfield, and Pink Panther, hearts and flowers, stripes and polka dots. The guests were comprised of Birthday Girl’s friends from school, cousins ranging in age from 2 to 25, plus the mothers of those attending and other relatives including many aunts and such. All told, there must have been approximately 75 guests. Except for about five young boys under the age of 8, all the guests were female. Many of the attendees also brought along their maids, of which there had to be at least a dozen or more.

A variety of dance music played – Middle Eastern, rap, Spanish, and Rock ‘n Roll. It was a nice modern mix chosen by Birthday Girl herself. So as the loud music played, the girls and women danced, the lights flashed, and my SIL “H” turned out to be the Life of the Party! “H” wore Elsie the Cow PJs in white with black spots all over, a pink bandana, and a single pink curler in her hair atop her forehead. She looked adorable. During the course of the evening, “H” entertained everyone with her wild and exaggerated dance moves, while stuffing balloons into her PJS in her chest area and her behind. She was totally hilarious and had people literally rolling on the floor with her. Some of the youngest guests were wide-eyed and probably a little shocked at her outrageous behavior, but entertained none the less.

While the younger girls danced the night away, the grown up ladies moved their own party into another living room of the home. Servants brought around trays of salty snacks, chocolates, and cookies, and the most beautiful brightly colored juice drinks in crystal glasses with gold rims. Some women preferred to smoke plain old cigarettes over the four hookahs (which is called “Hubbly Bubbly”) placed around the room as the jovial bunch of ladies sat back enjoying themselves, chatting, laughing, puffing away, and smiling. “H” told me that the Hubbly Bubbly makes them feel happy, and evidently, this was certainly true! I never saw a happier bunch!

They made me feel very welcome as ladies in each corner of the room invited me over to try to get to know me and ask me questions. One woman sucking on the Hubbly Bubbly called me over, wrapped her arm around me and loudly announced to everyone else that I was HER friend now and she wasn’t going to share me. Another lady made me feel especially good when she told me, “Halas (that’s it) – you are one of us!” I don’t think she realized how good her words made me feel. Some of us switched back and forth between dancing on the dance floor and smoking in the Hookah Lounge. And when I told a woman about my age how beautiful her 20 year old daughter was, she immediately called her daughter over to dance with me, like she was giving me a gift. It was a sweet gesture, awkward, and wonderful, and heartwarming, all at the same time.

About midnight, the food was served buffet style in the large dining room. There was enough food to feed a small army. It was, like every other function I have attended since I have been here, an amazingly delicious and delectable feast. Food for the event had been specially prepared by the maids, plus some special platters had been ordered from Chili’s Restaurant. After the guests were done eating, the maids were allowed in to serve themselves, and there was still plenty of food leftover even after they were done! The dancing and smoking and laughing continued until it was time to sing “Happy Birthday” and cut the cake at about 1am. By 1:30am the guests began to leave, as the little ones were getting pretty worn out at this point. When I got home, I told my husband that “H’s” family really knows how to party! It was indeed a riotous and memorable evening, one for the books.

UPDATE: Feb. 2009 - I have removed three photos that I originally published with this post. Even though my husband saw the photos back when I had posted this story months ago and told me that there was nothing wrong with them, it seems that someone in his family has told him today that they were inappropriate, so I have removed the photos.