Between Riyadh & Nowhere - The Saudi Afro

Some may argue that Saudi is a country stuck in the middle ages, a foolish statement overall, but one that can be reinforced with some pieces of evidence.

The middle ages in question here are the 70s, and the evidence is the afro culture. The ethnicity in Saudi means that a large proportion of the population have curly hair, and apparently the only barber being incarcerated in Riyadh in 1973 meant that the streets suddenly transformed into the marshes of black. fast forward into 2009, where the afro style has made a comeback, also known locally as 'Cadash'. Obviously under the rules of decency (read - decent appearance) if someone is caught in the street with a cadash, that would be the equivalent of exposing pubic hair, as in there are consequences, the least of being getting a Bruce Willes style haircut.

So what happens when Saudis live abroad? They go wild, in a bad way. I have seen so many cadash out there, with complete works such as low waste, mask like sunglasses and other accessories so revolting they would shut down a power plant.

I even saw a bunch of Saudis, all cadash. they were such an incredible sight I would think that Japanese businessmen would hire them to walk in shopping malls to sweep the ceilings clean.

The freedom here in Britannia (UK) is not always easy on the eyes, no wonder getting a haircut cost so much, there are no economies of scale.

Between Riyadh and Nowhere - The Saudi Traveller

Lots and lots of comparisons are published in the news between what happens in Saudi and what the rest of the world finds common. Little is done the other way around. I will write a series of posts about incidences about comparing and contrasting.

Being from Riyadh, many a time in a bachelors life he was approached in a mall by security, to be asked to leave with his friends. This happened enough times to call it a rule. I don't know what the logic is exactly but I can guess that the full diorama of a bunch of Saudi young men is quite the revolting scene. And that this might discourage shoppers from their money spending and give the mall a bad reputation.

Coming to Britannia, a familiar scene is presented, yet very different. Where a bunch of late-teen girls, wearing clothing not classified as modest if rated by a panel, sit on the ground laughing, gossiping, and giggling in a manner that would indicate they are semi-drunk to a semi-interested person. 5 minutes later, the security guard comes up and asks them to leave...imagine that!!!

Paybacks a Bi***

More to come...