Monday, 9th March 2009
*Names will not be mentioned since I have no idea how she feels about me posting a blog on her.
It always feels nice to be with a new friend, getting to know him/her as a person. Human beings are intricate. There are always some things you can find in common with one another and other things absolutely unique to the person. So this is a female, younger Muslim scholar from Saudi Arabia who is in Singapore to further her studies.
The outing was a fun exchange of language, culture and life stories. One thing I remember vividly, was that my friend got stared at, by an ang moh (a Singaporean slang referring to a white person) lady. My friend and I then looked at each other and smiled. She told me it happens a lot in Singapore. Sometimes small children ask their mother “what is that?” when they see her with the niqaab (a face veil covering the lower part of the face, up to the eyes). If only she had a better command of English, she said she would attempt to explain it to them.
Of course, this is not my first encounter with an Arab who wears the niqaab, but this is the first time I am out with only her and no other. She is married and has a son. I found it quite surprising that she could travel out to meet me on her own. Coming from Saudi Arabia, their way of life is such that women must be out with a mahram (close male relative such as a father, brother or husband) at all times. I found out later that it was her first time taking a bus alone out of her neighbourhood…so when it was time to leave, I gave myself a reason to send her home just so that I could spend more time with the lovely lady.
Like most of my non-Singaporean Arab friends, I would describe her as innocent and sweet but really smart. She is definitely pretty too. I had intended to accompany her till her building and then leave, but she invited me up to her place for some Arabic coffee, so I saw her without her veil. We chatted a bit more and she told me how it would be if I went to her home in Ta’if (a city in the Mecca province of Saudi Arabia). She made me yearn to visit an Arab family in their home to experience their hospitality.
I do not mean to sound like a feminist but having heard stories about how the Arabs are arrogant and unreceptive to people of other ethnics, my personal experiences with the ladies have never proven the theory. The men are the ones who live up to that. I had a Jordanian friend who absolutely loved declaring his hatred for Indians and Egyptians. I also had another encounter with an Emirati man in Dubai who was sitting at the customer service desk but served me with as much arrogance as any one could muster. A friend who was with me at that time, commented that I was too calm about it. I have many more examples dealing with them at some of the other places…but I shall stop or I would risk sounding too biased. I have met some nice Arab men too.
Back to my story about my new friend, I left her place feeling glad that I had that opportunity to spend some time with her. Although she has been here for only two months, I would say that she speaks English fairly well and I’m sure she’ll be fluent in it, in no time. I wish her all the best and pray for her success, insha’Allah.
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