I've had that experience- for me it is also about looking professional and covering my tattoos- but I find that I always get there (wherever 'there' is) and I've put way too much thought into what I should be wearing.

This is a great photo, by the way.

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Yeah, when I saw them sitting there, I thought -- wow, that would make a great photo!

And I'm lucky that I don't have any tattoos! My eyebrow piercing usually gets a lot of attention though!

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That is such an Indonesian scene. And that house looks a lot like those in Nias.

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Yep, not so different to Nias at all!

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And similar in other ways, it seems. I'm astounded by your other tales via text. I hope there's some way you can write about it all a bit later on. I'm thinking I should write up that reflection on korupsi that I've been putting off for three months.

You know, what I truly love about Indonesia - besides Rumah Makan Anugerah - is it's diversity. It isn't just a slogan. What I mean is, if you were to think about the Aceh portrayed in media or even popular understanding of the place, you would not expect to see these casually dressed ibu-ibu sitting around grinning. Heck, some in Strayer would expect to see something akin to Saudi Arabia with Indonesian subtitles.

Hmm, is diversity the right word? Maybe not. Does look like Nias, after all.

[Re-posted to fix my italics.]

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Yep, I know what you mean about what we expect following media portrayals. Though, there is sharia law here now. There is this sharia dress code, yet women just ignore it. Young couples date and kiss and cuddle... and then get forced by sharia police to get married. It's almost like it's some externally imposed value. Really strange.

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Imagine if Gaz had set up his, er, hillside accommodation in a sharia state. He'd have to open a small chapel across the road.

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*snort*!

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It is externally imposed value.

I'll bet they dress more carefully in Ramadan - because of the largely or entirely self-appointed religious police, not of their own free choice.

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Rather than diversity, perhaps what I am getting at is its Indonesianness. Nothing is black and white or the same as somewhere else. It's all overlaid with Indonesian characteristics, and some people faily to appreciate that. That Indonesianness is kinda stubborn, resilient. I only wish the corruption wasn't so fucken stubborn, too.

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Yes, there is great Indonesianness. That's the thing though... despite the independence movement and that, there is still Indonesianness.

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My favorite experience is arriving in Mali (after three years in Morocco) where Muslim dress consists of statuesque young women in tank tops and tight skirts with headscarves.

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Hah! You gotta love the various interpretations of Muslim dress around the world. I was amused by the Bangladesh interpretation where women have saris with their entire midriffs showing. But of course, the HAVE to cover their hair.

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When I first went to live in the Philippines, they told me standard dress for the women was a long dress .. so I had some made/bought some ... and off I went. This was in March, by April they were coming home with my first visitor who brought me over several more pairs of jeans and tshirts.

Women certainly don't wear long skirts/dresses in the Philippines - unless they're getting married. It was worth a few giggles!!

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And you went to trouble of getting them made!!! I would be furious! That's nuts. I bet it was a man who provide you with that info?

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Yes it was, affectionately known as the CD from then on (cultural dickhead!!)

It was the first of a succession of stupid remarks he made about a country he knew Jack about!

Can you imagine getting on/off a jeepney with an amish-type dress on for goodness sake???

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hahahahahahahahahahahah.... Just trying to imagine you getting off that jeepney. As if being a foreigner is not being conspicuous enough!

And as if Cultural Dickhead would be dressed like an Amish himself.

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I did it twice .. and once on a bus. Even once on a Motorella in Mindanao, and I thought *curse curse*.

Incidentally, CD is now a cultural advisor in PNG for AusAID! I did have to laugh .. this is the guy that said generally speaking there's not much disease and poverty in the Philippines compared to other countries!!

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Compared to other countries like... Australia and Sweden and the Netherlands perhaps?

And yeah, not surprised about his entrance into AusAID...

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:) Lovely to have another insight into this part of the world.

Your post made me think of an Islamic fashion parade in Adelaide I heard about from colleagues. The girls would tell us covering up was all about modesty with all the usual lines, and they did cover up completely, but in outfits fitted in such a way as to show off incredibly sexy bodies belonging to girls who would slink along quite obviously aware of their own beauty and appeal. Wonderful women!

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Heh. Yeah, I always marvel at the interpretation of Islamic dress through the world. Many young women in Banda Aceh are all covered up, but wearing tight tight tight SEXY jeans and tops.

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I remember a particular Thursday evening in Taleban-controlled Qandahar back in early 2001. I was over at the ICRC compound enjoying a bit of home brew. An Aussie nurse was telling me that night about a humorous moment that had happened that afternoon. Her Afghan colleagues had asked permission to finish work an hour earlier that day, a request which my friend granted. When the time came for the ladies to knock off they hung around instead. They kept themselves busy for the entire hour putting on all sorts of make-up...mascara, lip stick, eye shadow, etc. There was plenty of giggling and laughs as the story goes. They looked sensational of course. My friend was shocked. Here were these women, all of them pashtun, living in the most strictly-applied sharia society on earth, and yet getting all excited about the make-up session. The ladies were off to the wedding of a friend, a cause for great celebration in their society, and a chance to out-do all the other female guests. When the hour had passed and their daily pick-up service arrived (usually a family member on a horse and cart, beat up old car or on foot) the ladies got to the front door of the ladies ward of the hospital, grabbed their blue burkhas, and stuck them straight over the top of all the glam! Priceless! :+)

(the cheese friend)

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Hello Cheese Friend!

Ha! What a great story! You are really privileged to see this as a man. I love the eye makeup used in Afghanistan. It's so outta control. I haven't seen women prepare for an Afghan wedding, but had the good fortune of attending a wedding in Kabul.

Weddings in Kabul are typically segregated. A big section for men, and another one for women. And a big ass wall between them. The women have a video of women men are doing (shown on a big screen), but the men don't have one of the women. And the women DRESS UP! Oh man! Wigs and perms -- BIG HAIR! And big ball gowns and CLEAVAGE. I was SHOCKED! Bright fire truck or hot pink lipstick! And they dance! It was great! Then the finish and put on their burkhas and go home...

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All this talk is bringing back memories.

In the 90's, in my partner's family's home. near the time of the evening call to prayer, a woman appears on TV, reading the Quran. She wears what strict Indonesian Muslims generally wear: a headscarf showing only the face. And bright pink lipstick. "Look at the lipstick!" I said. So? "Is she allowed to wear that?" Of course she is, I was told. No problem. And I saw my partner's mother leave the house wearing that combination as well.


2007, In a night market near the red-light district in Surabaya, East Java, looking at T-shirts. I'd just seen some that said:

PASAR KEMBANG
DIJUAL:
KELAMIN BEKAS

Which means:

FLOWER MARKET
FOR SALE:
USED GENITALS

I then noticed an elegant, exotic looking woman - possibly Madurese - walking by, quite aloof. She wore a headscarf, and a top and slinky skirt, all in beautiful material, that made it obvious what a beautiful figure she had. And a scarf around the hair, of course. There was a modesty about her - she certainly didn't look like the "PSK" (commercial sex workers). But if Islamic dress is meant to not inflame men's desire, she failed.

Social pressure is enormous in such places, and much less subtle than in Western cultures. The inner story is complex too: For a woman to be torn between wanting to look sexy, and wanting to wear "good," modest Islamic clothing is not unusual, I believe.

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