blending in with the locals

The first 10 days of Muharram are very important. No one eats their meals at home...everyone gathers together and eats rice and meat together. There were many evenings that I spent in the village with the ladies. It was a great time to get to know people!

I had to wear this Abaaya. Actually, this is a specific kind of Abaaya that my friends call a Difa. Everyone in the village has one of these.


I kind of blended in...that is, until, I had to ask questions about what was going on! They would look at me as if they were thinking, "how do you not know?" One time I even said, "You have grown up doing these traditions, but I don't know all about it!" They would explain things as best they could for me to understand.




I wanted to respect their culture...that's why I wore the Difa. I know it's important to them that I keep my hair completely covered when I'm in a religious place. I do it to honor them, not because I love wearing it. After these important 10 days, I was really glad to wear my normal clothes again!






I have another American friend who is sort of new to this country. She needed to get an Abaaya. I was excited to go with her to buy her first one! I like going to the Abaaya shop to see all of the new styles!! :) I was also so glad to find an Abaaya shop that is close to where we live with easy parking!