This summer, in June I went to Abu Dhabi. This was for me a very unexpected turn of events because prior to meeting my English boyfriend in Madrid who grew up in Abu Dhabi I would have never guessed that I would ever visit this country.
Not necessarily in a political way, I just had never really known or felt the attraction to this area of the world. Before I visited I associated this place with a rather contrasting lifestyle than mine and moreover a more opposing culture than I have ever been apart from.
When I first arrived my mom, my boyfriend and I went to a souk. A souk is like an Arabian mall, it is a beautiful and hectic place of which my first experience quickly turned into a full- on makeover to an Arabian princess.
Unlike modern malls, a souk is more chaotic but also more charming — you can haggle, chat with shopkeepers, and find the most interesting colorful goods. This was me after my first thirty minutes in a souk:
"The moment I stepped inside the store I think the owner already had a whole vision for me."
Honestly I am not complaining, I think I look fabulous. And I am kind of regretting not buying this crazy head accessoire.
Abu Dhabi is an immense new country, with modernisation in the 1970s when the UAE was set up with 7 other Emirati. Before this time Abu Dhabi was a poorly developed desert city that only involved tribal leaderships and subsistence living – meaning that they lived off of solely their own production of food, materials etc.
So this means that in about 55 years Abu Dhabi has built a complete and modern urbanisation. This to me is crazy!
Even though Abu Dhabi is known for a big international community, the country lies within the islamic culture and values. Meaning that the fashion culture is focused around modest silhouettes that cover most parts of the body and the curves. This comes from the principle of "Haya" which means modesty, humbleness, and respect — not only in clothes, but also in behaviour and speech. This strong fundamental moral is translated into the fashion that you see in Abu Dhabi. From my experience this showed through women dressing very elegant with quite extraordinary gowns, colours etc. Below you can see some examples of beautiful women at the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi.
When I think of fashion I think of expressing yourself in colours, shapes and materials. And the way these women do it in this country and culture is perfect to me because they are showing their beauty through their beliefs. Beliefs that do not say anything about not allowing to feel sexy. The principle of "Haya" recognises modesty in behaviour but does not suppress the natural feelings of sexiness. When I look at the fashion in Abu Dhabi I remember the fluidity of fashion and how it can differ for different cultures. And I absolutely love to see this because fashion is for everyone, no matter what the religion, body type, weather or whatever. Going to Abu Dhabi changed my perspective on what is able to be beautiful and sexy. Prior I found it hard to believe that outfits that cover each part and shape of your body could be a fashionable and beautiful outfit. However after seeing myself in that glamours outfit in the Souk and the extraordinary women at the Sheikh Zayed Mosque I realised that even a culture that has always laid so far away from my usual, could arise such strong feelings of beauty in me.
So thank you Abu Dhabi and thank you to the parents of my boyfriend who decided to raise him there in that crazy but beautiful country!
Love, Lola
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