Mannequin: Exposed!

I meandered into a more local area of the souq and ended up in front of a dress store. Saudi ladies are permitted to wear whatever they would like underneath their abayas, as long as legs aren’t showing as they stride. Women are permitted to take their abayas off while they’re at home and only close family members are present. Some women in the home-setting wear jeans, or even very fancy dresses. I , personally, wore black pants, sandals, and a tank top under my abaya to stay cool.

The dresses were fashionable, some were Renaissance Festival-looking, some were sequined or embroidered, some were tight and white and floral patterned. This latter dress is what interested a woman who was with me. The store owners who were expatriates (workers from another country), offered to show the dress to us. The dress was on a female mannequin in the store window. Surprisingly, the owner took the mannequin out, undressed it, and handed the dress to us. The naked mannequin stood there in the forefront of the store, completely visible to people walking by. A little Saudi boy about 7 years old was walking by with his mother. I was lucky to have caught the expression on his face – his mouth dropped open and he uttered a ‘whoa,’ eyes wide as he saw the naked female form.  Clearly, this was a first for him, seeing a woman’s body, even if it was only a mannequin! Us Western ladies were causing quite the commotion in the dress store. And I’m sure the little boy’s mother had some explaining to do!