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more expensive ones.
Once I was lucky enough to attend the wedding of a
princess, who was a granddaughter of King Abdulaziz. I
was a member of a group of the spouses of the foreign
ambassadors accredited to the Kingdom. From the moment
we went through the entrance of the most luxurious hotels
in the city, “the Intercontinental”, where the wedding
was to take place, I realized that I would be a witness to
something extraordinary. A few kilometers before the hotel,
it was difficult to find a parking place for even the smallest
of cars. Thus one after another, deluxe cars arrived at the
main entrance from which the guests disembarked amidst
a wave of the most expensive perfumes, wearing black
cloaks with gold-embroidered edges. The invitation cards
were examined by special agents equipped with special
audio-visual apparatus.
The wide halls were full of guests who were wearing
the most exquisite of clothes. The women paraded in
the halls showing their most up-to-date dresses, the eye-
dazzling bright shining jewelry and most original hair-do,
their faces glittering like stars in the sky and planets in
their orbits. They themselves were stars and planets!
In the halls, there were television screens that showed
the details of the wedding ceremony for those who could
not find a place in the central hall, where all the action
takes place. It is customary for Saudi women to bring
along with them their children, even those who are still
nurslings. This is a kind of tradition that demonstrates the
solidarity of relatives and close friends on all occasions.
But for the mothers to enjoy themselves freely, the task
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of caring for children is relegated to the maids. On such
occasions, children find it a good opportunity to run about
in their apparels that are worn on special occasions, such
as weddings. Soon they feel exhausted and settle down
quietly and go fast asleep on chairs and sofas, in the arms
of their governesses or in their laps if they are too young.
The main hall looked like a historical Roman
amphitheater but with a square shape. The long rows of
velvet chairs were arranged in a descending fashion ending
at the main carpeted path. We were given privileged seats
not far from the platform.
There I found myself amidst the relatives of the royal
family, who were of various ages, all of them beautifully
dressed and perfumed, with engaging smiles on their
faces. The jewelry they were wearing were of rare beauty,
reminding one of the exhibits in major museums. Such
jewelry decorated their bosoms and necks and made me
feel that the jewels I was wearing were trivial. I noticed
that one of the elderly ladies was wearing a beautiful,
bluish ring of 17 carats. It was unbelievably big, giving
the impression, if seen in any other place, of being an
artificial one.
There was plenty of time ahead and I had the opportunity
to make acquaintance with my neighbors. I must admit and
give such neighbors the credit they deserve. They were
gentle, smiling and cheerful, as is required by the traditions
of hospitality towards guests, and as is only natural in a
quiet life that is free of any problems. But regardless of
the reason, the organization and arrangements you find
yourself, being well received and conveniently seated and
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making acquaintances with people who ask you about
yourself, where you come from, how long you have been
in the country, how many children you have, etc., leaves
nothing more to be desired. In the majority of cases one
gets other invitations, from new acquaintances, to a tea
party or to a light meal.
Since the majority of Saudi women do not go to work
and are not much occupied with house work, they have
plenty of time to visit exhibitions and to spend some time
in the markets. I remember that, during the initial years
of my sojourn in the Kingdom, I met many women and
visited their houses but I could not remember their names.
Instead, I have gathered quite a collection of personal
cards on which I wrote in fine letters important details of
my meeting with those who had given me the cards so that
I might remember them in person.
Meanwhile, the activities and events of the wedding
were in full swing. Tens of maids circulated among the
guests carrying censers, stopping for a little while before
each guest so that the vapor of the incense would penetrate
through their hair and clothes. The maids had a very
dark complexion and wore the same uniform. Over their
necks, there were suspended large golden plaids reaching
their waists. It is interesting to note that they all had the
same hair-do, their hair being pulled back and looked as
though it was tied to the ends of their brows and temples.
Their heads were covered with black transparent ribbons
that were strongly pulled under their jaws, thus exerting
pressure on the cheeks. Moreover, they all looked alike,
as though they were twins. My neighbor, whose bosom
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was decorated with a large piece of diamond, explained
that after the abolition of slavery in 1962, the liberated
slaves were given the choice of either to return to their
original countries or to remain in the Kingdom. Since
many of them had no relatives and no homes to go back to
(it was customary for pilgrims from Ethiopia, the Sudan
and other countries to sell their sons and daughters in
order to pay the travel expenses) they chose not to leave
their masters and stayed with them. They had different
destinies, some of them having remained as servants in
the palaces of their masters and fared well. Today, their
children and grandchildren are well paid, in view of their
loyalty throughout the years; they have families of their
own and have a decent living in their second home.
As to the unusual hair-do, it used to be fashionable forty
years ago among rich Saudi women, and their erstwhile
“slaves” were keen on imitating their mistresses. Hence,
it is now considered a prestigious hair-do among the
maids. The ribbon strung under the jaw was not without
reason, as it is the case with all things related to female
beauty, whether among the high-class European women
or among those who live in a tent over which desert sands
accumulate. There are indications that show that when
this type of fashion appeared, the bedouin lasses had not
been used to the different kinds of food, that are rich in fat.
In fact, they hardly had enough of the simple food, as they
grazed their sheep under the burning rays of the sun, and
were involved in hard house work. Such a of way of life
made them lean and slender. But the fashion – which is
ever changing and opts for whatever is unusual – required
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