When I moved to Cairo, Egypt in 2010, I started asking myself what wearing a Niqab felt like. I planned to try it at some point, and as usual I waited until the last second, but in the end I finally did it!
Now, assuming that most of the people who read this blog are not from Egypt, I will briefly explain what a Niqab is. Basically, it’s that black dress that the most conservative Muslim women wear (even if this is controversial), covering their hands, bodies and faces, showing only their eyes (and sometimes not even the eyes, keeping a layer of fabric on their face and seeing through it).
Note: some of you may call it “burqa” or “burka” but that’s not an Egyptian thing. So to be clear and cut it short, here’s a nice pic of me in my niqab (what if I told you I was smiling in this picture?):
Now to make it even clearer, not all women wear a Niqab in Cairo, and most of all not all women in Cairo/Egypt are Muslim. I am pointing this out, again, for people who haven’t been there before.
As a foreigner I know exactly how people who never traveled to the Middle East tend to identify the whole area as Arab AND Muslim, when the truth is that not all Arabs are Muslims and not all Muslims are Arabs. Got it?
But of course, if you are coming to Cairo from the so called “Western world”, when you walk in the street what will attract your attention more: a woman wearing a t-shirt and jeans, or a woman with a Niqab? Will you not notice the call to prayer or not? Of course you will! Because this is new for you, fair enough.
Cliché? Maybe. But a much as I would love to wear a Sari when I go to India, or a Kimono when I go to Japan (actually I did) I wanted to wear a Niqab in Egypt. Cool? Cool.
So, what happened?
This happened: I told my dear friend Muhammad about my project, and he said it was really cool and he wanted to be my “partner in crime”. This made everything a million times easier. We met, went to a store, and he bought a Niqab for me (I waited outside). He got the cheapest one, and I think it was a pretty good deal: the dress + head cover + gloves for as little as 50 EGP (less than 6 EUR or 8 USD according to the current exchange rates).
We went home, and I got ready. I wore my long sleeved shirt and jeans, normally, and boots. Then, I put a black scarf on my head. And above all this, I finally wore the Niqab.
The first things I noticed were that my eyelashes kept getting stuck in the little net covering them, and that I couldn’t look up, down or to the sides as my field of view was very restricted.
I have to say I was very nervous, for multiple reasons:
- Not being used to wear a Niqab, I didn’t want to look unnatural while walking in the streets.
- It was just after the Revolution (2011) and there were many conspiracy theories about foreigners being spies (there still are), together with actual ads on TV warning Egyptians to watch out from foreigners behaving in a suspicious way! I didn’t want to look foreigner at all, and be in trouble.
- I don’t know if you noticed, but I have green eyes, and even if some Egyptian women have green eyes too, I was paranoid that this would make it obvious that I was a foreigner.
- I didn’t speak Arabic back then. Not that I speak much Arabic now, but I know how to sound Egyptian if I want.
- I didn’t think about the fact that even foreigners can be Muslims! So why worrying? I could always tell I was a convert. But I didn’t think of this and anyway a convert would at least speak some of the language because of the Koran, I guess.
- It was extremely hot, I guess around 30°C or more (Egyptian late April).
- My friend wanted to take me to a restaurant and make me eat (!!!) and I was begging him not to, and he had a lot of fun teasing me with that!
Now I know being worried was useless.
We went out. I used to live in Mounira, an area just beside Downtown Cairo. My friend went out first, and I followed a minute later. I didn’t want the janitor to guess it was me underneath the Niqab. And that was the first time I realized it’s kinda cool to be anonymous! Once you are on the street, nobody knows who you are. You can go anywhere and maybe even see people you know, but they won’t know it’s you unless you go and tell them! This was the cool part.
First stop – Downtown
Muhammad drove me to Downtown Cairo. We walked down Talaat Harb Street, and stopped by a juice stand, where he ordered an orange juice for me.
Another thing that made things easier was that me and him obviously looked like husband and wife (he even grew a beard…) and people wouldn’t talk to me directly, but rather ask him what I wanted to order and so on. I wouldn’t like this in “real life”, but that day it was OK for me, so I didn’t have to speak and reveal my nationality.
I had my juice. I had to ask for a straw, otherwise I wouldn’t know how to drink from behind a Niqab! It was not too hard. But I can imagine it’s very easy to get dirty especially when eating! Of course experienced niqabis will be better than me at this.
Another thing I remember about walking in Downtown is that finally nobody was looking at me. I am used to people (guys) staring, commenting, harassing. But that day, I was invisible. Enjoyable, I have to say. But just because it was an experiment – I wouldn’t want to feel invisible every day of my life.
The only people looking at me, as in “poor girl”, were the foreigners. They were all staring.
Passing by a bank, I found myself reflected in a mirror. I looked at myself while walking by. I couldn’t tell it was me, and I have to say it’s a weird feeling.
Second stop – El Haram
El Haram is a highly populated area of Giza, on the west side of the Nile. We went there and decided to ride a tuk-tuk (rickshaw).
When wearing a Niqab, one has to pay attention to many things. Back then I used to smoke and of course I couldn’t do that. But even in the smallest gestures, it’s important to act the right way. On the way to El Haram, me and Muhammad got stuck in traffic, and I was feeling very hot. Instinctively, I pulled back the sleeves of my Niqab revealing my arms. Muhammad looked at me in horror, as in “what the hell are you doing?” and I realized my mistake. Put the sleeves back down, and looked around me. Someone in the car next to us noticed what happened, but oh well. I laughed. But they couldn’t tell anyway, since my face was covered!
Once in El Haram, Muhammad stopped a tuk tuk and told him where we wanted to go. We tried to film this part, but later found out the camera didn’t record it. It was fun, even if a bit scary: the road was uneven and the driver drove like crazy.
And remember in all this I had to be silent!
We got off the tuk tuk and by then I couldn’t stand the heat anymore. I had trouble breathing and needed some fresh air. I got on the car, Muhammad drove to a side street, we checked nobody was around, and with a quick move I took off my Niqab.
What an experience!
Would I do it again? Yes! I will do this again when I go back to Egypt. I was too nervous back then, and I know I can do much better, and I will also find a way to film or take photos during the experiment. This time, all we came up with are some short videos of us in the car, while driving from a location to the next.
Ladies and gentlemen, here is the controversial “One day in a Niqab” video that I posted on Youtube two years ago, and still gets a daily dose of hate! But I hope after reading this post, you will understand it better.
In the video, I try to eat, show the process of getting ready, and talk with my friend about how I feel during the experiment.
What do I think of Niqabs?
I think I need to add some personal considerations about the whole Niqab thing.
First of all I am not against it, but I know by now many people who read the first 2 lines and skipped the rest will already have left hate comments saying I am an ignorant for being against it…
But for you that are still reading, thanks for reaching this last paragraph, and here are my thoughts.
- I’m not against the Niqab per se – everyone is free to wear whatever they like!
- In Egypt, wearing a Niqab is not obligatory (we’re not talking about Saudi Arabia or Afghanistan!) – just so that you know.
- Of course I am against it in case a woman is forced to wear one. I don’t know any woman who is actually forced to do so, so I can’t tell this is always the case, but if they exist, then I am sorry for them. Because living with a Niqab is not easy at all.
- I am sure that if a woman wishes to wear a Niqab thinking this will bring her closer to Allah, then the strong motivation will make it easier. Bearing the heat, the social consequences, etc will be acceptable to her.
- I don’t enjoy interacting with women who wear a Niqab. Unless we are in a silent environment where I can clearly hear their voices, it’s very hard to know if they’re talking to you, what’s their tone, if they’re serious or not, and so on. Very hard!
Also because if you’re in Cairo, you will rarely find a silent place… That said, I wouldn’t mind getting to know more of these women. It’s just hard to interact in public.
I guess this is it! I can’t wait to hear your thoughts. I am sure all of the above is debatable, so please leave me a comment with your opinion, I will be happy to read.
22 Comments
I told you this before, but this in hell of an interesting experiment and I’m sure it required so much courage to do it! You have a very unbiased and acceptable opinion in the end, and that is something everyone must respect, so I hope those haters will get to read this paragraph and get your view on it. And I really can’t wait to hear about your next time in a niqab!
I am surprised there was no hate comment yet. Phew! :)
Thanks Mina, I will be happy to involve you next time I try this…
Having so many Muslim students in my classes, I too wanted to sport a hijab and what I found was that I enjoyed the idea of being able to wear whatever you wanted underneath, ie pajamas. But I found it harder to hear things around me and of course my field of vision was horrible. I suppose one gets used to all this though. A hijab is not for me but it was fun to do for an afternoon. Trying to learn more about my students, I also tried fasting for a day during Rammadan – oh, that was SO hard! But again, I’m glad I tried it. :)
I am glad I tried too and to see I’m not the only one:)
I found this EXTREMELY interesting! I teach Advanced Placement English Language & Composition to high school juniors and seniors, and I constantly tell my students to always consider the bigger picture (AKA a more global view) when arguing their positions. I would love to refer to this post next year in my classroom (as of now, we only have 3 days left of this school year) when talking about cultural perceptions, if that is okay with you!
Hi Pingram, feel free to refer to my post and to me personally as well! It’s super ok for me. Let me know if you need more info:)
That must have been quite a mixture of excitement and apprehension. This is a fascinating subject, and never really considered the possibility of a ‘foreigner’ doing this willingly, so it really opened up my eyes. I especially enjoyed your roundup of your thoughts/opinions on niqab, and that it isn’t something that is necessarily bad if it’s entirely by choice. I’ve seen videos where young muslim girls go through a process of deciding some form of head covering is appropriate for them, and one thing that shines through is that this is a personal act between Allah and themself. I am not a Muslim, but I truly appreciate your enlightening us just a little bit more on the intricacies of this unique culture.
Thanks JR for your nice comment. If I chose to live in a country like Egypt, I have to embrace all aspects of the culture, and trying as many things as I can, in a respectful way, is the first step. Then I can have my opinions but for sure I have to respect and go deeper in every aspect, otherwise I can just stay at home :)
That must have been a most excited moment.As i read about you wearing niqab its a wonderful thing.Going in some native city and not just visiting tourist spots but also accepting their culture for those days its a promising thing dear.I am really looking forward to visit this place.
Interesting piece. I came across this doing some research for an upcoming trip to Egypt (I leave for Cairo today). Interesting that the niqab makes you virtually invisible, and I guess there may be some appeal in this. Disrespectful? I’m not a muslim, so I can’t comment on that, but it’s certainly an interesting post.
I never meant to be disrespectful, so I hope it doesn’t look so.
I hope you enjoyed your stay in Cairo!
This is such an awesome experience. I lived here in Cairo for nine years now and I’ve never even thought of trying on the niqab. My best friend from uni put it on a few months ago and I’ve always wondered how it was like to be able to hide your identity like that. I’m thinking of borrowing her niqab for a day next. It’ll be interesting to say the least.
Definitely interesting, and feel free to share your experience with me once you try!
I think this is pretty interesting, even something unusual for us… I would love to have the same experience to try wearing a niqab… Hope this will happen some day. :)
I read your blog and found that you are such a interesting person. I like your thoughts and your experience in niqab and you look very pretty also. Really its sound great. A different thinking form other travellers.:)
I would quite like to try this myself if I ever have the chance, my first thought was actually if I could try something like this in my own country (Norway) to see the reactions here. We are quite tolerant here, but I might experience something interesting nonetheless.
Thank you so much for sharing this experience, we need more of these stories to increase the tolerance and fight ignorance.
It would be very interesting to see the reactions of people in Norway… I think it’s illegal to walk in the streets covering your face in Italy so I can’t try it here. But the reaction of people would definitely be super interesting!
Salam/Hello Giulia…
I’m a muslim girl from Algeria, I came across this post & found it interesting…aparently, you’re enjoying “living” other cultures.
Well,I read all your writing, you were definitely Just & I like the fact that you accept the “others”.your feelings & notes were expressive. Same in regular Hijab, we feel safe, respected & fulfilled.
Niqab should not look so hard, because as compared to “devoted” women in other religions, it differs just in “face” veil. And as you said,one’s will facilitates anything.
On the other hand, I want to add that as there are “tolerant” people, there are “intolerant” persons & governement in the west who “ban” the right of those women to dress freely in the name of “Freedom”, & that’s an obvious contradiction.
I know an italian convert living in muslim country, not being able to return because of niqab ban. In fact Many like her are still struggling.
I hope I’m not the only “non hater” commenter
Peace :-)
I am an Egyptian American that used to live in Egypt but moved to the US after the so-called ‘revolution’. I wear hijab and a black abaya and found out that people respected me way more in the US than in Egypt and surprisingly, I get less stares than in Egypt (even thought there are very few muslims in the area where I live). I would actually feel safer to wear niqab in the US than in Egypt, different but safer! After what’s happened in Egypt, a lot of niqabis were and are being harassed and accused of being Muslim brotherhood members just because they chose cover their face! Also, almost all niqabis I know in Egypt wear niqab without the net on the eyes ;) but you’re right, typical Egyptians automatically think that anyone with blue or green eyes is a foreigner. But I don’t think they would ask you: why do you have green eyes and wear niqab? They would just keep staring & staring.
My girlfriend Annabel and I once went to Saudi Arabia. She thaught that it would be fun to try the niqab on. She lasted 2 days and then… We got caught by a female officer (bit unusual to see one of them!). Annabel explained everything and surprisingly the officer wasn’t offended and she thaught that it was a good idea. Then we decided to do the opposite. Instead of her being covered…. She should walk around (what Saudis would call) NUDE. Well, she wasn’t naked… She had a short sleeve top on and a skirt. I saw someone out of the corner of my eye then I said: OH SHIT! We got Arkmed the terrorist after us! So we ran back to the hotel.
Salamo alikom, Guilia,
I’m an Egyptian woman who wear a niqab for three years now. You may be surprised but I work as an assistant lecturer in faculty of engineering. I’m about to finish my PhD in vibration diagnostics. I was glad to read about your adventure with the niqab and would like to add the following comments:
1- I agree that a niqabi woman is invisible in streets and public places, but at work or study places she is not invisible at all. She attracts other people’s attention through her intellectual abilities and professional skills.
2- It’s fantastic to be invisible in Cairo streets where harassment is common.
3- My first day was a niqab was very hard also because of bad choice of niqab style and cloth.
4- There are other styles of niqab that eases sight and hearing like the one piece niqab which can be used with a regular scarf.
5- We know that niqab is a religious act that pleases God and so we can bear hot weather for the sake of God’s please.
6- Eating and drinking with niqab is really challenging, I know that but we have some tips and tricks to avoid getting dirty.
7- For myself, I found Niqab is really protective and helps me achieve modesty. It has no negative effects at work. My students love my sessions and find them useful. I don’t even need to record their attendance; I mean they are not forced to attend my sessions. In Lab, I need a fixed fan at me all the time during summer. However, intolerable people who don’t accept diversity are much annoying than hot weather.
8- You are right about the low voice of niqabi women in public. It’s not because of niqab, it’s out of modesty. However, I can teach with niqab and my voice is loud enough for my students to hear. Also, to ease communication, I am used to exaggerate my impressions so they can be conveyed clearly to other people especially my students. And, of course there are other communication skills that can be used such as the voice tone, body language, etc.
Good luck, Salamo alikom.
Hello Giulia, How a nice to read this, I am a niqabi woman from Egypt :) . Yes living with niqab is not easy but you get used to it very soon, there are other niqab styles that makes interaction easier and also more stylish. Anyway loved your experience and hope you enjoined your visit.