30^th Aug 2006, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

I could not sleep, which is not unusual for me, so I just lounged in a garden chair right outside our cabin.

My sister kept me company and we chatted about everything.

We were at a lovely sea resort on the Obhur creek of the Red Sea just north of Jeddah.

I have always loved this location.

The resort was built on a natural sandy beach where my uncle & aunts used to bring me and my sister as children to play.

The place was filled with many sandcastles and serious projects of canals & little lagoons.

Luckily, they preserved the sandy beach when they built the resort and added small cabins, each with extended green lawns that connected to create a green belt between the houses and the sand.

This was my first visit to the place since I came back after living in Geneva for several years.

I was disappointed to see many changes.

I started to come to this resort as soon as it opened, and we used to enjoy great family time.

Swimming, jet skiing, playing in the sand with the little ones.

Women always had a separate swimming pool, but we could swim in the sea. As Jeddawis, we loved the sea and had a very special relationship with the Red Sea.

At times, we had lovely evenings with my musically talented brother playing the keyboard with friends, attracting the other occupants of the resort to gather around lounging on the grassy lawns or the sand to listen.

It was a joy of bubbled insulated from restrictive influences that were gaining strength in our society.

Now, I could see some signs of neglect.

Restricting rules encroached in. Women were not allowed to swim in the sea anymore or jet ski as per the directions of the religious authorities.

Music was no longer allowed.

It seemed like fun became a suspect!

I sighed away my concerns into the sultry night air.

Seeking the cooling sea breeze, my sister & I kept moving our chairs towards it until we planted them in the shallow water.

We stayed there all night, cooling our feet, and allowing the balmy effect to relieve the sweltering heat of a Jeddah summer night. 

At dawn break, we were in a position allowing us to see the sun come up slowly from the Eastern horizon, opposite to the sea, and caste its long rays on the water from the other direction. It was glorious.

As soon as light started to creep in, we noticed a few women coming out of the cabins, mostly covered in black. My sister & I were in our Jammies actually. We never thought we would meet anyone out here at this time and we were just too languorous to seriously consider going inside for a robe or something.

Gradually the wide sandy beach started to be covered by swarms of black that seemed, at first, like a very solemn ritualistic march.

Some shed their abayas on the sand then walked into the sea wearing long pants & t-shirts. Others, especially older women, waded into the water in all their black glory.

As soon as they were in the water something seemed to open. We started to hear squeals of laughter as they started to splash and play games with each other. There were also a few children but no male adults at all.

It seemed as if the edge of the water was the line between two different universes for women!

One of apprehensive gravity and reticence to one of free expression and joy.

My sister & I observed in bemusement at first then we looked at each other, and as if drawn by some mystical power, we got up and slid into the sea like mermaids. Pyjamas and all.

One of my nieces came out to investigate and we told her to wake up all the girls and come to join us.

We saw these women several times over the last few nights. They passed by our cabin and looked at us disapprovingly because we were not following a strict code of dress as we were sitting on the open lawn outside while they rarely ventured out of the cabins.

Only the male members of the family did.

My sisters were dressed in casual-coloured pants & shirts with a light cover on the head.

I was just wearing loose 3/4 pants and T-shirt and I had very short hair. So, I had the longest and hardest glare, attempting to stare me down into a more ‘virtuous’ appearance.

Frankly, I returned those looks, glaring back with cool disdain.

Now, I looked into the faces that were hidden from me for days. I smiled, they smiled back. Some very shyly, others with curiosity but with all traces of animosity gone.

We were all women together taking advantage of being able to enjoy the sea in the early morning.

There was almost a perverse delight in breaking the rules that were imposed on us by men.

During the day it was men only.

The buoyancy of the water combined with the joyful exhaustion of 3 days/nights of activities, little sleep and that unexpected atmosphere made me languorous.

I started to wonder fancifully, were these women sirens of the sea all the time? Hiding in hostility not of their own choosing.

Was this swim at sunrise a bathing ritual of an ancient cult of sirens of the Red Sea, shedding their troubled restrictive skin to be who they really are?

Inviting us in with their sheer joy so that as soon as we feel the water surround us, our truth is revealed. The lines created by our minds dissolve, and we connect at a deeper level beyond words, beliefs, and attitudes.

Whatever we are, as the blue waves became alive with the soft golden rays of the rising sun, we recognized each other, at a level beyond our outer shells, and reached out in support and friendship.

It was magnificent.

The sound of laughter echoed around us filling the air with a sense of pure delight.

As the sun started to climb further into the sky, the women began to leave and go back to their cabins as we did ourselves to catch a couple of hours of exhausted sleep before going back home.

As we were packing our bags into the car, I came across a few of those women who were also leaving.

I could not see their faces clearly anymore as the Niqab covered all but their eyes.

I could see that some eyes resumed their disapproving glare, but others seemed to have a twinkle of something, a shared secret!

Or maybe I was imagining it!

Still, I was not daunted. I felt that I discovered a deep magical treasure gifted to me by my beloved Red Sea that will always be with me. I sat in the car feeling totally dead beat physically but also quite elated.