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A Chauvinist in the Station I miss home, I really do.. but the plan was not to be back before the 20th. Life happened and the circumstances dictated an unexpectedly premature return, and as a result, I had to send for my pieces of luggage that I had left in the south. Naima would take the train first thing in the morning, pack my stuff, and bring the luggage back to our hotel in Paris. At 5:30AM she was on her way to the station, my phone rang at 6:07AM and I heard her voice at the other end of the line telling me that the chief on board refused to have her on board because the credit card which was used to pay for her ticket was not present with her. Well OF COURSE not, the ticket was bought for her. I asked her to pass the phone to him in order to understand the basis of his objection but he refused, and asked her to get off the train. Now, I may not like to admit this, but I knew it wasn't about the credit card at all, but rather, the fact that Naima is a very conservative woman whose religious beliefs and personal values come across very clearly. In France, the chief on board has the final say on things (much like the captain on aircrafts) I -out of all people- know that if the chief wanted her on board, he would have had her on board (I took a train once without a ticket, all I had to do was speak with the chief) The train would depart in two minutes, and there was nothing she could do. It was pointless for her to wait any longer, I knew that he wouldn't let her on the train and that was that. It was heart-stoppingly annoying to say the least. I asked her to head back to the hotel, and I knew I would sort it out myself later. I didn't want an impulse reaction, but rather, wanted to understand what is it that annoyed me the most: was it the impact that had on our travel plans? was it the non-refundable stamp on the billet (french for ticket)? was it the fact that Naîma had to bear with a person of such low-education and morals to match? I wasn't quite sure, but I knew that by the end of the day I would have an answer. At 7:00PM of that day I headed to the ticketing office inside the station, dressed in UAE national attire despite the fact that it was pouring rain outside & anyone who knows Emirati national attire would know that it's nowhere near practical in normal weather conditions, much too less in the rain. Walking through hallways animated by hundreds of people, my mind did not escape the turning heads to take a glimpse of the obvious foreigner amongst the crowd.. and while Khadhem Al-Saher shuffled Ahibbeeni into my ears; I took my time walking to the ticketing office observing & toying with people's reaction as I walked by in a floor-length black Abaya and Sheila -- it was seconds before a police man came forth and said "vous êtes une princesse?" - "No" I answered. - "Une actrice?" - "No" and added "Je suis Emirienne d'Abou Dabi" - "Vous êtes très belle, ..très belle" - "Merci", said it with a smile and walked away There were looks of curiosity, others of admiration, and some sick ones too -- it didn't matter, there I was dressed in as Arab as it gets, and there was nothing that could stop me from loving it, ..every second of it. Before I knew it, I found myself in front of a line with multiple windows and clerks. Some looked approachable, positive, and welcoming; others looked like they were receiving a slow death sentence. Knowing my luck in situations like these, I knew I'd get a death-sentence person to serve my request -and it was true. The death sentence person was a 30-something male with crooked teeth, a yellow smile, and pink skin. When I explained the situation to him, he shrugged before I continued the rest of my sentence and said "zeir iz nosing I can do about it. You 'ave to buy anozegh ticket pour tomogho if you want 'er to go. I can 'elp you do zat now only" I hate it when people just don't let you finish what you have to say, don't you? -- I also hate being taken for a fool. I paused. "attendez s'il vous plaît" I said, and added "She was not late, the cheif asked her to get off the train -Why?". - "Soghy, I cannot 'elp you" he said. I realized that frustration would yield nothing, and despite the fact that I was experiencing a mild volcano explosion in my guts, I broke into a smile.. expanded my eyes into a look of hope and in a low tone I asked if there's anything he could do about it, perhaps speak to the supervisor? - "No! zegh iz no supeghvisogh" he said in a sharp tone. I pretended I didn't hear him correctly, and asked "OH! You're the supervisor? Sorry, I didn't realize.. you're too young to be a supervisor" -- I honestly doubt he understood what I said, but one thing was sure: he knew that what I said was some sort of compliment, and suddenly said "Wait. I come back".. He got up to speak to someone, and came back saying "It's OK! But next time be caghfool (careful).. don't buy ticket pour anozegh peghson!" -(Yeah! Okay, whatever) I thought- And with a curious look he added "de quel pays êtes vous?" - "I'm from the Emirates, Abu Dhabi." - "You like to 'ave dinner wiz me?" (Dinner with Mr. Crooked yellow teeth? Seriously? Seeeerrrriously?) - "Non, merci" - "Dghink?" - "I don't drink." - "Pas de tout?" - "Pas de tout. Nothing" - "Café? Thé?" (Mr.Crooked yellow teeth has guts and is apparently persistent) - "Non! Merci pour votre aide, but I'm taking a flight tonight" My flight, was a lie. I walked out, and exactly like the way I walked in, people were looking; men to be precise, but alas.. I had made my point clear, I knew that what had annoyed me the most is the lack of respect for people who dress in clothes that convey their religious beliefs or origin and I didn't like that. What you choose as a God is absolutely your business; it doesn't change the fact that you're human. Respect is mandatory, and the lack of it should not be tolerated. Sometimes unfortunately one doesn't have a choice to enforce manners of behavior on people. I sadly didn't get to make that point on the chief on board that refused to host Naîma on the train, but strolling in the midst of hundreds of people in clothes that clearly convey my orientation and origin that I'm very proud of made me feel better about the whole situation. I don't do it often, I don't look for 'creative' ways to substitute a sheila with a brightly colored Hermes scarf on my head and overlay knee-length dresses with jeans and 300 other pieces of clothing under and above. I like to keep it simple, with or sans, that's it. Quoting George, my driver in Saumur; "Now I know why women in your country wear veils, ..because they're very, very, very beautiful"This goes out to all of you veiled Emirati beauties x $14 in my moola box | link | email this post |
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