Unhitched

A western friend of mind here in Aden told me about her experience attending a wedding in Yemen. Here are the highlights. I relate this to you second hand as I will never ever ever be allowed to see the female side of a Yemeni wedding so please, if anyone has any corrections or comments, I welcome them.

My friend told me about the private gathering for women that occurs while everyone waits for the bride and groom to arrive. I presume men have their own separate gathering but I'm not sure. At the women's gathering, since there are no men around, all the women take off their vails and abayyas and apparently it is quite normal for them to wear shockingly inappropriate dresses. These dresses even shocked my friend who grew up in the West where we are comparatively loose with our sexuality, dress and appearance in public. I have seen these dresses in shop stores and I have asked myself, 'who on earth buys those here?' and 'where do they wear them?' because public life in Aden is conservative and reserved. Now I know. Loud music is played and women dance or sit and try to talk over the tunes.

Then, when word comes that the bride and groom are coming, all the women put their vails and abayyas back on, hiding again what their dresses tried in vain to hide. The couple arrives, makes the rounds, and the party pauses until the groom leaves signaling again for the vails and abayyas to come off.

I am so curious how this celebration developed. Specifically, why the revealing dresses? Is it rebellion? It can't be for comfort.