Silliness in Saudi Arabia

We were out at a shopping mall last night, gone for a coffee and a Baskins and Robbins. We’d had dinner at the Rat Tikka Restaurant (so called because I have seen more rats in the roof and the corners of the floor than they have sold chicken tikkas). So, we were at the mall.

This was the Megamall. I mentioned this mall before when I was talking about IKEA in Jeddah.

The Ministry for the Prevention of Vice and the Promotion of Virtue (or as is probably a better description, the Ministry for Licentiousness and Lasciviousness) does not permit women to work in shops. The reason? Near as I can tell, it is because they will have to deal with men and they may be tempted to jump them and rattle their bones there on the shop counter.

Why is this silly (the not allowing them to work in shops, not the rattling of bones on the counter)? Well, each of those stores has men serving in them, so women have to walk into the stores and deal with men anyway. And most of the shops have glass windows and doors.

The best thing of course is that shops that look after women’s smalls (you know, brassieres, panties, crotch-less knickers) have men serving in them. Now, if my extensive training in ladies smalls is correct, you tell the correct size of bra to wear by measuring the width around the body and breasts, then measure around again under the breasts (lifting them if necessary). That tells you what size bra you need and the difference between the two measures tells you what size the bra cup should be.

Of course, having men measure this means that there is no chance of any lasciviousness or licentiousness correct?

Silly, silly, silly.