Henna Party

I haven't written a blog in a very long time! Ooops! To be honest, interesting stuff stopped happening to  me, I forgot, and I got lazy. 

My latest adventure was a Henna Party. Of course going into it, I had no idea what it was (can you blame me?). My friend Hussban, who is half Egyptian and half Saudi, invited me. She has a lot of fun parties so I figured it was a casual party and we would all get henna tattoos. WRONG!

I showed up around 8:30 pm. Hussban had texted me saying the show would be at 10. I had no idea what that meant, and Badr didn't either, so I just rolled with it. When I called Hussban to say that I was there and please let me in, she said "The bride isn't supposed to show herself, my sister will let you in." Immediately, I knew I was underdressed in my skinny green pants, sandals, piko top, and big necklace. 

I walked in and started talking to the only 2 girls who were there. One was wearing a cocktail dress, and the other was wearing a floor length dress, and both were wearing heels. I knew it would be an interesting night. 

As more people showed up in their formal attire, I figured out what was going to happen. Hussban would make a grand entrance at 10 and get a henna tattoo in front of us. It is traditional to do this in Jeddah or Madinah the day before the wedding to make yourself more beautiful for your husband. I did something similar before my wedding, but it was acrylic nails. Hussban is getting married in Egypt, so her timeline is different. I was able to see some girls from my previous job, and that was very fun. 
While we waited for Hussban, a maid came around serving Arabic coffee. 

They were blasting Arabic music and Hussban came out. Someone was in front of her throwing flower petals; she was dressed in a traditional Saudi dress. Hussban danced for a while and then left for an outfit change. Her next outfit was more Egyptian, it had those metal coins on the outside for a nice sound when you shake it (like a belly dancing outfit). She danced like an Egyptian woman would, shaking her hips back and forth, and then left again for an outfit change. Her last outfit was a long dress and she had a long matching veil that went on the top of her head and then around her shoulder. A few girls entered the room with sparklers and she followed. After she danced more, she sat down on her thrown-like seat and got her tattoo. 

At this time, there was the option to get a henna tattoo for yourself, and there was also dancing. I took advantage of the tattoo. Around 12:30, dinner was served. It was traditional chicken, rice, and other Arabic delights. 

I really enjoyed the opportunity to see what a Bridal Shower is like here. Of course I got some stares and I felt underdressed, but it was ok. I'm used to being the odd one in the crowd.