Heading to Iran for a week advice needed please | ExpatWoman.com
 

Heading to Iran for a week advice needed please

1100
Posts
EW OLDHAND
Latest post on 05 August 2011 - 20:10

Hi Ladies,

I'm wondering if you could help. I'm heading to Iran for a week due to work and I'm at a loss at what I can/can't wear.

If anyone could help me have an idea of what I can wear that would be great! I was thinking of wearing an abaya and sheila but I'm also not sure where to buy one that won't cost an absolute fortune and at the same time is comfortable and not a cheap horrible material that will have me sweating buckets

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

TIA

232
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 06 August 2011 - 13:43
Wow, there must have been big changes since I was last in Iran. I've just gone back and checked my holiday photos thinking I must have imagined most women wearing abayas but the photos prove I didn't so at least I'm not going mad! The only place I recall seeing most of the women dressed as described below was in north Tehran which I only drove through. I didn't ever feel uncomfortable or out of place in an abaya as most women were wearing them and I wore mine all the time - apart from when I was on Mt Damavand. Now I know that maybe I should wear something else next time. I think a shalwar kameez would be ideal.
471
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EW EXPLORER
Latest post on 06 August 2011 - 12:01
suze63 LOL!!! :) I was told off a couple of times for showing too much hair too, although i wasn`t being naughty like some Iranian youth, but it just keeps sliding off because you are not used to wearing it. It wasn`t a big deal anyway...
1617
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EW EXPERT
Latest post on 06 August 2011 - 11:49
I bought an abaya when I wnet (or North London's version of one!) as I thought it would be cooler just wearing a vest underneath. I looked like something scary from Harry Potter and I felt a bit (well quite alot) silly compared to the Iranian girls who were pretty glam. I only wore it for a day and ended up reverteing to linen trousers / long tops / headscarves. I wouldn't be inclined to wear a pahsmina as a scarf though as that would be very hot. I ended up in a shopping mall in nTehran on my first day buying more colourful headscarves that the ones I'd brought. I did get told off by the morality police a couple of times for showing too much hair, but so did some Iranian women.
471
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EW EXPLORER
Latest post on 06 August 2011 - 11:32
Surely if you wear jeans you'll be boiling if you are going soon? Iran is not like Dubai where everything is a/c. I always wore an abaya (not sure why another poster thinks it's best not to) and a sheila. Underneath the abaya I worn just shorts and a vest and I'm sure I was cooler than other women who tried to cover up with Western clothing. Have to say I was there on holiday not for business so maybe it's different if you're there for work. I wouldn`t be buying an abaya just because of one trip, as i probably won`t be wearing it ever again. If not jeans, any work pants will do with some kind of cover-up like big jacket [b'>below your butt[/b'>. And a head scarf. Obviously those clothes shouldn`t be tight... I have been to Iran, it seemed pretty casual to me, people are really nice... I have an Iranian friend who dresses similarly to what i described when she goes there. I`m not even sure if she has an abaya... My desi friend gave me Shalvar Khamees which is a Pakistani traditional dress of wide pants, long tunic and sort of pashmina. They are usually pretty colorful and decorated. I wore it during my last trip to Iran, it was perfectly fine and comfy, and also kept me cool. Hope you will enjoy your trip :)
648
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EW GURU
Latest post on 06 August 2011 - 11:13
No one in Iran wears the Abaya, most girls are really fashionable. You can wear white linen trousers with a linen shirt (anything really, as long as your dressed modestly) as others have said the head scarf can just be draped at the back of your head, theres no need to cover all your hair. [b'>Wearing an Abaya outside the few Gulf states and Saudi Arabia, in nations with large Muslim populations, such as India, Indonesia, Iran and Turkey it is uncommon and considered undesirable Wahabist culture.[/b'> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abaya
232
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 06 August 2011 - 08:36
Surely if you wear jeans you'll be boiling if you are going soon? Iran is not like Dubai where everything is a/c. I always wore an abaya (not sure why another poster thinks it's best not to) and a sheila. Underneath the abaya I worn just shorts and a vest and I'm sure I was cooler than other women who tried to cover up with Western clothing. Have to say I was there on holiday not for business so maybe it's different if you're there for work.
121
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 06 August 2011 - 08:10
You don't need an abaya unless you're visiting Qom or one of the other holy shrines. A long coat/loose top over jeans, trousers, long skirt is absolutely fine. You [b'>must [/b'> wear a headscarf in public, meaning from the time you step out of your hotel room to the time you return and close the door behind you, but you don't need to wear it as a formal hijab so no worries about 'getting it wrong' its all very casual. Just put a pashmina over your head with the two ends hanging down your front, then throw the left end over your right shoulder and the right end over your left shoulder and you're good to go. Or a triangular scarf tied under your chin is also fine. You don't need to hide your fringe or anything like that.
226
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EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 05 August 2011 - 20:50
I agree with tally-ho, you don't need to wear an abaya in Iran (I think it's even best not to). A long sleeve knee length light jacket/shirt over trousers is ok, and a head scarf.
1953
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EW EXPERT
Latest post on 05 August 2011 - 20:23
For an abaya go to abu hail - you can get an abaya for a couple of hundred dirhams - go to the top floor for the cheaper ones. Can take up to a week to get one maid thou. Thank you Princess_I! Would you by any chance know which material is best to use, or anything specific I should ask for when getting it made? Thanks AS Ask for Nada - it's not as good a quality as Saloona (so cheaper) and it's a bit thinner so better for summer.
648
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EW GURU
Latest post on 05 August 2011 - 20:20
You dont need an abaya for Iran, you can wear jeans under a long shirt/jacket (type thing) and a nice head scarf will be enough. Theyre not strict with westeners. http://www.irantravelingcenter.com/women_iran_picture_street_dress_iran.htm <em>edited by tally-ho on 05/08/2011</em>
1100
Posts
EW OLDHAND
Latest post on 05 August 2011 - 20:16
For an abaya go to abu hail - you can get an abaya for a couple of hundred dirhams - go to the top floor for the cheaper ones. Can take up to a week to get one maid thou. Thank you Princess_I! Would you by any chance know which material is best to use, or anything specific I should ask for when getting it made? Thanks AS
1953
Posts
EW EXPERT
Latest post on 05 August 2011 - 20:13
For an abaya go to abu hail - you can get an abaya for a couple of hundred dirhams - go to the top floor for the cheaper ones. Can take up to a week to get one maid thou.
 
 

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