Friday Fragments: Episode #2

Friday Fragments is hosted by "Mrs. Fours" at Half Past Kissin Time. Wanna join in on the fun? Check it out here. Basically, you take bits and pieces of your week and list them on your blog. The bits and pieces would each be too small for a regular blog post, but put together, they make Friday Fragments.

So, today, I've spent the last 2 hours people watching at the mall around the corner from my apartment. Here's what I've noticed...

• Letting kids run wild seems to be the norm here. LOTS of parents allowed their kids to run around the mall - especially the food court - freely...no stopping them, no watching them. I guess there's no worries about people snatching your kids. One man let his two boys run around the entire food court while he stood (his back to them) and talked to a friend. The only time he actually paid attention to them was when they somehow got on top of the counter where people order their food.
• PDA isn't as illegal as we've been told. Before moving here, we were told that even holding hands was a big no-no. I've seen so many people - Emiratis, Expats, Nationals, everyone - holding hands, putting hands on their mates' butt, snuggling, etc. I even saw 2 men holding hands (at another mall).
• There is a HUGE popluation of Asians here. Most are Filipino. They are treated the worse here by Emiratis (the whole "lower class" status Filipinos have here), but they are some of the nicest people.
• Despite the fact that showing too much skin or wearing tight clothes is frowned upon, some women still choose to wear it. I've seen women wearing tank tops (complete with bra straps showing) or EXTREMELY tight jeans.
• I guess the whole "guys in pink" thing isn't taboo here. Saw a guy carrying a pink backpack. And before you ask, there were no kids with him. One day this week, we even saw a man driving a pink SUV.
• The Emirati men who wear kandoras (seen in the pic below) are very confident of themselves. They walk with this...I don't know, swag? I guess that's the word. I've seen some attractive Emirati men. Never thought I'd find ANY man in an outfit that looks like a dress attractive, but there you go.

That's my Friday Fragments for this week. Have a great weekend!