8. Don’t wear trousers
If you are a woman and are visiting Somaliland, you will have to cover your head. I thought this was all I needed to do so I dutifully put my tube scarf on every time I left the hotel, but I was wrong.
I was dressed in tunics and leggings or baggy pants underneath, an outfit that I have worn everywhere in the Islamic world and have never had an issue with. This would even be an acceptable outfit in conservative Saudi Arabia now that they have lifted the requirement to wear a full-length abaya and headscarf, or in Iran. Somaliland was going to be the first place where this was not enough.
I got told off by locals pretty much every day. Sometimes, in an aggressive manner, sometimes in a more conciliating way, trying to explain that I would feel more comfortable in a wrap-around sack-type of dress, but it was clear that wearing trousers was not acceptable and made the locals question whether I was a woman or a man.
To sort this out, I headed to the Central Market in Hargeisa and got a Bhati dress made, the local version of a kaftan, to appease the locals and blend in. Bhati have been praised by international Somali models and made an appearance in Vogue, but I doubt it helped me camouflage. The colorful flowy nature and the huge size turned me into a massive walking sack.
Check this video of the whole dress-making experience in Hargeisa Central Market. The end-to-end dress making process took no more than 20min. And guess what, men are the ones sewing the clothes in Somaliland. Western husbands, take note.
