Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
In reality the dress code is more relaxed and open to interpretation. It's not unusual to
see young women in the larger cities wearing figure-hugging manteaus (often tightly
belted trench-coats), skinny jeans, high heels and colourful rusaris that have been ar-
ranged to offer plentiful glimpses of hair and neck. But in the smaller cities, towns and
villages this rarely happens - the chador is common and those who don't wear it are clad
in an ensemble of shapeless coat, black pants, sensible shoes and a maqna'e (nun-like
head scarf, or wimple). Colour schemes are uniformly dull.
Iranian women who flout hejab can find themselves in serious trouble - we've met
quite a few who have been accosted by members of the gasht ershad (morality police) in
the street and told to cover up. Their infringements have included wearing sunglasses
above the headscarf, failing to wear a coat that fully covered their bottom, wearing bright
colours, wearing nail polish, wearing sandals that show the feet or ankles, and not fully
covering their hair.
Fortunately, foreign women are not usually judged as harshly as Iranian women when it
comes to hejab, and few Iranians will bat an eyelid if you have your fringe or a bit of neck
or hair showing. It pays to look at what women around you are wearing; for example,
you'll want to dress more conservatively in Qom than you would in Tehran.
HEAD COVERINGS
The biggest challenge that you'll encounter is keeping your scarf on. Silk scarves aren't
much use, as they tend to slip off; the only way to make them work is to tie them under
the chin babushka-style. Wool can work, but not if it's too fine and slippery. Your best bet
is textured cotton, which tends to adhere to hair more effectively and slips less. Make sure
that your scarf is wide enough to cover all of your hair, and long enough to be able to
throw over your shoulders as an anchoring device. Practice before you leave home.
Some travellers wear a thick elasticised headband and fasten their scarves to it with
safety or bobby pins, ensuring that their scarf doesn't slip - this can work well with silk
and fine cotton, so is worth considering if you are travelling here over summer and want
to wear something light. Bring the band with you, as we've never seen them in Iranian
shops.
When this topic was researched, local fashionistas were wearing their scarves as high
and as far back on their heads as possible. This is relatively easy to do if you have long
hair (the scarf is draped over a high ponytail or bun, which anchors it), but it's impossible
for those with shorter hairstyles.
MANTEAUS
The word 'manteau' has a fashionable ring to it, but most of the local versions are badly
designed, desperately ugly sacks. The majority are made from polyester (ghastly in sum-
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