Tip sent in by Jane Hayward:
Women in the trendy Beyoglu area found clever ways to look sexy but modest – skinny jeans with long boots or opaque patterned tights with skirts & boots. Best look was slightly bohemian – lots of leather & loose hair.
Looking for a pic but no joy so far.
If you can help, send it to whattowearwhere@gmail.com
Blue burqas are ‘out out out’ this year. Photo by: Barbara Millucci/Flickr
It’s not often you meet someone fresh off the cargo plane from Afghanistan so I plagued Mr F aka NY Fashionistani for his take on what to wear… and got this hot fashion update in reply:
Basically khaki shalwa kameez are still the top sellers in Kapisa province as too are the ever functional ‘Herati 5 piece’ burqa’s for women – fashion-forward women are leaving their blue burqa’s on the goat paths and are going for the pure white this fall season.
One should always be careful which valley one is traveling in – one should never been seen (again) wearing a classic Chitrali pakool (the flat round bread shaped hats made famous by the anti Taliban commander Ahmed Shah Massood) in a Pashtun-inhabited area. Go for for it with gusto, wear it loose and foppish on the back of your head at a jaunty angle if you are sure you are hanging in a Tajik valley.
With the rise of the Taliban in the south, young men in Kandahar are donning the kol eyeliner once again, ditching the mustard color shalwa’s and going for the hardliner black. Personally I think it looks hot hot hot – especially when it’s worn with a Talib white turban and well worn AK 47 (Russian, not Chinese made).
If you are a western journalist – get rid of the blue bulletproof vest and go for the light brown – oh , and drop the velcro badge that says “PRESS”, and don’t forget to put the ballistic bulletproof plates in – I know they chaff, but better a little sore than a big gaping wound. To go with your ballistic plates for your vest, a pair of ‘Wiley X’ ballistic sunglasses are a must. Form fitting to the face, you look like a special forces bad ass, rather than a nerdy hack, and they are great for looking cool and stoic when the chopper hits the ground and you get engulfed in a ball of dust.
Under the Burqa and behind the closed wood doors of the caravanserrai, women in the cooler northern areas go for alpaca wool knickers with a double gusset and imported bra’s from Tajikistan – “lift and separate” is the code words when buying your loved one something saucy from Akmal Famim’s breadshop/hoisery store in Balk.
Men still enjoy the ‘limpy limpy’ look – and go ‘commando’ -or as they say ‘go mujihideen’
‘Go mujahideen’, heheh…
I seem to be meeting more and more people who love this country. And with The Kite Runner film last year, it’s getting ever-increasing attention. So if you’re venturing into the most dangerous Stan of all, where a bodyguard/armed guide is a de rigueur tourist accessory, you really wanna know what’s what. Not that there’s fashion police as such but Taleban ministers have imposed outrageous rules on attire in the past – you can read about some of them in this BBC report on tagging for non-Muslims.
The Lonely Planet forum has some advice. Here, as ever, are the ahem bulletpoints:
“Women in all parts of Afghanistan wear the burqa or chadori. On the other hand, many women in Kabul and Herat these days don’t wear the burqa but rather put on the middle eastern style hijab, which is similar to Iranian fashion. Western women are highly encouraged to wear a head scarf (especially outside Kabul)”
Five for a tenner in Mugla market, anyone?
But this is what the people of Mugla actually wear…
…sent in by Jane Hayward:
‘Take a small pretty umbrella to Taiwan – all the women use them to protect their faces from the sun’
Also works pretty good in the rain:
Photo by: Booleansplit on Flickr
Just picked up on this thread on Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree. Wildbill34 has written a great post, summing up the most common dress code in Vietnam as follows:
On a recent visit to Vietnam, I did some counts of the types of clothing worn on the street in cities and villages from Can Tho north to Bao Loc. I also reviewed hundreds of photos, and some video tapes taken over the past 7 years. Over 95% of the women wore long slacks and a blouse with ¾ or long sleeves. About 95% of the men wore long slacks and a shirt with a collar and sleeves. Laborers, young men and persons engaged in athletics were more likely to wear shorts, but the majority did not. Women working indoors were more likely to wear short sleeves. Women are well aware of the effects of the tropical sun on their skin, and a sun tan is not admired. You’ll see young women on bikes wearing elbow length gloves and masks to avoid the sun.
Others on the forum point out the need to cover up to past the knee and over the shoulder for places of worship – standard advice for temples across Asia - ie no shorts and vest tops. But, as many other South-east Asian countries, it’s also worth noting that many local girls do dress v sexily by night, more so in big cities - so there is an outlet!
Just came across the Hijablog - a great blog about veiled fashion around the world but it also shows beautiful local kaftans, djellabas, abayas and shaylas, too. Fascinating. You can see styles for predominantly Muslim countries such as, Morocco, Egypt, Somalia, Mauritania, Sudan, Ethiopia, UAE, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iran, Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Bosnia, as well as the unexpected: Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Germany, Spain and Turkey. It also ventures into India and Bangladesh. For a UK blog try Hijab Style.
‘Muslim women want clothes that are stylish, but not too revealing,’ says Hijablog writer, Basbousa. If you’re travelling to a predominantly Muslim country, then this site shows you that modest dress doesn’t have to be plain or standard but downright desirable. There are lots of catwalk pics, some street style, jewelled accessories, vintage veils and tutorials on how to tie a hijaj. For me, not being a Muslim, it was also fascinating to discover little tips like how an underscarf helps anchor everything in place.
And for non-Muslim travellers resistant to adapting to local styles, check out Basbousa’s Ten Wrong But Oh So Good Reasons To Wear The Hijab! Funny.
Statement T-shirts are big news in the Philippines but if you want to own the most desirable of these then check out the homegrown talent of Team Manila. Their ‘I Love Ninoy’ t-shirts feature good-looking graphic designs featuring his trademark specs. Check out the range, which marks the 25th anniversary of Ninoy Aquino’s assassination as he was led off a plane at Manila Airport. His wife Corazon went on to become president, signalling the end of the Marcos regime.
Still waiting for international buying options on their website…
Watch this space – I’m off on an ‘Unspoiled Turkey’ trip next week so will be checking out the local and international styles in touristic but more out of the way spots. Finally I’ve googled ‘what to wear in…’ and there have actually been some listings. Good suggestions at Turkeytravelplanner and Journeywoman. Any suggestions welcome though…
Country information
Lowdown
Over 7,000 islands but the uniform remains the same, thanks to American influences and the tropical heat. Yes, the Philippines is pretty much a cool, casual, relaxed t-shirt and jeans/shorts kind of island nation. Which doesn’t mean you can’t look good – the malls are great for designer and slogan tees, the markets good for vintage versions. Stand out by investing in the coolest sunglasses or take your lead from Manila she-males and strut the nightlife in a short ‘n’ sexy or long ‘n’ slinky dress. Cute skirts, slacks, jeans with dressier tops are also safe bets for a night out.
Bring flipflops (aka thongs) that’ll take you from daytime to eveningwear if staying at the beach but take a decent pair of shoes for high-end clubs or formal meetings. Think sandals/sneakers if you’re walking further than hut to beach.
Wet season visitors, you can carry on wearing what you’re wearing but don’t leave your nipa hut without a rain mac or brolly.
Trends
Statement tees like these.
No-nos
Despite having a bad rep for ‘romance tourism’, the Philippines is a relatively conservative country so bikini thongs and going topless on public beaches are frowned upon. Save it for Brazil.
Local buys
Cut-price designer brand names, often with stalls inside of the local mall. Barong Tagalog embroidered dress shirt – as modelled here on 2008 by Quentin Tarantino. Look for inexpensive tailors in Manila and other major cities – the malls are cheap but even XXXL is too small if you’re from the West. And I like Team Manila-designed tees, which you can only buy in certain Manila malls.
Photos
Some top Pinoy clothes designers on Flickr.
