The Many Uses of a Turban

This week, Sheik Khalfan Al-Esry (google him!) spoke to our group. More like satisfied our American curiosity of the Middle East and cultural differences, all in a pretty hilarious fashion. I'll be posting more from his lecture, but this was by far the most interesting.


Omani men dress very traditionally, even on a daily basis. They wear a dishdasha (the nightee, white dress-looking thing), a kumma (a little hand-woven patterned cap), and sometimes, a turban around the cap (I can't remember the specific name for the turban).


Sheik Khalfan, or Sheik "Have Fun" as he called himself, went into the history and uses of the turban. Some made sense... anyway, a tentative list of a turban's uses:


1) Unwind it, and keep the wind and dirt out of your face -- you can still see through it!
2) The lazy way to make your kumma more formal
3) Unfold it, use it as a tent or blanket in the desert; just use your walking stick or sword as the post, of course
4) Use the tassels on the end as floss for your teeth (after BBQ, which he loves)
5) Put it across two camels to make a shade
6) Prayer rug
7) Tie several together as a rope to send a bucket into a well
8) Wrap someone who has deceased (a Muslim tradition)
9) Keep your kids entertained with it