Middle East Packing Lists

Don't be fooled into thinking that the middle east is always hot and sunny...at times the weather in some parts can be downright cold wet and miserable. Accommodation doesn't always include suitable heating, so you'll feel the cold more than you would do back home. So bring along some cold weather clothes. It is incredibly hot in summer, but Arab society is conservative, so shorts for both sexes are out (unless on the beach or by a pool), and women will need to cover up to varying degrees depending on the country. No countries (with the exception of Saudi Arabia, perhaps) require non-muslim women to wear either the hejab or the veil, and many Muslim women don't wear these items either, but in certain places you might feel more comfortable covering your head. Jordan, Syria and Lebanon have large Christian populations, so the 'dress code' is more liberal there (although still relatively conservative compared to Europe), while in Yemen, the majority of women wear an all-encompassing black cloak called a Balto, with very few walking the streets with their faces showing. Many foreign women living in Yemen also choose to wear black cloaks, but leave their heads uncovered. Leave behind any tight clothing, or anything that shows the contours of your body. For men, legs and upper arms are better off covered in most parts (think of it as built-in sunscreen!!), although in places frequented by tourists you'll fit in with t-shirts. At the risk of generalizing, Arabs as a whole take a lot of care with their appearance, and tend to dress fairly well, so it is fair to say that any clothes you have with holes in (cut jeans etc..) or 'hippy' clothes will not go down well. One shirt I have has a slight tear on the shoulder, and my friend pointed out a beggar, joking 'look, even the beggars dress better than you!'. Shoes...again it depends on the country, and the religion of any local friends you have. To enter the prayer hall of a mosque (if this is allowed) or a Muslim household, you'll have to remove your shoes, so any shoes which slip on and off easily are ideal. Boots are good for walking the city streets, but are annoying if you have to keep taking them off and putting them on again. It is different from one country to the next, but Syrian houses tend to have courtyards, and you only remove shoes to enter rooms with carpets. For Christian households, it depends on the owners, so just follow their lead. In Yemen, shoes are left at the front door of a house. Flip-flops or thongs are quite practical for walking in the city in Yemen, and are available cheaply everywhere...however, Yemenis attach great importance to keeping feet clean, and cities tend to be quite dusty, so they are not so practical if you are visiting someone. Toilets in many houses have special communal shoes just inside the door...you are expected to use them, and when you leave, take them off before coming out the room, to avoid the dirt from touching the clean floors elsewhere....this can become an acrobatic trick in some houses! Clothes are cheap to buy in the Middle East, and there is no difficulty finding clothes shops...they are everywhere! You'll also find many designer clothes (mainly fake, but of good quality) available quite cheaply. So, it is not really necessary to bring a huge amount of clothes with you. A note about traditional clothes: yes, they are great souvenirs, and yes, they are perfect for fancy dress parties in Europe, but a foreigner wearing traditional clothes will be ridiculed. This is especially true in more touristy places (Syria, Lebanon, Jordan), where most locals dress Western-style, so you'll either be thought of as a joke, or as a joker, making a mockery of them by wearing traditional clothes. Can you imagine how an arab would be treated if he went to London and dressed as a Morris dancer, or visited berlin wearing lederhosen? Well, you'll get much the same reaction if you try it there! This applies less so to Yemen, and often you'll be required to dress like a Yemeni if you are invited to a wedding. Jellabiyyas or Thoabs (both like shirts which extend to your ankles) are worn by many Yemenis, and come in many different colours and styles (white and blue being the two favoured colours). If you are buying, make sure you get some undergarments too, otherwise your loud boxer shorts will be visible to all! The Yemeni male skirt is also frequently worn, and foreigners copying this are accepted, especially at the coast and when chewing qat (be careful how you sit down, and at first wear one with a belt until you are confident enough that it will not fall down in public!!!). Headscarves (keffiyeh) are also nice souvenirs, and practical too, serving as protection from sun and dust. They come in many patterns, but remember that certain patterns mean certain things in some regions (some colours are representative of Palestinian groups, while others show that you are a member of a specific political group...if you intend wearing it in Syria, Jordan, Palestine and Lebanon, take a local with you when you buy! In Yemen, it is all in the way you tie it, and Europeans will stand out so much anyway, so it doesn't really matter what colour you choose or how you tie it, nobody is going to mistake you for being one tribemember or another!

Most things are available in the cities...in fact, you'll find almost anything in the souks. One thing I had difficulty finding was roll-on deodorant or deodorant sticks...if you can't cope without them, bring enough from home to last! Local brands of toiletries are often as good as Western brands, but cheaper. However, some are just plain cheap and nasty...you learn pretty quick which brands to steer well clear of! Medical supplies....well, you can get pills and other medicines at pharmacies, but you won't always know what these are. In many places, the pharmacist plays the role of the doctor, so you'll find people entering a pharmacy, saying, 'my mother has a pain in her stomach' and walking off with a bag of unnamed pills, no diagnosis and no idea of patient history. Whatever illness you have, a pharmacist will have some pills for it...pills are seen as cures for everything, 'as long as it is a pill, it is OK' seems to be the attitude. Also, many Arabs seem to distrust locally made remedies...for example, Syria produces some excellent cough medicine, but Syrians will pay three times as much for some similar German-made cough medicine. Basically pharmacies are fine for buying items such as lip-salve, plasters, throat lozenges or cough medicine, but steer clear of any pills you might be offered....you don't need a prescription to buy any pills, but that means that anything is available over the counter, and chances are the pharmacist won't know the expiry date, side-effects, or even if he is giving you the right dosage. If you have anything other than colds or diarrhoea, then head to a proper doctor. To obtain a residence permit (and you'll need one of these to stay anything more than a couple of weeks), you usually have to have an AIDS test. They don't accept test certificates from other countries, so you have no choice but to head to a test centre and give a blood test. Take your own needles!!! Often hospitals are very ill-equipped, and you don't always see where the needle comes from. Doctors in the UK provide medical kits for travellers, which include syringes, needles, dental needles, and other essential items, as well as full instructions in any requested language. If you carry one of these packs, then at least you won't be mistaken for a drug addict! When you leave the country, a good idea is to donate these to a local hospital or medical centre...they will be appreciated.

You can buy the latest cameras in shops all over the Middle East, but don't expect to find any bargains....I've had requests from Syrians for me to send them digital cameras from England as apparently they are cheaper! Standard camera films are available everywhere, but for anything slightly different (like APS, for instance) the chances of finding a suitable film decrease dramatically. Away from the main cities, sometimes the films are out of date, or have been kept in hot conditions for too long...stock up in the cities! Camera batteries are almost impossible to find...they must exist, but I never found them. Be careful about taking pictures in the Middle East...some countries can be touchy about things; in general, don't point your camera at presidential palaces, police stations, bridges, embassies, even policemen or police vehicles. With people pictures, always ask first, especially if you want to take a photo of a woman. Children are often very pleased to have their picture taken, and most men won't object either, but always ask first. In mosques, you won't be looked on too highly if you insist on snapping away at people praying. Again, ask first (if you really want pictures inside the prayer hall, then try asking for permission from the Imam).

Generalizing a bit again, but Arabs aren't too keen on outdoor activities such as hiking, camping, mountaineering, diving, snorkelling, etc....so if you are into any of these things, then bring all your own gear as you won't find it here.

Middle East Packing Lists

Visiting Middle East?

Visiting Middle East?