Rosy's Gym & Beauty Salon

Behind Hijabs and Nikabs are bundles of beautiful women with luscious locks and sleek haircuts. I went with two friends to Rosy's Beauty Salon, owned by Miriam who is a buisness-minded british woman who has lived in Gaza for 26 years. Miriam and I chatted while I was under the eye pencil, being polished up with a 25 makeup process.

Miriam's business contains a gym with aerobics classes, along with a full on beauty salon (hair styling, dyes, waxing-- you name it). She also has a clothing store on the side. The beauty salon experience is a true behind-the-scene to the lives of some women in Gaza. Unveiled and tweezed- women prep for their engagement parties, weddings, and in my case- a Hena party (upcoming post).

"It's hard to get the products"-- Miriam notes- since everything has to come from the tunnels, and from Miriam's experience it's the first thing to stop- since it's a luxury item. Evidently- rice and beans would come first in times of need.

Waxing is a big part of beautifying processes in the Middle East (especially in this age of hairlessness- lasers, ultra modern 90 bade razors that change models every month, hair removing lotions...) From the stories I've heard, women often having "waxing day"-- with homemade Halawa: Sugar, Water, Lemon.

A simple recipe to hairlessness. The syrupy wax is made, and let the ripping begin! As a treat, mother's often dip a spoon into the Halawa and give it to the kids for a homemade lollipop.

Waxing is also essential for the bride-to-be, requiring a full body wax for the day of her wedding.

Sounds like a nightmare to me.

Here's a recipe for Halawa, which I'd rather call Hell- owww aaa!

Ingredients for Halawa

1. Two cups of water
2. Three cups of sugar or three cups of honey
3. Two teaspoons of lemon juice

Procedure

1. Place all ingredients in saucepan. Bring to boil.
2. When its colour changes to golden brown, lower the heat and continue to simmer.
3. Keep a careful watch on the colour. Once it starts to change to brown, turn off the heat.
4. Allow to cool a little, then pour small quantities onto heavy duty plastic, of the cereal bag type. Plastic that is not heavy duty will melt. It is not a good idea to use a plate, as you will need to peel it off something pliable after it cools.
5. When it becomes cool enough to handle, pull a piece off the plastic and pull and stretch it. This will immediately cause it to change color, from a clear golden brown to an opaque gold. It should be easy to stretch and pull. If it is too hard, you have left it on the heat for too long and must make a new batch. If it is too liquid, it has not been heated enough and must be heated once more, or a new batch made.