In good news today, Kartik, my Bangla barber re opened his shop. He had to close due to a licensing issue... and in other VERY good news, his wife had their second baby last Monday!
— feeling wonderful. November 2013
[from FB post: September 7, 2013]
Just back from a shave -- oh the "man care" here is LOVELY. Less than $3 for a perfect shave. No wonder all the Arabs have such stunning beards. You could go to the barber every other day and be under $10 for the week!
[September 13, 2014]
Oh I love my "man time" at my barber. And the same guys go at the same time I do, so I have a group of guys there to talk to while I wait. It reminds me of when I was a kid and my Dad took me to the barber.
Saudi Arabia
When I first moved to Abha, I noticed right away how incredibly manicured Saudi beards were. I came to know that barbers were very cheap and gave excellent service. The barber shop next to my hotel/apartment had recently closed and, much to my disappointment, it showed no sign of reopening. Since my neighborhood was "new", services were just getting established. I had quite a walk (nearly 30 minutes) to the closest barber. That is where I met Kartik.
Kartik was my barber for two years. He was a Hindu from Bangladesh who spoke a little English. He gave me excellent service and was one of the few places I patronized that served me BEFORE Saudis who insisted on queue jumping. He could afford to do it - he was a good barber and he knew he had the upper hand. Kartik was lovely person as well.
He showed me photos of the house he was building in Bangladesh and of his children. He was a hard working guy that woke up early and literally worked all day, every day. That unfortunately led to burn out for him and he would occasionally just close up the shop and go to his Harry Potter room (literally under the stairs by his shop - a little cozy, hovel) and sleep. That didn't work well for me after a 30 minute walk to find he was in his room asleep. He always invited me in for a tea and some snack. Unfortunately, my beard trim was secondary to his hospitality. Nevertheless, Kartik was a great guy and he taught me the joy of a "barber shop".
Finally, the barber near my hotel opened and I gave it a try. There I met the garrulous Naeem from Pakistan. He spoke more English than Kartik and I could literally see the shop from my bedroom window. I hated to give up on Kartik because although I honestly liked the guy, it was just too far to walk only to find him closed. I switched alliances. Naeem talked nonstop. He put me on video calls with his son Ibrahim who just could smile and wave at me. It was much easier to get a shave there because I could see if the shop was empty and simply walk down and have a seat. For some reason, the manager (also Pakistani) never liked me. I didn't quite get that since I was a frequent customer and never made a fuss about anything (compared to the Saudis who were very demanding). When Naeem made his first Umrah (minor pilgrimage to Mecca) I gave him 100 Saudi Riyals to help him. After that, I could do no wrong for the man.
When I left Saudi Arabia I wondered if I would ever find another barber culture as good.
Iraq
I arrived in Duhok to the pleasant surprise that Kurdish men loved beautiful beards as much as Saudis. My first barber there was recommended by WMF after I had a terrible shave and rip off near my hotel/apartment. Marcel was a goofy young Assyrian muscle guy who worked out with WMF. Marcel was my barber for about a year until his family hit the jackpot and got visas to the USA. Marsel is still barbering in Walled Lake, Michigan, by the way. The manager of the shop where Marsel worked was Kosay, an Arab from Mosul who had fled with his family to Duhok when ISIS invaded. Kosay knew my hair and beard regime from Marsel, so even though he didn't speak English, it didn't matter. Kosay was a flaming redhead as were all his brothers who often stopped at the shop. They were all very sweet and treated me kindly. Kosay had taken over the shop from a Christian and left all the religious paraphenalia around the shop for good luck even though he was Muslim. Kosay was probably a better barber than Marsel truth be told.
Then Kosay had a family emergency and had to close his shop for awhile while he returned to Mosul. I was in a panic - where would I get my shave?? I remembered near the supermarket in my neighborhood, next to my laundry, was a barber. A young guy worked there, Matein, who often came to talk to me when I dropped off my laundry. "Talk" might have been an exaggeration - just say "hi" - he had virtually zero English skill. The kid was sincerely sweet and I found out that he lost his father in the war with ISIS. He took the job to help support his family. Finally, Matein got his chance to give me a shave - he was so excited and nervous the first time, but he did a decent job. Having met my bar for a shave, I started to visit Matein's shop. At the end of every shave he gave me a warm hug and told me he loved me. I think that poor kid keenly missed his Dad.
Kosay reopened. What to do? Well, since it was cheap and I liked both guys, I started going to the barber twice a week. The decadence! Considering how cheap it was and how relaxing as well, it was money well-spent. Kosay was an excellent barber and Matein actually got better as time went on. During COVID, Matein even paid house calls to my room to give me shaves and haircuts. He was such a sweetheart.
Then I went home to COVID lockdowns, closed barbers, and everyone looking pretty ragged. I gave up my man-care and settled for occasional haircuts from expensive, less-than-talented barbers.
Bangladesh
When things allowed for working abroad again, I found myself in Bangladesh. I figured there MUST be a barber culture since many of the barbers in Saudi had been from that country. Near my university, I found a recently opened barbershop owned by Ibrahim, a young guy just starting out. I was back in barber heaven and he even had several guys on staff. All of them learned how I liked my beard and hair, so I entered "man spa" heaven with a vengeance - I had a choice of barbers in one shop! I was happy to help out Ibrahim, too, since he was newly married and trying to make a business for his family. I sent a few of my expat colleagues to him. He was trying so hard and I had a great deal of respect for his seriousness at such an early age (he was less than 25). I could never have started a business at that age.
...
It is amazing how such a small thing can change my mood, but going twice a week for shave really makes me feel better about myself. I totally get women's "salon culture" now. It's not just the treatments, it is the whole experience of being cared for. Unfortunately, I don't think it will ever take hold in the USA for men at a price point I can afford. American men have no idea what they are missing out on.
I wonder sometimes if I stay abroad just for my beard care....