Gaza's women-only cafe offers more than just coffee
Three sisters from Gaza decided to open an all-female cafe that they say allows patrons to be more comfortable and can serve as a venue for cultural events.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — “We have forgotten that men and women are supposed to be different. As a result, our relationships are filled with unnecessary friction and conflict,” John Gray said in his 1993 book “Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus.”
Noon — a letter in the Arabic alphabet that is added at the end of verbs used for females in the plural — is an all-female cafe that opened Sept. 17 in Nasser neighborhood, west of Gaza City, far from the cafes and restaurants on Omar Mukhtar Street and al-Bahr Street.
The cafe manager, Nidaa Mhanna, 35, told Al-Monitor, “I thought about my sisters Nagham and Nihaya and decided to open the cafe to enhance women’s privacy, as they do not feel completely comfortable in restaurants and cafes with a mixed clientele. If a woman laughs or talks loud, everybody around her notices. So we thought of opening this cafe for women to be themselves without any fear.”
Al-Monitor visited the small cafe that is made up of a sofa in the center and two small tables facing it. Behind the sofa, wooden shelves showcase makeup and underwear. A small vitrine displays embroideries and accessories made by women. The cafe is painted in light green, blue and pink pastel colors.
