Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Saudi Women On Top Of The World

We often hear people say the word "can't" when talking about Saudi women.
This time I'm very happy to say oh yes they CAN.

Climb Mount Everest that is!

A campaign called "A Woman's Journey: Destination Mount Everest" headed by Princess Reema Bint Bandar Al Saud, one of the founders of the Zahra Breast Cancer Organization, follows the journey of 10 Saudi women to the base camp of Mt. Everest.

The group of women participating in the cause have all been affected by breast cancer in their lives.
This campaign aims not only to spread breast cancer awareness but to educate Saudi women on the importance of physical activity in the prevention of breast cancer.
From their site:

"Through this attempt, and numerous side events that are happening in conjunction, the campaign will educate the public on the causes and effects of breast cancer and unite the women of Saudi Arabia in a momentous event. Together, the campaign organizers want to demonstrate the strength and determination of Saudi women and prove that through a united front that a difference can be made. The campaign invites women from all backgrounds to walk 15 minutes daily whether at home, at work or at school between 7-21st of May, 2012 in solidarity with the climbers and to demonstrate their commitment to each other and to good health.

The relationship between physical activity and breast cancer has been extensively studied, with over 60 studies published in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Most studies indicate that physically active women have a lower risk of developing breast cancer than inactive women.

A Woman’s Journey: Destination Mount Everest campaign hopes to inspire women to maintain an active and healthy lifestyle in order to prevent breast cancer."


Read Princess Reema's interview by American Bedu here: http://americanbedu.com/2010/10/28/saudi-arabia-hrh-princess-reema-bandar-al-saud-speaks-out-on-breast-cancer/

Princess Reema was also one of the organizers of the Guinness World Record breaking formation of the largest human pink ribbon chain in Jeddah. Read about this event on Susie's blog here: http://susiesbigadventure.blogspot.com/2010/10/pink-ribbon-earns-ksa-place-in-history.html
  
More pictures and updates on their Facebook Group: A Woman's Journey: Destination Mount Everest
https://www.facebook.com/AWomansJourneyDestinationMountEverest

Photo from Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/AWomansJourneyDestinationMountEverest

Way to go Saudi ladies!!!

P.S. No group of Saudi men ever broke a Guinness World record, or climbed the world's highest mountain for a cause :)

12 comments:

Star Vogue said...

GREAT EFFORT WELL DONE!
http://starvogue84.blogspot.com

pınar said...

hi lovely lady.ı hope u r doıng great. ı jst come through ur blog short whıle ago and ı got addıcted to ıt .ı m followıng ıt everyday.and ı really admire u.am a turkısh lady who gonna move to rıyadh ın a month tıme. ur blog helped me alot about my new lıfe there .thnx alot for all ur shares .and would love to know ıf u ve a facebook account.because ı thnk my mınd got mıxed wth u and susıa of arabıa.ı thought ıts ur facebook :) anyways..BEST OF LUCK laylah. greetıngs from TURKEY and frm ur loyal fan ::)

Jael said...

Mielenkiintoista tietoa saudinaisista:)
Huomasin vasta nyt kommenttisi,jonka olit laittanut suomijuttu-postaukseeni.Ihanaa kun FinnCrispiä löytyy ympäri maailmaa:)
Ja kysyit,onko täällä IKEAa;vastaus on että niitä löytyy 2,onneksi:) Sielläkin saa sitä ikäväänsä vähän lievittää,,,vaikka onkin ruotsalainen firma;D

Geoff said...

How cool!

George said...

This is a marvelous achievement. I hope it succeeds in raising awareness for breast cancer prevention.

Thanks for visiting my site.

Stewart M said...

Hi there - that’s just such an important thing for people to do. Good luck to them all.

I find the last few lines on your "comments policy" very disappointing - why do people have to force their views onto other people?

Cheers and best wishes from Australia - Stewart M

راوية said...

Mashallah! Must have been a hard trip to the top. I am glad they reached it safely.
However, in defense of our men, I do not know it they broke a Guinness World record before or if they will do it this year. But they have always done many things to support charitable causes, environmental causes, and social causes. The newspapers usually don't recognize what Saudi men do. Their focus has always been on Saudi women.
I think the last line is unfair to them - Saudi men - and I hope you will correct it.

If you would like me to post examples I would, however they are all in Arabic.

Layla said...

Hi pinar and thanks for the kind words! Susie and I are both admins of the FB group called Susie of Arabia, hope to see you there :)

Layla said...

Stewart-thanks!
I don't know that is a good question..

Layla said...

Yes I'm sure it was!
I mentioned the men because people always have this unfair impression that Saudi men are the ones who achieve stuff, to point out that it's the women who exceeded them this time around! So there's really nothing to correct here :)
P.S I found that a Saudi man broke Guinness world record of eating scorpions lol

Kira said...

I came across your blog through the 2012 weblog awards. In reading back a few posts, I was very surprised to find this one!! I just returned from Nepal and part of my trip included the EBC trek. We saw this group frequently along the trail, but never found out where they were from or the purpose of the trip. How amazing to happen upon the answer in your blog!

-Kira

Unknown said...

Its good to see that women are also doing these kind of physical active one thing i m suggesting here for women that in Pakistan women have opportunity to hike and climb with out any risk just get cheap flights to pakistan to explore the adventurous place in Pakistan which is 100% secure and perfect for international tourists.