MANAMA, Bahrain, 26 January 2006 — Michael Jackson has been out of the limelight ever since he was acquitted of child molestation charges in a highly publicized trial, which left his career and reputation in ruin. He left his life in Tinseltown and moved to this tiny Gulf Coast Island as the personal guest of Sheikh Abdullah ibn Hamad Al-Khalifa.
With no mob of paparazzi around to hound him, one would think that Jackson would be leading a normal life free of controversy. But that is not the case, as one Saudi discovered on a recent trip to Bahrain.
Sarah F., an 18-year-old student majoring in English Literature at King Saud University, was in Bahrain with her cousin, Aliyah, when they came face to face with the King of Controversy. Only this time, he was completely veiled from head to toe in an abaya!
[picture: Michael Jackson wearing a traditional Arabic women's veil and all-covering gown called "abaya", holds one of his children, also veiled, as he walks, behind a Manama shopping mall on Wednesday. (AP)]
"My cousin and I were at a music store in Seef mall browsing music CDs, when a woman came over to her friend and pointed toward Jackson and told her that was Michael Jackson and not a woman," said Sarah.
Confused and unable to recognize Jackson, Sarah and Aliyah finally realized which abaya was the odd one out.
"We couldn't recognize him but then we noticed his bodyguards standing close by and his children were with him too. What really gave him away were his sunglasses. No one wears sunglasses inside a store especially at night."
Jackson in drag is not an easy target to identify. As Sarah found out that not only did Jackson cross-dress he did it in such a lady like manner that it was very hard to tell him apart.
"I was surprised to see how well he was wearing his abaya. The abaya was completely covering his body and was closed from the front so you couldn't see what he was wearing underneath. His hijab was on perfectly with not a strand of hair poking out. And his niqab covered his whole face with only his eyes visible, but he had aviator sunglasses to take care of that."
Excited, Sarah and Aliyah approached the abaya-clad Jackson and they were greeted with a warm reception. "We said hello and told him that we were big fans and major supporters."
Jackson nodded and replied, "Thank you, God bless you, God bless you."
Asked if he was enjoying Bahrain, Jackson said, "Yes, I am."
He went on to shake hands with both girls and even commented on Sarah's blue nail polish.
"He held up my hand close to his face and told me that my nail polish was really cool."
As they were talking to Jackson, they wanted a souvenir of their encounter with the legend himself to take back home to Saudi Arabia. So both bought two of Jackson's greatest hits CD and had them autographed.
Michael Jackson has been surrounded by controversy all his life. His latest stint in the Muslim world is one that will be remembered by the two young girls for a long time to come. -- Jim Devine
"The price one pays for pursuing any profession or calling is an intimate knowledge of its ugly side." -- James Baldwin