Elizabeth Beaulieu

When Betsy Beaulieu heads to the Middle East, she'll be in search of the perfect manicure. With a background in Women's Studies, Betsy intends to observe gender roles and expectations in Jordan and Egypt.

Having just read Kabul Beauty School by Deborah Rodriguez, she's become interested in culturally constructed notions of beauty in the Islamic world.

Although disappointed that she won't be traveling to Saudi Arabia, among the most repressive countries for women, Betsy will visit places where women's bodies are largely covered in an attempt to understand and appreciate women's ways of being in the Middle East. And she received a hot tip from a friend who recently traveled throughout the Middle East: the best place to talk with women is the local beauty shop. Apparently the way women open up while having their hair and nails done is universal. Veils, burqas, and inhibitions are shed at the door, and possibilities for women's community abound.

In addition to spending time in beauty parlors, Betsy will meet with Women's Studies faculty at several institutions of higher education as well as visit shops where women congregate and a Dead Sea spa. When she returns she hopes to create a course entitled Nefertiti's Daughters, which will take as its focus contemporary portrayals of Middle Eastern women in literature and film.