I recently spent some time with good friends who have lived in the UAE even longer than I have and they took me and a few other friends to the old Sharjah Souq or market where there are serious bargains to be had…especially carpets…in fact my friend picked up the most gorgeous Persian carpet (silk and wool) for an amazing price! While I was not interested in buying a carpet, I was intrigued by the show put on by the carpet trader who unrolled at least 30 carpets for us to look at, spreading each one out on the floor with a flourish, while we sat on wooden benches sipping sweet tea and Arabic coffee. Then the hard work started while my friend and her husband bargained with Mr Mohammad, the carpet seller! After much moaning and comaplaining about how he was being robbed, they settled on a price and the carpet was rolled up and loaded into their car….I should add that this is the 6th or 7th carpet my friend has bought from Mr Mohammad and she assures me that each time, the show is exactly the same…including the moaning about how she is taking food from his many children!!! They always part friends and each party ends up very happy…the joys of bargaining….
Here are a few images I took while wandering around….
I must say that I enjoyed my visit immensely and found it refreshing to be among traditional buildings and a slightly slower pace of life for a change………
A Decorator's Notebook 