Khan el Khalili

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I didn't want to inundate you guys with too much text, so I decided to put this adventure as a separate entry. Yesterday my friends and I went to Khan el Khalili, a huge traditional market. It is crazy! The first part nearer the entrance is aimed at tourists, with cheap trinkets and knickknacks and traditional "papyrus," which is actually usually made from banana leaves. The vendors there all call out, "Come into my store, I have things you have never seen!" "You want, you want?" "How can I take your money?" Further in is where the Egyptians actually shop. There are stalls with cheap toys, sandals piled high, sheets and baskets of spices. It is so crowded, and the walkways are narrow. Bottle caps and other unidentified goo litter the streets. We entered the back back alleys, where PVC roofing and other materials keep the sun from getting in, and which is definitely the slummier part of the market. The only way to explore it without going crazy is to wander and get lost. A couple of my friends seemed to know generally which direction things were in, so I wasn't worried. The different smells there were incredible. There were spices that I can't even name, mixed in with the smell of fabrics and people, and coffee and cigarette smoke. We came out by a huge mosque where the cafes line up next to an open square. Compared to my experiences of riding in beat up lookiing taxis and wandering through a dirty market, the huge shiny tour buses were kind of a shock. This apparently is where many tour buses park so that the tourists can see the mosque, or something like that. I was also shocked at some of the women tourists wearing booty shorts and halter tops with their bras showing, when I feel exposed if I wear anything that goes higher than my knees, and would never dream of wearing a tank top. I mean, do you not understand anything about the culture you're visiting? Or do you just not care? It was embarrassing to be associated with them as foreigners.

We sat down at one of the cafes and the boys had sheesha. Every few minutes someone would come up trying to sell us souvenirs. A simple "no" didn't deter them, but telling them "mi-shize" ("I don't want" in Arabic) worked. We also had a couple of children that came up to sell us things, and they wouldn't leave! Eventually the shop keepers picked them up and set them down away from their customers. It was nice that the shop keepers weren't mean to them, but gently shoo-ed them away.

We didn't buy anything except for over-priced water at the cafe, but it was a fun experience. I definltely learned that there are some instances when sandals are not the best choice, as several times I got the unidentified goo and black water from puddles and my feet and ankles. Ew.

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Photos

Peter and Ally
Peter is smoking sheesha

Yousef and Kira
Yousef is from America, but his family is Egyptian, so he is our go-to for communication.

Comments

[Dad]

Fantastic Blog
Hey Lauren, Great blog, regarding the "creaps", think of them as a pine plank and give them one of your Taekwon-do moves "eeeh-yaaaw", done deal. Or I can put Sam on a flight tomorrow, maybe Brian. Awesome Adventures, Love Dad