Reading the walls: Layers of Meaning 3 – 22 Dec 2004
We decided to take a tour of Egypt in late 2004. Luckily for me, digital photography was fast becoming popular meaning better quality and cheaper. So I made a rash decision and decided to buy my first handbag sized camera, a Sony, on a stopover in Dubai. Unfortunately, blogging didn’t charm me until 2008, but I had learnt the skills of research and a love of history whilst in India. Now I can combine the lot.
This section of our whirlwind tour of Egypt has been left deliberately simple given the amount of information in the two previous sections. I don’t intend to give a detailed account of each and every monument or building we visited; there’s too much learned study out there. Besides you really have to see it to appreciate it. Books, photographs or videos can never replace the thrill of really being there.
I plan to update when I’ve finished my big under stairs cleanout, so any missing information, corrections etc will be attended to then.
3-4th December 2004: Dubai (Hotel Dar Al Sandos, Rolla Street)
Glorious Gold. We only had a day. Our stopover was really just for me to see the gold souk. I had a shopping list prepared! The day started at the nearby electronics souk in Al Fahidi Street in Bur (meaning old) Dubai which was within walking distance of our hotel. We snapped up a few bargains for work and I set myself up nicely with a new camera and lots of memory cards. Unfortunately it didn’t make it out of the box for our walk through the textile souk. After Delhi’s superb textile shopping I was less than excited so we took an abra taxi (an abra is the simple & traditional timber craft) across The Creek to the Spice Market. The sights and smells were so tantalizing and familiar. We also felt we had slipped a few centuries back in just a 5 minute boat ride. It didn’t take long however to spot the maze of glittering shops in the Diera gold souk on Al Dhagya. I was stunned at the seeming endless variety on offer. No two shops sold the same kind of creations. The craftsmanship was fantastic regardless of whether you wanted plain or heavily decorated jewellery. I drooled, I dithered, I looked at all the shops - twice, but still couldn’t make up my mind.
Finally, Mr DIY got the fidgets so we headed back to the electronics souk to pick up a few more gadgets. Luckily, we made it just before closing time. However all was not lost for my “gold” shopping list. Have you seen the shops sparkling with gold and jewels at the Dubai International Airport? Waiting for your flight can be fun…
