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| Diwali all around: Lanterns at the Khan-el-Khalili |
Bargaining with street vendors is certainly not my forte!
The issue is rather acute especially since I’m Indian and it’s supposed to be
in my blood. So I needed all the help I could get when I visited the
Khan-el-Khalili.
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| Bread vendors outside the Hussein mosque |
Khan-el-Khalili is a hunting ground for the bargain seeker. It
was founded as a Turkish bazaar in 1382 right on the Al-Muiz
street, which was the major artery of Fatimid Cairo. Modern Cairo has certainly
moved, but the Al-Muiz still holds the charm of an Islamic city with her
minarets towering above all else. Amidst, the grandeur and piety of the
mosques, mausoleums and the Al-Azhar university stands a babble of merchants,
the ‘Khan’.
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| Cafes outside Khan-el-Khalili. Al-Azhar mosque in the background |
To get to the Khan-el-Khalili, find the Al-Hussein mosque just
off the Azhar street. It is named after the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad,
Husayn Ibn Ali. With some believing that his head is buried in the premises, it
makes it one of the holiest mosques in Cairo. The pencil minaret marks the
spot. Around it are numerous vendors selling Egyptian bread or
Eesh Baladi, a local and larger version
of pita bread. You can identify them by the large wooden cages they carry them
in. Further up, lining the street is a series of cafes, comfortably spilling
out of their spaces onto the street, mingling with bustle of tourists and
worshippers. If you look foreign like I do, you might have to fend off the
waiters and the bread vendors – tell them that you will be back later – it
worked for me. But all the same, it is a good tempering for what you are about
to experience. The market is more than a collection of narrow alleys, its an
immersion into the cacophony of traders, the glimmer of trinkets and distinct
odour of coffee – an Arab souk and more.
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| Souvenirs on display |
I was with my Mum on this one. She is certainly the more
experienced shopper and unlike me, she was at the ‘Khan’ to actually shop. But,
we were surrounded. The traders were switched on the second we stepped foot in
the street. “Sir, you Indian…we love the India…see this only 5 pounds, because
we love the India”, “Welcome to Shah Rukh Khan shop….kya haal hai?”, “Indian,
Indian! My name is Krishna, what you want – Shirts? Pyramids? I give you best
price”…. For some reason, all of them and I mean all of them, had no problem in
figuring out our nationality. And as you can see, they had the routine planned
and rehearsed!
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| Narrow alleys of the market |
Then we entered Salama’s shop. Salama was stocky, had a
short haricut, emphasized his consonants
and extended his vowels– like most of the others around. Oh and ofcourse, he
had been to Mumbai 3 times before –that was his Indian story. He spoke broken
English – good enough to make a trade, awful if he had to say, recite some
English poetry impromptu. “Just see, just see once, then you can go”, he kept saying
and beckoned me into the shop. After refusing so many vendors before, I
couldn’t say ‘No’ again and entered just to play along at first. His shop was
like all the others before him. On display were trinkets, small models of the
pyramids, sphinx and other Egyptian symbols made out of wood or stone. Walkiing
sticks, plates, TShirts and papyrus art completed the range.
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| Minaret of Al-Hussein mosque |
My mother though suddenly showed some interest in a set of three pyramids. They were of 3 different sizes (to represent the ‘Khufu’, ‘Khafre’
and ‘Menkaura’ pyramids).
The quote came in – 350 EP. Sulama then took one of them and started
banging it on the desk –“See very strong, no break”. “Too high” was my mother’s
call and she began to walk away in typical Indian fashion. But you really can’t
walk away here in Khan-el-Khalili! I had read about it in articles and
travelogues before – the vendors are relentless and sometimes take offense if
you don’t bargain well! Salama exchanges a few words in Arabic with a few other
vendors near him and then quotes a lower number. The game had begun. But the
quote was still too high. Salama looks pleadingly at me. I don’t even want the
pyramids! “I only pay, Mum decides”, I tell him. With a one swift action, he
grabs hold of my mother’s arm and pulls her back into the shop. But, here’s the
funny part – she is now also being addressed as ‘Mum’!
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| A little variety in the market |
‘Mum! Mum! I give you good price - 200 for the large pyramid’.
Still not good enough. Now, while turning out, my mother tells Salama that he
should ask me as I was ‘the boss’. I
didn’t know where to begin. I quote an extremely low number to seem
unreasonable. So he turns back to my mother, “Mum! You strong woman – I know,
so I give you the best price -150”. Nope, not there yet! Salama sinks back into
his chair and waves his hands about dramatically in despair. Once again I find
myself alone in the store – ‘Mum’ had walked out and started bargaining with
some other vendors. Yes! trapped in the
Lion’s den. This time I couldn’t be unreasonable – the game had gone on too
long even for Salama and he was bringing out the clichés – “Ok I give you for
120, because I like both of you!” Finally, after a few more rounds, Salama
agreed to 155 and my Natraj pen (worth Rs. 5) for all three pyramids. 350 EP to
155! Not a bad deal I guess, though with my poor record, I shouldn’t be the one
to decide that.
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| Fishawi Cafe |
I came to the Khan to see an Egyptian souk in action –
merchants haggling away in her disorderly streets amidst her old stone walls, maybe
catch another tourist playing the ritualistic game of negotiations. Rather it
was me thrown into fray! A little more than I had bargained for, I guess.
TIPS
- Explore the entire market before
making a purchase – partly because you want to experience all of Khan-el-Khalili,
partly because there is a lot of repetition and you might get a better deal
somewhere else
- Don’t miss the cafés in and
around the market. We had tried the El-Fishawi Café in the market itself.
References
