Our next stop after visiting the Citadel and the Mosque was stopping at the Bazaar, which means market. Like many other touristy spots, the vendors beckon you to visit their stores. At first, its not too bad, then it becomes annoying to the point of being harassed. In a country where tourists are the main source of income, its hard for vendors to make a living when tourism is down.
We were dropped off in the middle of the square, and our guide Yasser pointed out a store that supposedly sold “everything”. There was a lot of stuff, but we decided to walk around. We were accompanied by a “tourist police” to make sure we were safe and not harassed.
The bazaar had every knick knack you could think of, from shirts to galabeyas, from pipes to shoes, and everything in between. Unfortunately, we were limited in time, and I didn’t want to burden myself by carrying stuff around, especially since we had a plane to catch later on. There were a lot of neat things, and tour group member Dottie picked up some leather Arabian shoes for $45, and Marilyn picked up a t-shirt written in Arabic for $2.
After browsing, we were to meet up with Yasser at the designated cafe for some hot peppermint tea. We were supposed to spend no more than half an hour at the bazaar, but somehow I think we spent a lot more time at the cafe than we should have.
The clock is still ticking, as we have to be catch a plane at 4:30 pm. We have not gone to the Cairo Museum yet, and our next destination is the Hanging Church. Will we have time to do all of this and have lunch?
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