Shopping at the Souk

Ok...by now we have figured out where the grocery stores, plastic stores and stationery stores are. (There really isn't much more than that I'm told.)

Today we went to Souk Shabi, the market where you can find just about everything, from kittens (we were told to take one) and kitten slippers (No, really, slippers made from kittens! I hope not made of the kitten I denied a home) to reels and reels of tobes (the wrap that women wear here) to a spare rickshaw or two.

Most of you who know me, know how much I love a market and bargaining. This market was no different, except my vocabulary is severely limited to "Hello", "How much?" and "Five". You can imagine how silly I looked asking for a price and only to be confused when the answer wasn't "five".

Needless to say, I left feeling the need to learn my numbers. But after a lot of gesticulating and pointing, I had my arms full of goodies and a few new friends.

All market-goers know that this is prime street food. So for a little respite, we had fresh juice (grapefruit, mango, lime, orange) squeezed right in front of our our eyes. All served in a metal bowl with a few pieces of ice. So very refreshing, the perfect thing to wash down a 25 cent falafel sandwich! I hope my stomach agrees with all of the street food. Guess we'll have to wait and see!

I still don't have my photo permit to legally take pictures here in Sudan, so I wasn't able to take photos of the experience. Here is the desert sleeping mat and some beautiful woven baskets I bought from a jovial, old woman from a tribal area in the South, evident through the 3 deep scar marks on each cheek. (I'll see what I can do about getting that permit!)