BIG mistake! We got stuck in the queue going into the car park, Land Cruisers jumping gutters speeding across sand to park here there and everywhere, cutting in to the queue and before I knew it, I couldn't change my mind, we were stuck in it! WTF was I thinking?! I managed to stay calm (this lamp is worth it!) and once we got into the carpark managed to get a park rather quickly. It was my decision to take the pram, just in case Miss B decided she had had enough and it was also a way of keeping her close and not having a nervous break down should my child go missing. When I saw how busy it was, I headed straight for the light stand but realised I needed 'cash only' so dashed back out to the foyer to the ATMs. Another 'WTF was I thinking?' moment. The queue for cash was at least 10-15 long so I headed down to another thinking it may not be as busy, 200mtrs later, it wasn't as busy so I lined up in front of about 5 local women. Not so bad, I'm thinking. Then suddenly I was surrounded by ladies in abayas, the civilised queue was no longer anywhere to be seen, it was every woman for herself. Honestly, I really don't cope very well with this. I assume it's a cultural difference that the courteous 'wait your turn' doesn't usually exist here and it always catches me off guard whether I'm driving or at the supermarket cashier. It would be my normal reaction, regardless of where I am in the world, under these circumstances to politely (and I emphasize politely) remind those jumping the queue that 'there is a queue!' To me, it's simply courtesy, we all have somewhere to be, we all need money, several of us had prams (kids do make a difference, their patience doesn't last as long as ours) so keep it civilised and we'll all eventually get what we want. But, I was seriously out numbered and really didn't feel all that comfortable. I felt like the queue jumpers were not jumping their fellow country women, they were jumping me as if I didn't have the right. I thought about what would happen if I said anything? I imagined an absolute scene of yelling in Arabic, all directed at me. Was it worth it? Absolutely not. Every so often you are reminded that you are in a country that is not your own and you are made aware of it. This was one of those moments. I let a couple of women jump and then thankfully and surprisingly one woman let me in to which I looked her in the eye and said a sincere and polite 'Shukrun' (thank you in Arabic).
So we find our way to the light stand, NOOOOO! The lamp is gone! SOLD! The vendor offers to make up another one, simply choose your 5 shades and come back in 20mins. I do this and when I arrive back I notice the vendor playing around with the shadeless lamp, it's not working. Plugging it in to other sockets, investigating the cord, cutting the cord and attaching another with electrical tape. This is not giving me a good feeling. Fire hazard comes to mind. Miss B is in the background telling me she wants to go home and she's hungry. I am assured that the lamp is fine, his partner makes all of these lights and he's an electrician. Yeah right?! Call Mr A who suggests feeling the tape and ditching the purchase if its hot, otherwise go ahead. Cord feels cool so I open my wallet. The guy is wrapping the lamp and I start wondering how the heck am I going to carry this 1.5mt high lamp with 5 hanging globes, push a pram over the desert to get to the car? I'm not! I'm good but not that good. Vendor tells me there's porters around, just grab one of them and offers to mind the lamp whilst I go search. Thanks for that! I thought porters would work like they do at the airport, there's a desk you go to, they load your luggage and take it to the car and load it on, you tip and they head back to their desk.... not at the Fair! You can hire a porter to walk around behind you whilst you shop to carry your 1 bag or 20 bags or you can simply get him to stand outside and simply mind you bag or bags. I had no chance of finding a porter. These guys were in high demand!
Sometimes, things are so easy, other times incredibly hard. Mr A and I have a motto to 'work smart, not hard' and today this was just getting too hard so I walked out. My lamp is probably still sitting there waiting for me but I'm sorry you weren't worth it. We didn't leave empty handed though....
 |
| "A mumma and a bubba" to add to Miss B's animal collection |
No comments:
Post a Comment