Who would think that after living here for only 3 months that I would be showing other ladies around Abu Dhabi!!!! But yes today, myself and my friend Kay – whose husband works with Leon – were hosting 2 other Harris wives whose husbands are thinking of joining the team here. This was a strange feeling, but it made us feel good that we had made progress in the 3 months since we showed up wide eyed and overwhelmed!
We took the ladies to the Gold Souk (which I had actually never visited!). A Souk is an Arab marketplace or bazaar. Souks are made up of many different stalls of various kinds of merchandise, and many years ago they were the only shopping places in the area. But nowadays many of the souks are beautiful malls! The Gold Souk is a mall of small jewelry stores. I’ve never seen so many gold bangles in my life! The necklaces were large, opulent, with intricate designs, and all were sold as sets with matching earrings and bracelets. I started making my Christmas wish list!!!
Our next stop was another souk – the newly renovated Central Market Souk. This souk was recently rebuilt on the site of the historic old souk which was the center of Abu Dhabi shopping for decades. Unfortunately fire destroyed the old souk years ago. This new souk has over 150 stores and cafes, and is modern but still has an ethnic feel. We enjoyed lunch at a cafe and then shopping for spices at a spice store. The spices were all beautifully displayed in large burlap type bags. And the aromas were spell binding! If I only knew what to do with all of them! I had no idea frankincense was an aromatic gum one could use to settle a sour stomach! Then it was off to help the ladies buy some souvenirs at another shop. We all enjoyed trying on pashmina shawls – this is my serious weakness! And they even found Christmas Tree ornaments with camels!
I enjoyed showing these ladies around my new home. It made me think about all the things I like about Abu Dhabi! Sometimes I get caught up in the little things that frustrate me, but this was a good day to enjoy this amazing city!
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