Use Your Accent

The souks are intense. Before arriving, I erroneously thought a “souk” was a contained market area that you could enter/exit as needed. But I was so wrong. (Most) Every street in the Medina is lined with shops. You can’t get anywhere without having to walk through alley after alley, all jam-packed with souks and everything that comes along with them.

If you’re into bargaining, they could be fun. I was very grateful for tri-lingual L because she is very comfortable in French, as were many shop owners. When negotiations broke down in English, she jumped right in and made our intentions clear, en français.

But there was also a lot of behavior I didn’t particularly enjoy while shopping: harassment, catcalling, pick pocketing, guilting, refusal to take ‘no’ for an answer, etc. What we found interesting is that there were very few locals shopping at the souks. The shops seemed to be in place exclusively for tourists. You had to keep your wits about you while there, even if you were just trying to walk through. We saw more than one tourist realize they were missing valuables.

On the positive side, the souks were a feast for the eyes, that’s for sure! Downright beautiful in some spots.

We found several shop owners who were really kind and helpful and willing to show us how they created their wares.

One day, while admiring the produce at the juice stand and feeling pretty parched, we were invited to a free sample and a “tour” of the juicing process. Sales tactic? Probably. Definitely. I guess we stopped and stared just a bit too long. But that was a typical scenario in the souks. If you held your eyes on something just a millisecond too long…they pounced.  

But these two seemed safe enough. (Famous last words, right?!) However, they clearly underestimated us. Chef didn’t think I could operate a juice press. So I had to bust out the guns. They don’t come out often, but when someone doesn’t think I am capable/strong enough to squeeze a pomegranate….they have to put in their place. 🙂

Juice accomplished. We’ll ignore that fact that it was lukewarm.

Despite the hassles and overstimulation of the souks, we went home with our coffers full! AND all of our valuables still in our possession! A success!