Butt Foodstuff

There is so much to say I don’t even know where to start. We had such a great weekend! In this region, the work week is Sunday-Thursday, so our weekend starts on Thursday night (kind if like my college days except a lot less alcohol, and a lot more responsibilities). The time change and the weekend difference really gets me sometimes. My parents received a phone call from me at 6:30 AM on Sunday morning… oops. Luckily, they enjoy talking to my kids so much, that they didn’t seem too bothered by being woken up.

Last weekend, we had our first real Souq experience. I took Bookie back to Saffron to try the Bahraini Breakfast, and it was just as delicious as the first time. I took pictures this time because I don’t think my description did the experience justice. Hunter, Mason, and Austin enjoyed the food too (although, Hunter did need some convincing to try a few of the dishes).

Bookie introduced me to a new drink (Lemon with Mint), which was really yummy. Lemon with Mint sounds very simple (and it is), but it is so refreshing. I see myself drinking it every chance I can in the summer. It tastes like someone squeezed fresh lemon (which is probably what happened), then added a little bit of sugar, water, and mint. Hunter and Mason were fans! Even Austin loved it!

Before we ate, we visited the man I talked about in my last post. The You-American-just-give-me-your-money man. Of course, he was A LOT nicer to Bookie. I mean, he was a whole different person. It was crazy. He actually negotiated with him, and wasn’t a complete prick. We were looking at buying a Kashmiri Rug, and the lowest price he offered was 200BD (About $530). We told him we were going to eat and come back (which we never did). After we were done eating, we decided to look around and try to find a better deal. This man was waiting at the entrance of the building looking for us. He was so aggressive. I spotted him before we ran into him, so we went out the back. Ha ha aggressive, abrasive, salesman! That is when the real fun started.

I loved the Souq. I need to get better at bartering, but once I get an idea of how much things should be, I think I will be better at it. It was just rows and rows of shops. Each shop was tiny when you walked in. They could fit 5-7 people comfortably, but I could see 15 people piled in there on a busy day. Here are a few pictures. We went early in the day, so it wasn’t very busy.

While we were walking around I went into a shop that sold scarves. I have been wearing a lot of scarves because it makes it easier to cover plunging necklines, and they make a great cover while breastfeeding Austin. I also like to have one just in case I need/want to cover my hair (although I haven’t had a need for it in Bahrain). Before I went in, Bookie told me, “Shannon, do not pay for more than half of the original price they offer you”. Right Bookie, you want me to pay half price… we will see how it goes. I found a scarf I liked, and the price was 6BD ($16). This is how the negotiations went,

“How much?”
“6 BD”.
“No, that is too much. How about 3?”
“No, 5?”
“No, 3”.
“3? How many will you buy?”
“2, so 6 BD for two”
“How about 7?”
“Let me go talk to my husband”

He had me at 7. I was so proud of myself. I told Bookie about my great work, and he looked at the man and said, “no, 6BD for two”. When the man said no, Bookie said, “Okay, bye”, and the man said, “Okay, Okay, 6 BD for two”. Bookie wins again. I need to step up my bartering game.

As we continued walking and shopping we reached this gem:

No, that wasn’t photoshopped, nor was it found on the internet. The name of that store was “Butt Foodstuff”, and it sold spices, nuts, and grains.

I loved this shop. We got some pistachios, chili powder, and nutmeg (5 whole nuts). When we went into the shop, they let us taste things before we bought it. When I saw the nutmeg, I was a little unsure of what it actually was because it was still in its shell, so the guys cracked it open for me, and let me smell it. They also let us try the pistachios before we bought them. The cinnamon sticks they were selling looked more like cinnamon branches. They were enormous. Butt Foodstuff was the best. I love Butt Food…stuff!

We finished our shopping trip at this really pretty store. They sold rugs and Turkish lanterns. You cannot really see from these pictures, but they are all glass, and handmade. When we went into the store, they made us some Turkish Tea, and had us sit down while all the negotiations happened. Bookie was able to talk to them, and did most of the bartering in Arabic (which was cool to see, and nice for Bookie). They were so much nicer than the first guy we spoke to, and Bookie was able to get a beautiful Kashmiri rug and tea set for 120 BD (about $317). That is $213 cheaper! Once again, Bookie for the win!

By the time we finished, it was noon. Since I have been in Bahrain, I have heard the Call to Prayer every day. Friday was the first time I saw a mass amount of people praying. Last week, when we were at the mall at around noon, I heard the Call to Prayer and was expecting to see people praying, but they weren’t. I remember thinking it was strange because I had an image in my head about what to expect, and public praying was one of those expectations. At the Souq, starting at 11:00-11:30, people started lining up with their Prayer Rugs (that is the actual term, I’m not being insensitive here), waiting for noon. Most of the shops closed 15 minutes before noon as well, it was very cool to see. There must have been a hundred people just lining the street, all faced in the same direction waiting to pray. The thing that surprised me the most, was the actual Prayer over the speakers were in both Arabic and English. Bookie was also surprised by this. It was the moment that I realized, “Wow, we are here.” It was something I had never seen before. We left before the prayer started, and I am glad we did, because it felt very intrusive to be there without praying.

All of that happened Friday morning. It was a long exciting morning. Saturday was a selfish mom day. A neighbor and I went to a place called, The Art House. The Art House is a place where they teach different art classes. The art class I attended was a mosaic class. We got there at 10:00 AM and didn’t leave till 5:00 PM. They served us muffins, tea, and coffee in the morning, and lasagna and salad for lunch. Now, seven hours may seem a little excessive for one project, but time flew, and I didn’t even finish mine. I have to go back and do the grout. When I got there in the morning, I was given my board, which was just a blank canvas. We first drew what we wanted, in my case, a dolphin with a sunset behind it. Then, we picked the tile we wanted, and cut the tile to the size we wanted it. It took me five hours to finish the dolphin, sun, and sunset. It was fun, but such a long process. Here is the (close to) finished product:

Not bad for my first try, although I don’t think I will be entering into any Mosaic competitions anytime soon.

While I was on my seven hour excursion, Bookie was a rock star and took all three boys for the day. At one of the 5 million local malls, they offer cooking classes for kids. He took the boys!

I haven’t seen it yet, but you pay for which ever recipe you want them to learn, and then they take the kids, and kick you out. Bookie went and in and told Hunter and Mason that they were going to make lasagna (one of the three recipes on the list), then one of the workers said, “Or do you want to make cookies, or cupcakes!” (the other two items). Guess which one they chose… M&M sugar cookies. They loved it, and could not wait to tell me about it when I got home. They had a great time. They have also been asking to go back everyday since.

While the boys were cooking, Bookie took Austin to do his new favorite thing… eat!

That little guy is such a fat boy now. Nobody can eat around him without hearing a yell, and this is a give-me-your-food kind of yell. He eats everything he can get his little hands on. It is so cute, and so messy!