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Guide to Dubai Souqs
Dubai’s souqs hold everything imaginable - you’ll find Arabian perfume, traditional kandouras (white robes), spices and bellydancing costumes. Most shops specialise in something, but some seem to sell everything, ancient and modern, from pumice stones to traditional wooden tooth cleaners. Whatever you buy, make sure to bargain, and in between bargaining take time to chat to the sales guys - they hail from everywhere: Mumbai, Islamabad, Isfahan and even Kiev. Accept all offers of tea - the socialising is as much fun as the shopping. And the shoppers are just as varied - you’ll see foreign tourists haggling over suitcases and local ladies looking for the latest textiles. Souqs are generally open from Saturday to Thursday 10am to 1pm, shutting for lunch and siesta, and reopening around 5pm until 10pm. On Friday (prayer day) they open in the afternoon. Deira Gold Souq The Gulf’s glitziest gold market is impressive, but once you’re done gawking at the jaw-dropping displays, grab a bench on the main drag to absorb the street action. You’ll see Afghani guys shifting impossibly heavy carts, and colourfully-caftaned African ladies haggling for the glittery stuff. Deira Gold Souq is considered to be the best in the world - that means the cheapest gold but with the highest quality and widest range. Gold is sold by weight, but there’s room to bargain. Where: On and around Sikkat al-Khail St, between Souq Deira & Old Baladiya Sts Bur Dubai Souq Wander through this vibrant textile souq on the waterfront and experience the hustle and bustle deep within its wooden-latticed arcades. Buzzy Bur Dubai Souq is best explored at night when it’s at its liveliest. Fridays sees it crowded with expat workers on their day off, bargaining for gifts to take home, getting haircuts and buying hot Indian snacks. The souq is loveliest in winter when cool breezes blow through the arcades by the waterfront. Where: Between Bur Dubai waterfront and Al-Fahidi St Deira Covered Souq Deceptively large and disorienting, don’t be surprised if, just as you think you have a handle on where you are, you get lost all over again. This warren of narrow lanes is lined with small shops selling everything from lurid textiles to plastic coffeepots - but if you get worn out by the hopping, just take in the captivating surroundings. Where: Between Al-Sabkha Rd, 67 St & Naif Rd Deira Spice Souq Do your olfactory senses a favour at this tiny aromatic market - inhale the pungent scents from the sacks brimming with herbs and spices. When you’re done playing ’guess which spice is in that sack’ with the shopkeepers, take in the windtower architecture and take away some souvenirs: saffron, frankincense and rosewater. Where: Between Baniyas Rd, Al-Sabkha Rd & Al-Abra St Deira|
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