September 19, 2008 Souq in Berberville

Though I usually go into SouqTown to go to souq (the weekly market), Berberville does have its own small souq as well. I went there today in hopes of picking up some ikshushan (housewares), but they didn’t have what I was looking for: mixing bowls. I’ll look around next time I’m in SouqTown. I did find some blankets, a new handle for my somewhat-broken broom, and some big kettles (for taking bucket baths). I didn’t buy any of these, though I did price them out. I’ll check the prices in SouqTown and see how they compare.

After a futile search of the ikshushan vendors, I was idly wandering around, and came upon a guy selling notebooks, for the students starting their new semester. I ended up buying two, a big one for writing Tam stories in and a small one to keep in my pocket and write down new vocabulary.

As I walked away from him, it occurred to me that, for all the times I’ve walked through Berberville’s souq, I’ve never bought anything there before. I had to laugh when I realized that my first souq purchase was about as far inside my comfort zone as exists in Berberville: something for reading and writing. :)

Then I headed up to the fruit and veggie vendors and picked up some tomatoes and bananas. I looked at the pomegranates, but was put off by how pale they are. They were mostly beige…does this mean that we’re still at the beginning of pomegranate season, or just that Moroccan fruits don’t always match their American counterparts? (The honeydew melons sure don’t match – here they’re bright yellow with ridges. They look more like watermelons than anything else, but they’re green and sweet on the inside, and taste like the honeydew I’m used to.)

Then a swing past the hanut (dry goods store, open almost 24/7) for some baking supplies – bread, butter, baking powder, vanilla powder – and I was ready to head home.

My first Berberville souq shopping trip. Lhumdullah! :)