Local entrepreneurs are allowed on the ANA base each Friday (Jumaa in Dari) and have a bazaar in one of the base warehouses. Tons of rugs, mainly Afghan (duh) and Persian, aka Iranian since Iran is only 50 miles away and lots of commerce occurs across the border. Pirate DVDs are freely available for a dollar or two. You can get 4 movies on one DVD for a few dollars. Obviously, the quality is frequently poor. One alternated between Japanese and English with all Japanese subtitles. These are illegal as well in the US but Afghanistan focuses on other issues than software piracy and copyright violations.
One of the other docs bought a $20 "Rolex", which fooled no one. He knew it was fake but needed a watch. Electronics like MP3s, flash drives and TVs are also offered and cheap.
Afghanistan is known as the best source of lapis lazuli. See above. Quite cheap here and can be raw stone, polished or shaped. Nice, blue and opaque in color.
Also shown are oil lamps. Tobacco is allowed under Muslim law and hookahs (water pipes) are for sale. I found nice sextants I could probably get for about $40, so I can sail the deep blue sea of Afghanistan (that's a joke).
Ah, yes, haggling. The most aggressive merchants are the rug sellers since they know we Americans won't blink an eye at hundreds of dollars for a nice rug. They grab your hand and try to get you to sit down while they pitch their wares. I bought a small one for the side of my bunk so I can stay off the concrete floor. Colleagues have spent up to $600 for large ones to send home. Otherwise, you usually can bargain down to less than half the first asking price. I wanted a cheap, 220 volt reading lamp. The youngun' wanted 15 euros (about $20). I said 5 US. He countered 12 euros; I walked away. He then ran up to me a minute later and said, OK, $5.
3 comments:
$600 for a rug? That has to be a mammoth amount of money in that country. Sounds like your colleagues could learn something about bargaining from you.
Per capita income in 2004 was $450. Yes, less than five hundred. So, a $50 profit on a rug is a month's income here. Much of the wares are made in China. I bet my $5 lamp cost the merchant less than a buck.
Some of the rugs are huge, beautiful, incredibly detailed and stiched, not printed.
I had to laugh at the haggling. We've become so domesticated in our shopping in The West. Strange that we save our haggling for only the most expensive of items: houses and cars!
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