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| 3 of my 5 bracelets - I gave the others to my daughters |
We were bombarded left and right from Bedouin salesmen as soon as we stepped out of the buggy. These little boys were placing silver bracelets on my wrist wanting me to "buy". The first little boy placed 5 bracelets on my wrist and then told me I could have them for $100. Needless to say I starting peeling them off my wrist as fast as I could and telling him "no thank you". Him and a bunch other little boys kept following us trying to make a deal. It wasn't until the first little boy told me I could have all 5 for $25 that I finally made the deal. They really are beautiful and I'm especially glad that I have them now because they remind me of Tom and our trip to Petra
So we walked about the ruins of Petra for most of the morning. I enjoyed taking in all the sights and smells of this wonderful place. Camels and donkeys left and right, as they are the only means of transportation down here. Mostly men were there selling their wares or drumming up rides on the camels and donkeys. After awhile Tom was tired so we stopped at the only place there for refreshment and trinkets. The manager of the shop, Rennick was a young Bedouin man in his thirties. He was very adept at what he did. You could tell he ran a tight shop and Tom and I were impressed with the way he handled himself. We ended up buying three stones shaped like eggs.
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| Eggs Purchased in Petra |
Tom sat there at the shop drinking his Diet Coke while I did some more climbing and exploring, which was hard for Tom to do. It still boggles my mind how these people carved this city out of the stone.
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| Tom resting at the "Why Not Shop" |
When I got back to the shop, Rennick started to talking to Tom and I because business was slow. Then some of his friends came out and told him to come eat. He turned to me and asked if I would like to share their meal with them. I had been wanting to try their food since reading the book "Married to a Bedouin" (as mentioned in my previous blog). So I asked Tom if that would be alright, Tom said sure.
We went to the back part of the store where there were four other men sitting around this pot of what looked like stew. They were eating the stew using pita bread to sop it up. They handed me some bread and showed me how to eat. It was very good! There was one young man who said he was the managers cousin. He proceeded to tell me, pointing to his cousin "He likes you!" I'm sure I blushed some when he said that but I responded back "I'm old!" I told them how I am a grandma. Then the young men, who were probably in there twenties said, "It doesn't matter. You have more experience!" I just laughed. I then told them how I had read Marguerite's book Married to a Bedouin. They all said that they knew her. I told them I thought that she had moved back to New Zealand which they said she had decided to move back to Petra because these were her people. I told them how much I loved the book and all that I learned from it. We talked a little more then I went back and joined Tom.
A few minutes later Rennick joined us and after a few minutes asked Tom, "How many camels for your wife?" Tom smiled. Then Rennick said, "I will give you 12 camels for you wife." That's when Tom quickly responded, "There are not enough camels in the world." That made my heart flutter. What a sweet thought! Rennick tried to harang Tom for a little bit longer but realized that he was going to get nowhere.
I asked Rennick if I could have my picture taken with him which he grinned and said he would be honored. So now, if anyone asks me if I've ever had anything unique happen to me, I can tell them how my husband was offered 12 camels for my hand in marriage!
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| Rennick and Me |
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