Best Laid Plans

So the other day I had to get some business cards made and I decided to take care of that after a 7PM to 7AM graveyard shift. I got home and shut my eyes for awhile to do a light recharge of my batteries and intended to awake and get the chore done in a few minutes and go back to bed.

Arabic Strip Mall

Near me in Khalifa City A is what I call an Arabic strip mall. It juts up out of the flat suburban landscape like a monument and can be seen from miles around. These are ubiquitous throughout the Emirate outside of urban areas and consists of retail establishments on the ground floor and professional offices/ apartments above. One can get just about anything at ground level from tomatoes to hammers.

Arabic Strip Mall

I went to a photography store that I had used before to see if they could print the business cards. After waiting about 10 minutes while the owner did his books back in his office, he finally appeared and asked me what he could do for me. I asked him if he could print business cards and he shook his head "no", but there  was a stationery store around back that could. I thanked him and drove around back and found the correct store. there was a problem though, there was a huge sign declaring  the closed status of the business even though another sign assured me it should have been open. Thinking someone might have been late, I sat in my car for awhile but no one showed up. Fail!

Despite this, I decided to go to the local smoke shop around the corner to get some lighter fluid for my Zippo. The shopkeeper was pleasant enough and understood my needs but said the lighter fluid was of poor quality and refused to sell me any even though there were plenty of cans on the shelf. OK, I asked him if he had an inexpensive butane lighter and he sold me this with a refill can.

Butane Lighter

I recognized this as a crack pipe lighter but I was entranced by the bright blue flame and it was refillable so I bought it for 5 Dirhams and a can of butane for 10, not a bad deal. The trademark "KKK" may have some problems in North America though if this lighter was ever marketed there.

This small smoke shop was also packed to the rafters with shisha pipes, charcoal and tobacco. For those that are not familiar with shisha, it is a very civilized Arabic social custom where folks sit around and puff fruit flavored tobacco through the pipe which is also known as a hookah. The tobacco is packed in a chamber and is kept lit by charcoal. The smoke goes through water and is cooled and mellowed by the pipe which results in a mild, flavorful smoke. The tobacco flavor runs the gamut from grapes to mint to watermelon.

Shisha Pipe

Shisha Pipe

I always entertained the idea of having my own shisha pipe in the house because it is such an enjoyable activity and it would be cool. Here I was in a smoke shop with the supposed proprietor and I asked him his advice about purchasing one from him. Amazingly, he told me to get one from Bani Yas, a town 20KM from my current location. I was dumbfounded! Here I was surrounded by these things and he refused to sell me one. I couldn't have swung a dead cat without hitting a shisha pipe in the small shop. I was stunned, I got in my car and started for home and still couldn't figure out why the guy didn't want my money. Maybe it was a racial thing, but it seemed quite cordial.

I never did get my business cards but I did get the cool crack pipe lighter. Maybe next time!