Download PDF - Taba Heights Magazine

Souvenir shopping comes high on the list of things to do in a foreign
country for many holidaymakers. In Taba Heights, several bazaars
compete for your attention with curios that run the gambit from
authentic Egyptian crafts to ersatz watches and sunglasses. Ladies can
admire their silhouettes in belly dancing costumes and accessories while
gentlemen try on galabeyas (hint: the more colourful and ornamented
ones are not meant for you!).
Souk merchandise also includes hand-embroidered handbags and
pillowcases as well as Bedouin-style jewellery made of silver, camel
bone, wood, and seashells. Sculptures made from wood, onyx, granite,
basalt, alabaster, and sandstone are on offer, as well as copper and
brass ornaments. Leather items including garments, luggage, and
handbags are another good buy.
At the Magic Carpet shop, a family of nine brothers sells pottery made
by their clan in Taba and Nuweiba. Their perfume burners, ashtrays, and
decorative lamps all feature unique village motifs. Cotton, silk, and camel
wool tinted with vegetable dyes are used to weave carpets, and your own
designs can be transferred onto thick carpets and delicate wall hangings.
Shisha water pipes can be bought as a souvenir and packaged for
travel. They come with an assortment of tobacco flavours including
apple, banana, bubble-gum, mango, mint, peach, and strawberry. To try
out the shisha while sitting cross-legged with a glass of tea or coffee,
head for the uptown Bedouin Tent.
Specialty shops include the Salt Cave for Dead Sea cosmetic products,
salt lamps, and candles. Kodak will print your photos in just one hour.
The Music Shop has Arabic music CDs and tabla drums inlaid with
mother-of-pearl.
On a more utilitarian side, Dr Amir Pharmacy has all the basics to
fix you up, Net Café has internet access as well as basic computer
accessories, the Vodafone shop sells prepaid cards from Vodafone and
Etisalat, while the Al Amir Mobile shop sells Mobinil cards and sets up
international telephone calls.
When it comes to nourishment, Mario Supermarket is the
convenience store to go to for snacks, beverages, cigarettes, and
hygiene products. Golden Beer sells locally-made alcohol including
beer, wine, ready-to-drink alcoholic mixes, and spirits made to look like
famous international brands with labels reading “Gordoon’s Cairo Dry
Gin”, “Fineland Vodka of Egypt”, and “John Waler Black Label”.
For a pit stop after all the shopping excitement, head for Orangina
Café or the Oriental Corner for drinks and snacks. Chez Pascal
and the Flying Carpet off the central Uptown Square, as well as
Pub Tandoori, El Fuego, and Bird’s Nest on Restaurant Row, all
serve delicious full meals.
In the Art Gallery, mesmerizing motifs are designed inside tiny sand
bottles, and artists can be watched painting with oil and acrylic. Papyrus
shops sell decorative pieces of every size and style, and some will
inscribe your name in Hieroglyphics on the papyrus of your choice.
Fresh flowers, dried arrangements, vases, candles, and other trinkets are
to be had at the Flower Shop.
Jewellers sell ornaments in gold and silver enhanced with precious
and semi-precious stones including diamonds, rubies, sapphires, agate,
amethyst, jade, lapis lazuli, mother of pearl, and topaz.
Cinnamon, coriander, cumin, oregano and more are found at
Mr Spices, including all the necessary ingredients to make traditional
local beverages including Karkadé made from hibiscus flowers, Bedouin
tea with mint or sage, and black Egyptian tea.
Perfumes made using methods that date back to the Pharaonic era are
blended on demand or sold as fragrances. Pure extracts include amber,
frankincense, gardenia, jasmine, lotus, musk, rose, and sandalwood,
while Oriental blends bear evocative names such as Arabian Nights,
Cleopatra, Harem, Nefertiti, and Secret of the Desert. Hand-blown
colourful glass perfume bottles come in all shapes and sizes.
Everything you need for a seaside vacation can be found in casual
clothing shops. Beachwear, sportswear, flip-flops and trainers, as well
as sun hats, caps, and beach towels are on offer. At Sea Club, a sister
outlet of the dive centre shop, snorkelling equipment and brand beach
gear is to be had.
SUMMER 2013 11