You know how I say that every day is Tuesday? Well, Fridays are actually more like Wednesday, in that they are not as bad as Tuesday. The contractors and the local nationals that work with me are off, so the office is fairly quiet. We use the day to catch up on things in the office and take it a bit easier. Another thing we do on Fridays is attend the weekly Afghan Bazaar.
Every Friday from 10 – 4, local Afghan venders are permitted to set up shop in one of our parking lots to sell their wares. Afghanistan is most famous for their rugs, scarfs, gems, and lapis, a blue stone that is carved into just about anything.
Every Friday from 10 – 4, local Afghan venders are permitted to set up shop in one of our parking lots to sell their wares. Afghanistan is most famous for their rugs, scarfs, gems, and lapis, a blue stone that is carved into just about anything.
Above: Wall hangings and scarfs. Below: Famous Afghan rugs.
Lapis in all shapes and sizes. Check out the NY Yankee coaster at the bottom!
Gems can be purchased and made into custom jewelry. Large selections of antique and miscallaneous jewelry can also be purchased.
However, the busiest vendors are the ones selling DVDs and software. You can pick up any movie (even the ones still in the theaters) for 100 Afghanis a piece (about $2.00). Box sets of TV shows sell for 50 Afghanis ($1) a disc. I picked up NCIS seasons 1 – 7, a 41-disc set, for $40. Amazon is currently selling it for $160. Yeah, they are bootlegs, but so far the only issue I’ve found is that disc 4 of season one is really disc 5 and disc 5 is really disc 4…not too bad for 75% off the retail price.
Any movie, TV show, or software is available at a low, low price.
The hardest part of the bazaar is the haggling. The price that they tell you isn’t the lowest price you can pay, so you haggle. It is known that the vendors are actually knowledgeable about the military rank structure, so the final price depends on what rank they see you are wearing. Being a Major they don’t give me the best deals, however I know that I am always paying too much anyway since I’m not good at this bargaining game. I could really use my sister Jodie here for her expert shopping skills!
Beautiful hand painted tile and wooden, collapsable baskets.
Antiques...or new items made to look antique?
Even "authentic" Oakleys and Ray-Ban can be purchased. I don't think these patches are sold on the local market.
The bottom line is the bazaar allows me time away from my desk and makes Fridays a bit more bearable. This alone is worth paying 250 Afghanis instead of 150 Afghanis for a bracelet due to my awful negotiation skills.
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