Luxor Shopping

Soliman's in Karnak is maybe the best place to go for essential oils - the oils are pure. Any Taxi driver will take you there....just make sure it say's "Soliman's" ourside the door before you go in. It is what they call a Perfume Palace and they have all the oils there that are available in Egypt.

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The Souk is a long street lined by stores that sells all sorts of souvenirs and handicrafts. The place is a lot smaller but cleaner than the Khan Al-Kalili of Cairo. Be sure not to stray out into the small side streets (which are marked with barriers) as those are not patrolled by the tourist police so you might get into trouble unnecessarily.

What to buy: In Cairo, the main buys are essences and papyrus. In Luxor, the primary products are alabaster vases, busts, figurines or anything that can be carved/sculpted from the stone.

What to pay: Except in stores with signs "no hassle", always haggle for bargains. They won't agree, walk away. They'll call you if they suddenly change their mind but be sure to pay what you bargained for.

Twinkies sell all those sticky sweet things. The real joy of the whole experience is the packaging: select the appropriate size little gold cardboard tray, get it loaded by the assistant with whatever takes your fancy, another little gold tray placed on top, it's weighed and you're given a ticket to take to the cashier. No funny business here, I'm happy to say. Then your package is placed in slushily romantic pink carrier bag (think Barbie style) & off you go.

What to buy: I ended up spending quite a lot of money at Twinkies. The packaging may be a s camp as the proverbial row of frilly pink tents, but the goods are.....serious.

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Bringing home a nice alabaster vase is probably one of the best souvenirs available in Luxor. The irredescent stone makes a great conversation piece when placed on a lighted base. At the alabaster factory, workers lazily appear to be making new jars, grinding them from a single piece of stone as has been done since antiquity. The visitor can try the grinding equipment and appear like one of the workers in a photo as shown below. I wouldn't be surprised though if the actual production facility actually uses power grinders rather than the hand tools seen at the "factory". But, then again, I really don't know. Labor is surprisingly cheap in Egypt. There is plenty of stock available for purchase, and the prices really are on the cheap side by American-European standards.

What to buy: When purchasing a vase, make sure that the stone is not too flawed with cracks. A thin wall is nice, but only to the extent that the vessel is structurally sound. After the vase is shaped, it is steeped in a hot wax solution and then polished. The wax tends to fill voids and cracks in the stone, and helps to bring out the natural beauty of the stone pattern in a permanent "wet look". Avoid appearing too interested in any particular vase, and bargain for several before selecting the one you want. Prices obviously vary by size and natural beauty of the stone and workmanship. It's extremely important to pack the vase in plenty of soft material. A broken alabaster vase is worthless. I believe that we carried ours in hand onto the airplane, and it sits now on a special base which I made from some hardwood and a flourescent lamp bulb.

What to pay: Bargain, bargain, bargain. The Egyptians will always go lower, and most of the time they will get the better of you. On the other hand, consider the value of what such art means in your home. The effort to make a good alabaster vase

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On the second deck there was a small shop where it was possible to buy souvenirs, clothes and gifts. However the prices in this shop were high enough in comparison with the prices which bazaars had. Therefore few tourists bought the goods there.

Cabins were settled down on three decks. The restaurant and the bar were located on the third deck. In the same place there was a big dancing hall and big TV receiver. The team of the ship has shown us a concert with dances and songs there in one of the evenings.

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This is the shop I always take my friends to when in Egypt. The bazaar is full of shops and people seeing you as walking wallets. The special thing about this shop is the owner George. He is christian, a profound believer, and he believes in honesty. He has a variety of things in his shop, statoes, boxes, scarf, dresses, spices, sheesha and more. have something cold to drink and enjoy his company. George is funny and nice, and the shop is a relaxing place to be, you don't feel run over like other places in the souq.

However, make sure you deal with George himself!

Say to him "fiskekaka!" And that you were tipped by a norwegian girl? Your price wil come further down ;)

What to buy: This shop has statues, boxes, instruments, dresses and scarves, sheesha and spices
among other things. And what you don't find there he will bring to you.

What to pay: Examples: Embroidered womens dress, high quality, 80 LE
Sheesha, big, 70 LE
Thin scarf, 15 LE

Alladdins hule means Alladdins cave, and a cave of treasures is just what it looks like in there.
First floor is filled with... anything, really. But the real treat is upstairs. Amazing silk carpets, handmade, in all colours and patterns. My favourite is a pale green "Tree of life". DON'T BUY IT! It's mine!!

Even if you don't intend to buy, step by and let alladdin show you how the colours shift with the light. Feel the silk, pet it, sit on it, lie in it, take off your shoes and walk on it.

Take care. It's addictive!

Let him also show you his beautiful bedouin costumes.

What to buy: Silk Carpets

What to pay: All prices... depends on size.

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Don't even think that you can get the real thing on the street, and if you try to pay big bucks in some back alley deal, you may run into trouble with the law. But, there's no need to buy cheap molded factory reproductions in Egypt as there is plenty of talent to handcraft stone. The modern Egyptians value their monuments, and it's quite possible that the fellow at the Queen Nefertari Museum is right when he claims that his objects come from estate sales. I found the shop in Luxor, but the owner appears to also have a location in Cairo.

What to buy: Local artists create reproductions, and some of those found in the area may not be so new. I was interested in finding a reproduction using the same stone as the original. I found a decent, even if not exact, version of a Ramses II statue. Compare the photos of my reproduction with the Luxor Museum statue of Amenophis II. The shop also has supposed relief fragments, many types of tomb treasures and jewelry.

What to pay: The prices are less negotiable than elsewhere, but still bargain hard. This guy is low key and knows how to sell his stuff.