Tuesday, January 25, 2011

The Birqash Camel Market

Yesterday was a holiday here in Cairo so my dad and little brother didn't have work or school. We decided to head out of the city to the Birqash camel market. I suspect this was my dad's way of getting us out of Cairo and away from the planned demonstrations/protests. More on that later.

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We arrived a little late and most of the camels had already been bought/sold, but it was still fun to walk around looking at the camels.

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They hobble the camels so they can't walk around.

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Guys with rifles who escorted us around. Because we all know how dangerous camels can be... especially when one of their legs is tied up.

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Camel hides.

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Just outside the market, there was a mass camel grave (and beyond that, a soccer field?) I guess they don't make the sick camels walk too far before shooting them.

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And next to the grave, a dump of burning garbage. If only you could capture smell through a picture... even from within the car, the smell was pretty powerful.

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