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"Two Camels For One Woman", by Jennifer Bond Reed
Copyright © 1999
It was the trip of a lifetime! My husband, who was in the Navy, was gone on deployment for six months to the Gulf-the Persian Gulf. The lonely wives had an opportunity to visit them in one of the ports. I was so excited. I would be able to see my husband half way through a deployment, and I would be able to visit one of the most exotic destinations in the world. How could I possibly pass this up? Abu Dhabi here I come!
"Abu who?" asked my mother. "Habi where?" asked my father. "Are you sure it’s safe?" asked my brother. "Of course," I reassured them. After all, I would be with the United States military. What could go wrong? Reassured, they gave me their blessings and sent me on my way.
I eagerly prepared for the trip, packing pants and long sleeves, even though the temperature was one hundred degrees Fahrenheit plus, in the shade. Because we were going to an Arabic country, the proper for of dress was to cover as much skin as possible. I brought plenty of sun tan lotion, creams and gels for that inevitable sunburn and my glasses. Hotel and travel arrangements were made, passports updated and before we knew it, twenty other women including ourselves made the long trip, through Hong Kong, over India and finally landing in Bahrain.
We stopped here only for a few hours. Most of loaded up on chocolates and wine at the duty free store. We hopped on a very small, very crowded airplane filled only with men. Tan men with robes and turbans were shocked that a group of American women were traveling on the same plane. The short flight from Bahrain to Abu Dhabi was spent in a staring contest.
We finally landed and were escorted to our hotel. We traveled in a rickety bus and crossed a vast area of desert. I was disappointed. Sand, sand everywhere, and it was so hot. But the city of Abu Dhabi rose out the desert like a flower. A green oasis, sitting on the shores of the Persian Gulf, it was even more exotic than I had imagined. Our hotel was like a palace with seven restaurants, three huge pools, palm trees, water sports and the great Persian Gulf lying calmly near us.
The next day we met our husbands. When Jeff and I were finally alone in out hotel room we made arrangements to see the area. We signed up to have a tour guide who would personally escort us to different places. He showed up later that day, right on time.
Hadi drove up to our hotel in a yellow taxi that had seen better days. He was very friendly and eager to take us out. He spoke a little English, certainly enough to get by. We told him the first place we wanted to go - the camel souk. I had never seen a camel up close before and we thought that this would be ideal, since camels were so common in these parts. Hadi put the car in gear and raced through the desert. Wild camels roamed the desert on either side of the road. Tall fences lined the road to keep the camels from wondering into the streets. Instead of caution deer signs, which are so common in the states, they had signs with a picture of a camel on them.
Finally, Hadi pulled into a dirt road and we bounced a half-mile to the camel souk. Jeff and I climbed out of the car. The sun beat down on us and the dust circled around our bodies. It was miserable not to mention there was a rather unpleasant camel-souk smell. Why this surprised us is beyond me, after all, all a camel souk is a barnyard of camels. We walked around the corrals watching the camels eat and being careful not to get too close. They spit you know.
Two workers at the souk came up to Hadi and the three of them began talking quickly, with arms flying in the air. Jeff and I wondered what they were talking about. "Jeff, ask Hadi if we can have our picture taken with them," I said. He took the camera from my hands and sauntered up tot Hadi. He motioned to the group that we wanted to take pictures. The two workers smiled and rushed over next to me, wrapped their arms around me and smiled quite cheerily. Although I was quite uncomfortable with the invasion of my space, I too smiled. Then, as quickly as the workers came to my side they left and rejoined Hadi. Soon they were arguing and Hadi was motioning us to get into the car. "What’s the matter?" asked Jeff. We climbed in.
"Nothing, nothing," said Hadi. He raced back down the dirt road leaving the workers in a swirl of dust. I looked out the back window only to see them gesturing to us and stamping their feet on the ground. I think they were pretty angry.
When Hadi got to the main road Jeff asked again what just happened. Hadi slowed the car and began explaining. "Those two men wanted your wife," he chuckled. I gasped. "What do you mean they wanted me?" I could barely get the words out. "They wanted to give your husband two racing camels in a trade, for you." "Wow," said Jeff. "I could be rich." He looked out the window in a daze. I immediately whacked him in the side, bringing him to his senses. "Oh, yes. Racing camels good. Make lots of money." Hadi looked over his shoulder and smiled.
"That’s sick," I said. We finished our tour and arrived back at the hotel just before sunset. Hadi was quite the gentleman and showed us things that most people would not have seen. As he was getting ready to leave he said, "You take care of your wife. Very dangerous here." Jeff shook his hand and thanked him.
Well, many years have gone by since that trip of a lifetime. The details of it all still remain sharp in our minds, especially when we have an argument. In the middle of a fight, Jeff will hang is head and shake it slowly. I always start laughing because now I know what he’s thinking. "I could have had two racing camels..." This, of course gets us both laughing and whatever we were arguing over seems insignificant. Boy, am I thankful he didn’t trade me in!
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