Ms. Cosmopolite: A Global Bazaar

Friday, April 3, 2009

A Global Bazaar

While the rather destructive effects of conspicuous consumption have been the hallmark of our culture in recent years, the meaningful exchange of one resource for another is the engine of any society. People have traded informally amongst themselves from the earliest times, however, the range and quality of goods exploded with the creation of the first permanent marketplace or bazaar. The word bazaar comes from the Persian word bāzār, meaning "the place of prices", which in our world means the mall (how unsexy!).

As someone who views unearthing worldly goods as a cultural adventure, I delight in visiting bazaars on my global travels and flea markets at home. My first visit to the Grand Bazaar, the world’s largest covered market, in Istanbul, Turkey, was both exhilarating and exhausting. Claiming over 4,000 shops, the Kapali Carsi boasts goods ranging from jewelry, leather goods, copper pots, cashmere shawls, incense, rare spices, and many other finds. The rather Byzantine layout of the market pretty much guarantees a new comer will get lost (which is of course part of the fun), making it a bit overwhelming but well worth it. The Bazaar is filled with charming and jovial merchants serving apple tea and offering a whiff of tobacco water pipes as they artfully show you their specialty goods. This sensual shopping experience also sharpens one’s negotiating skills as bargaining for the right price is a cultural necessity. Nothing is as it seems and prices are not exactly precise. The theatrical setting of the Bazaar has often led me to spend much more than I intended… Yet arriving home after the adventure, and unwrapping each one of my unique treasures, is priceless.

On April 3rd and 4th I invite you to the LA version of a Global Bazaar at CAFAM. Local vendors and artisans will be selling their handmade goods in exchange for gold or perhaps an offer of barter. Take a look at the wealth of offerings at www.cafam.org/shop.html and indulge in the experience of coming face to face with the makers of beautiful objects. I am sure a very special treasure awaits you!

Happy hunting!

Ms Cosmopolite

This entry posted by CAFAM Web Master @ 2:18 PM

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