Souq al-Gamaal

The Birqash Camel Market

I was told it used to be held

in down town Cairo,

and I can only imagine how crazy,

 messy and wild it must have been..

This market is held every Friday,

dawn to dusk,

and has been, for ages...

It is not for the sensitive.

It is mainly a meat market,

and hundreds of camels are being sold,

 bargained for, bought or swapped here.

I was told this is the largest market 

of its kind, in the world.

In all respect for traditions,

it is pretty wild and not very organized.

At least seen with the eyes of us "first-timers",

probably not understanding

how difficult it must be to hold these long-legged,

fast moving creatures in line.

Camels and herders are seemingly running 

in all directions.

And the herders come in all ages,

tradition taught from one generation to the next.

Some of these beautiful "ships of the desert" 

are brought in from Libya,

Sudan, Somalia and Aswan.

For some their last trip

is in the back of a truck.

Drawing the connections to the beef,

sheep and chicken industry

in other countries,

I would put this in the same category.

Some humans eat meat,

some also eat camel meat...