I have acquired a magic carpet. It is indeed wonderfully magical and I think it's going to be my one "Arabian" souvenir from this cavort in the Middle East. It is a wonderful carpet. It was acquired at the Al Sharjah "blue souk" which is basically a pseudo tourist trap in a non-touristy area (way to go guys) - in the Emirate neighboring Dubai, Al Sharjah. (I know that sounded heinously repentitive, but Al Sharjah is the name of the city, the souk, and the Emirate.) Anyhow, I haven't found a suitable name for this carpet yet, but as soon as I figure out the surname of the guy who made it, I will name it "Ibn *his surname*." It's 100% silk (down to the guide strands) and I have estimated its knots per inch at around 1500. Some poor dude worked really hard on this little carpet. It's a pretty intricate design and it has fun things on it like lions and a coupla elephants and also this generally large unassuming (but very Arabic) pattern in the middle. Also, the name of the guy who made it is woven into the pattern. The fascinating thing about this carpet is that the silk threads actually change in "color" and "intensity" when viewed from different angles and in different light. This little rug (it's tiny - slightly larger than 2' x 3') will likely be mounted on the wall in my new apartment so that nobody steps on it and so that it doesn't suffer undue wear. I can't seem to take a picture which captures its color sufficiently well so I will just say that it's black, gold and maroon. Come visit me to see it and witness for yourself.

I post these pictures.

(click to enlarge, oh wave of brain)