UAE | Media

Spice of life runs through Sharjah

Stroll through the Sharjah arts area along the Corniche Road and you can instantly sense its history.

  • By Mariam M. Al Serkal, Staff Reporter
  • Published: 23:32 October 18, 2007
  • Gulf News

  • The Sharjah arts and heritage area which has undergone rapid changes over the decades, but some traders still stick to the traditional method of doing business.
  • Image Credit: Gulf News Archive
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Sharjah: Stroll through the Sharjah arts area along the Corniche Road and you can instantly sense its history.

Walking past the art museums and galleries, you notice the contrast between the whitewashed, renovated heritage buildings and the abandoned, run-down apartments built in the 1970s.

Old men can be seen huddled together on street benches drinking qahwa (traditional coffee) while exchanging neighbourhood gossip.

The Corniche Road used to be the home of the Sharjah souq. This was the only place where residents could buy their daily groceries, fish, fruit and traditional herbs and spices.

Towards the end of 1978, the souq's days were numbered and most of the stalls were shifted to the Blue Souq, which faces Khalid Lagoon.

But a handful of shops have managed to continue at the old souq. Shopowners fondly remember the days before the introduction of electricity when donkeys were used to transport goods.

"I came to Sharjah almost 45 years ago by boat from Iran to make my living," Ahmad Ali Al Ansari, 65, said. "I used to pay a monthly rent of three rupees back when I first opened my shop, and now I have to pay Dh65,000 a year."

He owns the Red Mountain Herbs shop and sells various types of henna, herbs and spices. His shop used to face the sea, but had to move after the waterfront was reclaimed and a walkway for pedestrians was constructed. "I used to go to places with my donkey because there were no cars. Getting water was a chore. I had to go to the well and fill four buckets, and then put two buckets each side of the donkey."

Many Iranians set up their businesses in the emirates, and the traders used the dhows to transport goods, he said.

No visa needed

Ali Abbas Shamsi, another trader, said: "All the shopowners were from Iran, and it was easy for us to work in the UAE because we would trade with our colleagues back home. We did not need a passport or a visa to travel back then."

Awaz Pur Shamsi, an Iranian trader, arrived in Dubai 39-years ago and set up a shop along Jumeirah beach. "I had my shop in Jumeirah for 15 years but then business wasn't doing very good, so I went to Sharjah. At that time it was a very popular place and everyone did their shopping there," he said.

Pur Shamsi has his son to help manage the shop but insists on running his business exactly the same way as when he first arrived almost 40-years ago - by using traditional boats to trade with merchants from Iran.

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