A Market Like No Other

Today, I had my first "shopping" experience in Karama.

This area is best known for selling counterfeit branded goods for very cheap. Bags, clothes, watches…whatever you want, they have it.

I don't consider myself an expert by any means, but I looked at many items and I could not tell that anything was a knockoff. Gucci, Ralph Lauren, Lacoste...everything looked real to me. I even had a guy prove to me that a bag was made out of real leather, by him using a lighter on it. I don’t know if this is true proof, but I heard this was the way to know.

Almost immediately, I had mixed feelings about the market I was in. Part of me wanted to buy things because they were so cheap and they looked so real. Another part of me was thinking about how illegal it is for them to be selling and for me to be buying these things. Some part of me was thinking about how the people who made these things were so poorly paid. Then, I thought about how I would be supporting the workers in the shops by buying the items. What a mess my mind was! I had a big moral dilemma on my hands.

In the end, I did not purchase anything. All the small alleys and secret rooms just felt a little too "dodgy" for my liking! Nonetheless, once again, I left Karama with a very interesting experience!

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