A diary in the East : during the tour of the Prince and Princess of Wales . s quaint streets. The merchants were unusually active, and the haUof the Esbekiah Palace was crowded with would-besellers of curiosities, humble intriguers for admis-sion to the presence, and men in charge of balesof silks, carpets, Cairo work, dresses. The ladies ofthe harems of the Ministers were very anxious forthe honour of a visit from the Princess, and shegratified Shereef Pasha by going to see his wife andhousehold. A harem interior is nearly always the same—a number of women covered with jewellery, not re- XVI.
A diary in the East : during the tour of the Prince and Princess of Wales . s quaint streets. The merchants were unusually active, and the haUof the Esbekiah Palace was crowded with would-besellers of curiosities, humble intriguers for admis-sion to the presence, and men in charge of balesof silks, carpets, Cairo work, dresses. The ladies ofthe harems of the Ministers were very anxious forthe honour of a visit from the Princess, and shegratified Shereef Pasha by going to see his wife andhousehold. A harem interior is nearly always the same—a number of women covered with jewellery, not re- XVI.] THE BAZAARS. 419 markable for good looks; a pretty slave-girl now andtlien to be seen—inquisitive, simple, gossipy creatures,who sliow tlieir affection and attention by pullingpieces of meat off the dishes with their fingers andputting them into the favoured ladys mouth. March 22nd.—The last day in the bazaars. Onceagain the Princess, attended by Mrs. Grey, mountedon donkey-back, set out on a ramble through thenever-failing delightful labyrinth. There is always a. gentleman of the suite and an aide-de-camp of theViceroy near at liand ; but generally the people haveno idea who the Frank ladies are who examine theirwares so curiously, and enjoy a little bargain. The E E 2 420 BAIEA3L [cnAP. Prince renewed his recollection of tlie old town, andvisited the old palace of Kasr-el-Nourza, where helived when he was in Cairo in 1862 ; and after lunchthe Princess and Mrs. Grey drove out and paid visitsto the harem of Abd-el-Kader Bey and AchmetHassan, the captain of the yacht. Each of theseo-entlemen is content with one wife; and the visits o proved so agreeable that Her Eoyal Highness didnot return till it was close on dinner hour. March 23rd.—At daybreak the Khedive repaired tothe Citadel, and the thunder of the guns woke us allup, and announced to Cairo that Bairam had com-menced. Taking his place in one of the grandsaloons of the old Palace, close to the Mosque ofHassan, Is
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Keywords: ., bookauthorrussellw, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1860, bookyear1869
