JEDDAH, 30 December 2007 -- It's that time of year again: the season for the pilgrims' souq, a massive flea market in south Jeddah. Every Haj brings tens of thousands of pilgrims loaded down with goods to sell during and after the Haj.

The souk used to set up in Jeddah's historic Balad district, but in the past couple of years it has been relocated to the Sawareekh market in south Jeddah due to the traffic congestion caused by the impromptu bazaar.

Many of these pilgrims, especially those from former Soviet republics in Central Asia, come in heavily loaded vehicles. They come weighted down with goods and they leave equally weighted in a modern day version of a literal caravan. While many of the goods are cheap knick-knacks, mass-produced Chinese products and designer knockoffs, the occasional vendor sports far more interesting stock.

In one instance a Russian-speaking woman was seen selling cans of caviar for SR20, an astronomically low price. The same amount of caviar of roughly the same quality is being sold in Jeddah supermarkets for SR499.

"I have special military night vision goggles," said another of the pilgrims who was sitting in front of his portable stall displaying exhibited Russian made canned food, candies and other consumer goods.

The goggles weren't being displayed until a customer asked about them. The asking price was SR3,000. The pilgrim pulled the device along with a couple of sniper scopes from one of the converted military trucks parked nearby. A little haggling got the price of the night-vision goggles down to SR1,200.

Russian-speaking pilgrims tend to dominate this annual bazaar, mainly because of the proximity of Saudi Arabia to the Caucasus and Central Asia that allows these travelers to arrive for Haj in trucks.

In addition to caviar and Russian military surplus gear (most of which isn't openly displayed to avoid the scrutiny of authorities), pilgrims also have come with honey, ghee and some traditional items (even Russian dolls). But mostly the goods are cheap manufactured items. Handmade Central Asian rugs that used to be prevalent in the souq in past years were nowhere to be seen amid the cheaper prayer rugs, fake designer clothing and home appliances.

Ahmad Khaleev, a pilgrim in his mid-40s, said that even today to Russian Muslims Haj is a combination of religious and economic experience, just as it had been for many others in the past. Bartering items helps pay for the trip.

Khaleev said that his family and friends pool resources to collect goods to sell here in Jeddah. One of the trucks in the caravan came filled with Russian products. It will return to Russia loaded with Saudi dates, Zamzam water and goods that are cheaper in the Kingdom thanks to the lack of import tariffs.

Khaleev is one of thousands who come to Haj in the caravan from Russia. All the vehicles were parked in a queue in the middle of the market forming a small settlement. Some have erected portable tents on top of the trucks while others preferred sleeping inside the trucks near their merchandize.

They cook their food next to their stalls and even have small tables between each truck, where old men gather for a tea break. Men and women, mostly old, stay in Jeddah for a whole month after Haj in an effort to gain some profit that would compensate their life savings spent on this holy trip.

"It is a great chance for us to make the best of this trip, which most of us can afford only once in our lifetime," said Khaleev.

By Hasan Hatrash

© Arab News 2007