We enjoyed the tranquility of the site however. We sat outside one of the shops and drank icy cold orange Fantas and were treated to free slices of watermelon, the ubiquitous oasis fruit. A swarm of honeybees joined us to share the sweets. The shopkeepers thought my alarm was funny. They live in perfect harmony with the bees.
Honey is a staple.
Honey churned with ice, with or without yogurt is served everywhere. The big social gathering place in this Islamic culture is not a bar, but an open tent where they serve honey drinks and have a big television blaring low-budget regional melodramas. They go day and night. One last incident in our hotel. About midnight, maids barge into our room.