On my way to the salon, I felt thirsty and in need of a bottle of water before my appointment. I parked my car in front of the little Baqqala taking care to remove my keys and lock the door before going into the little shop. (I never leave my car keys in the car because I always remember the story of the man who left his luxury car running to go into the baqqala and came out to find it was stolen. The guy who stole it took it for a date with his girlfriend. After he was finished, and had enjoyed both girl and car, he called the owner – don’t ask me how he got his number- and told him if he wanted his car in one piece to pick it up from a certain Co-Op without intervention from the police)

There were two middle-aged Iranian men of small build talking to each other as I entered the shop. When I had picked up the bottle of water from the fridge and turned to pay, I noted a man in his early thirties had just come in. He seemed to be Kuwaiti by his accent and he was dressed casually in track pants and a t-shirt.

He held out a 10 KD note and said to the shopkeeper: “Please give this money to a Chinese person[nafar] who will come by soon.”
The shopkeeper did not understand. So the man clarified that the shopkeeper should give it to a Chinese woman who was going to come by shortly. No need for a name or telephone number.

The shopkeeper repeated his wonder and looked at me at the same time: “How can you give me money and tell me to give it to someone whose name you don’t know? Why should I give the money to this person? For what?” He cast nervous looks at me.

I put on my best “suspicious” look as I shared a disdainful smirk with the shop keeper for a brief moment. Although I did not look at the man asking for the favour, I felt him squirm.

I walked out the shop hurriedly, as the man continued to persuade the shopkeeper.

Of course I could not help but wonder at why he was leaving 10 KD for an unknown Chinese woman in the Iranian man’s shop?