What to see at Dragon Mart

Sheikh Mohammed got the idea that Europe and China will be engaging in more and more commerce, so he set up the Dragon Mart, where hundreds of Chinese factories could set up display booths to show their industrial products to European buyers. They have representatives from motor manufacturers, computer case manufacturers, etc., etc., selling to industries who need parts. The idea is that European and MENA businesses, rather than flying to China and then going to all the different places with factories, can make a single stop in Dubai.

But Dragon Mart had more space than willing factories who wanted to sell directly to other factories, and so a lot of the Chinese stores sell both retail and wholesale. Plus some sell retail only, to provide Chinese consumer items to the Chinese working in Dubai.

Among these retail shops are lots of Chinese herbal medicine stores, mostly tiny stands in the middle of the aisle.

Farook asked me to join him as he went to seek Chinese herbal medicine. On a previous visit to Dragon Mart, he found one stand with a Chinese Muslim from Western China who speaks good Arabic, but Farook couldn't remember where his stand was. I remembered where it was, but Farook kept asking everyone we saw, 'Where Musa shop?' Since the proprietor's name is Dawood, he wasn't having much luck, but we kept wandering down the main aisle until we spotted Dawood, and then Farook spoke Arabic and obtained two bottles of Chinese herbal medicine. (I have no idea what they were, or what they were for.)

I, however, was more impressed when, there at the Chinese herbalist shops, I saw something I've heard about all my life, but never believed it existed: genuine, authentic, 100% pure snake oil.

Seeing that made the trip to Dragon Mart worthwhile, as far as I was concerned.

And for those who say that Dubai is all about selling snake oil, there's a lot more than just snake oil at Dragon Mart, but there is certainly some snake oil.