Retail recovery

How does a girl feel better when there's no hot water for a shower, breakfast is iffy and she's wearing yesterday's socks? She trips off to the local market and spends lots of dollars on intricately hand-woven textiles.

Two hours to get across town, track down a coptic cross, negotiate the price of fabric and get back to the conference venue wasn't much. The aesthetic in me confesses that it wasn't a bad start (the green and gold chevron cloth is destined for home-decor glory), but the practical traveler wants to take another sortie into the gritty streets to pick out prezzies and take pictures.