UNTIL RECENTLY, the last time I remember being taken for a ride was 20 years ago. Then, I recollect being led to a perfumery off a dusty street in a province just outside Cairo. The driver that my wife and I had hired for the day suggested an excursion to this establishment which dealt with natural essences and oils of flowers, plants and herbs. So off we went.

I recall walking through the place and noticing a glittering array of natural perfumes, all priced per milligram or milliliter. And the prices were dirt cheap. Just imagine! Jasmine and Rose for pennies. Lavender and Opium, a popular fragrance then, could be had for next to nothing. Or so I thought. And going along with the recommendations of the helpful salesman who was kind enough to offer my daughter a soda pop, we chose several different fragrances in average sized perfume bottles.

When the salesman then brought the bill for the nine varieties we had selected and which he had carefully packed in a small shoe size box, I was stunned. Our foray into the world of natural perfumery came to $1,800! How could that be, I inquired of our gracious host and salesman? He explained that each little bottle had a capacity of 50 milliliter, and when he added up all those milliliters at X amount a pop, that’s what he came up with.

Well I wasn’t about to pay $1,800 for nine little perfume bottles, so after a great deal of quibbling and haggling we managed to reduce the amount to $400 and five bottles of perfume rather than the original nine. After all, he had been gracious to my daughter. And on the ride back to our hotel, $400 lighter in the pocket and the shoe box clutched tightly to my chest, I wondered if the nice man driving us about had not just casually happened to suggest this excursion.

Oh well, that was then and for the most part I have been vigilant since in various trips around different lands. But this last weekend it happened to me again. Deja vu!

A group of friends had suggested a dinner get together before everybody broke off for the summer. Sort of a last reunion before each party set off on their own way.

I had suggested a fish outlet off Madinah Road on the way to Dahban and Madinah where I was told the fish was fresh from the sea, the atmosphere was rustic and accommodating to families, and the prices were very palatable.

My choice was eventually booted out by the ladies who were not particularly happy about being in the outdoors in the month of May, what with all the heavy cloak and drapery they have to put up with, and our friend Hossam then recommended a fish restaurant in a five-star hotel that offered fresh catches of the day.

At the restaurant, all the fish was stacked freshly on beds of ice. You make your choice, select the vegetables to go along with it, and tell them how you wanted it cooked. The prices are all posted next to the fish and veggies in units of 100 grams. There was a small salad bar with the usual sparse offerings of mixed pasta and vegetables that served as starters.

Since our company’s knowledge about culinary delights with different varieties of fish is limited to a few dishes, we let our friend Hossam exercise his privileged membership and make up an order for the group, and off we trekked to the salad bar. The selection was pleasant but not overwhelming.

It was when the bill came that we were stunned. As we normally go Dutch, each couple’s contribution came to an amount more than a monthly salary in most Third World countries! Naturally we all forked up and paid, but in the parking lot of this huge complex facing Jeddah’s water fountain, we all took another look at the receipt. It was itemized and that helped us digest some of the figures.

A carrot was used along with other vegetables to accompany one of the dishes. Looking closely at the bill, I noticed a charge for 1 carrot of 200 grams. The price for the carrot was based on SR60 a kilo charge for carrots, a figure that would cover the vegetable needs of most families for a week. And the cooking charge for that privileged carrot and other mixed vegetables was tabbed at SR135!

And while I still hold on tightly to those five little bottles of perfume we purchased over 20 years ago, unfortunately the remains of that carrot have long been dispensed with.

— Tariq A. Al-Maeena, [email protected]