What do you get when you combine great entertainment, tantalising food, exotic fashion and captivating lectures? Souk and Family Convention of course!

The annual Souk International Trade and Family Fair ran for the twelfth consecutive year at the Durban Exhibition Centre from 25 December 2009 till 3 January 2010. The event, which is hosted by the Al-Ansaar Foundation, boasted an even bigger and better affair this time around.

Among the attractions of Souk 2009, were Islamic calligraphy workshops led by the Soni Art trio (Achmat Soni, Shaheen Soni, and Tasneem Chilwan-Soni) of Cape Town; a unique museum-style display of manuscripts, coins and other fascinating relics from the ancient Muslim world; Qira’ah by renowned reciter of the Holy Qur’an in the Islamic world, Qari Saad Nomani; a Nasheed extravaganza featuring Shaykh Idris Rajab, Inayet Petkar, Areef Subrathi, Labbayk and Waahid; as well as the first-ever Al-Ansaar Car and Umrah Ticket competition.

The Souk is home to global traders; celebrating a conglomeration of cultures under one roof. International theme pavilions allow small to medium enterprises and corporate businesses to reap the benefits of the large scale spending spree that takes place. With the added bonus of funfair rides, world-class entertainment, comedy shows, games, play areas and international cuisine, the Souk is definitely “a must attend” show for everyone.

Recording an excess of 100 000 visitors over a week, the ten-day extravaganza received phenomenal response from exhibitors, traders and the general public.  

Visit the Souk website at www.souk.org.za. For further information, contact the Souk department on +27 (0)31 208 1601 or email info@souk.org.za.

Photographs courtesy Ahmed Chothia