Visitors to the historic Souq Okaz festival which kicked off here at the weekend are of the opinion that this year's festival was markedly different from earlier occasions. The souq this year has been divided into different sections, such as, traditional handicrafts and cultural and literary activities in which poets and academicians from around the Kingdom and other Arab countries are participating. Dr. Ahmad Al-Sharafy, head of the Arabic language department in Taif University, said: “I would like to thank the Emir of Makkah Region who turned the dream of Souq Okaz into reality. I was happy to attend the literary session.” However, Al-Sharafy said, he found some shortcomings. “Sadly, the pre-Islamic history is missing from the cultural section,” he said. Souq Okaz, he added, is not only about poetry and literature. The social aspect is lacking in the souq. “For example there are no tents of the tribes where they used to gather to discuss various problems. I like the street play which could be seen along the Okaz avenue or street. There are still some minor aberrations in pronouncing old names and sometimes grammatical mistakes,” he concluded. There were only a few non-Saudis and non-Arabic speakers visiting the event. Shester, a 30-year-old Filipino, liked the painting exhibition. “I am an artist which is why I have come to Souq Okaz. If possible I would like to join the painting competition next week,” he said. Gusai Luay Ganita, a 20-year-old visitor, said he liked the souq in general, the new innovation and new ideas, traditional souq, old clothes and old weapons. Mohammad Al-Thagafi, famous Taif sculptor and chief of the sculpting committee in the Taif Society for Art and Culture, said the idea of sculpting rocks scattered around the souq came from the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities. “We chose granite rocks as they are present at the Okaz site. They are 22 rocks and it takes 217 working hours, almost 14 hours a day.” Captain Khalid Al-Asmary of King Abdullah Air Defense College, one of the government institutions participating in the event, said the college's presence here was to highlight Saudi development and improvement in different fields especially air defense. “We are participating in four categories, the first one has old pictures of our graduation ceremonies, the second shows the improvement of weaponry, the third is about the life of a student from the time he joins the college until his graduation and the fourth is a film about air defense in Saudi Arabia.”
