The main attraction here at Kandahar Air Field is the bazaar that is held each Saturday morning.  Hundreds of Afghani vendors show up and present their wares for sale.

It seemed, too, that most of the military members from the NATO nations showed up to look over the merchandise.

Each vendor arrived early in the morning, was thoroughly inspected by Canadian military police and assigned a vendor number.

French soldiers checked the IDs of everyone entering the bazaar.

A common theme for those looking for deals was the haggling over prices.

I wanted to buy my wife a shawl; the vendor offered to sell it to me for $20.  I countered by offering $10.  He looked at me for a moment and then offered to sell it to me for $15.  I countered with an offer of $12.

A deal had been made; I gave the man the money and he gave me the scarf.  We both walked away happy.

Business at the bazaar looked to be booming; there was a steady influx of NATO and American personnel as the morning wore on.  I suspect a lot of people were purchasing Christmas presents for loved ones back home.

Scarves, wooden sculptures, brass ornaments, jewelry, carpets, watches and military gear were all on sale.

"It's nice to come here and relax for a bit," said Cpl. Eric Sieber, 310^th PsyOp Company, 5^th Brigade, 2^nd Infantry Division, as he looked over a small wooden box.