Sunday Disappointment: The Vanishing Airport Bookstores
For the last 10 years, travel has been a major part of my life. I have been living the life of an expat in the Middle East, frequently travelling back home, in addition to going on vacations. This has meant that I travel to and from different destinations an average of at least 4 times a year. The one thing that has never changed in these 10 years, is my foray into the airport bookstores.
I always have an unsurmountable stack of books to read, which means that I always carry 2-3 books with me whenever I travel. Yet, there is a pull towards these bookstores that I cannot define, and almost always end up buying at least one book even if I don’t really need it.
I love browsing in bookshops, taking in the colours and the smells, finding out about new authors and new books. At airports I get enough time to indulge in this activity, unless we’re running really late, which we hardly ever are, because I have a fear of missing my flight. For the last 4 years, ever since I have moved to Riyadh, I can only indulge myself during return trips, since Riyadh airport doesn’t have a bookstore yet. I’m hoping this will change in the near future. Until then I have to be happy with other airports.
One of my most favourite places in this context has always been the Karachi Airport bookshop. It is one of the best airport bookstores that I have come across especially if I want to buy any Urdu books. Often we end up buying 3-4 books each as a family from this particular place. It is always difficult to carry those books because we already have hand carries that are ready to burst open. Yet we have still managed to do this successfully for a decade now.
So imagine my shock and sadness when last week while travelling back from Karachi, we found the bookstore not only closed, but its shelves stripped of all books, looking lonely and haunted. This pandemic has hurt many businesses, but this one really hit me hard. I had never realized how much I loved this small space full of books. I always made sure to keep aside enough local currency to spend on last minute book purchases.
Of course, I should have realized that this will happen. I had already seen Dubai airport closed down during our layover while going to Karachi. However, the actual sight of those empty shelves and plastic covered space struck my heart. I know I’m being overly dramatic. There are bookstores all over the city that are not only open, but also delivering books at home! But when you are so used to seeing something and spending time with it, it becomes a part of you; you become attached to it, and you start looking at it with affection.
I really miss that little bookstore, and pray for better times when browsing for books is not dangerous and risky. Until then, I have my local bookstores to keep me company and cheering me up.