Tales from the Arabic — Volume 03

A lively portrait of ancient Damascus opens this tale, where a prosperous merchant finally receives the child he’s long prayed for—a strikingly handsome boy named Noureddin Ali. Raised amid wealth, scholars, and the bustling market, the young man quickly absorbs the Qur’an, letters, horsemanship and the wanderlust whispered by traveling merchants. His curiosity about distant cities, especially the legendary Baghdad, grows into a determined resolve to see the world beyond his father's walls.

With his father’s reluctant blessing, Noureddin sets out on a caravan, a modest retinue and a generous purse of five thousand dinars in his pack. Upon reaching Baghdad, he sheds his travel wear for a sumptuous Yemeni robe and strides through the city’s bustling streets, drawing admiring glances. There, in the grand bathhouse, he encounters the enchanting Sitt El Milah, a meeting that promises both intrigue and the promise of adventure for the eager young traveler.