“I used to be a bodybuilder. Not just any bodybuilder but a really good one. I won many awards in Saudi Arabia. I am 78 but don’t let my age fool you because I am still a very strong man. I am one of the last pearl divers that is still a live. With diving I am not talking about the modern way of diving. In my days we were diving without a oxygen mask. We had a big heavy weight attached to our feet. Sometimes I would dive 12 meters deep. The person on the ship was holding the rope and I was fully depending on that person to get me back up on the boat. In those days pearls were more expensive than diamonds. Nowadays they have lost their value but they are still beautiful. I still sell them here in my shop. So many people have visited my shop. Even your highness Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands came to visit me one day. Of course I could not let her go without giving her a beautiful set of pearls. She still wears them. I know so because she send me a photo!”
(Doha, Qatar)