Cruising through Columbus on our way to the Cultural Hub of the Midwest we drove by a place called "Global Mall". She was intrigued enough that we took a detour and stopped to check it out.
The mall turned out to be a giant flea market of sorts where merchants peddle their wares in smallish booths/stores. But this is no ordinary market- all of the vendors are Somalis. Stumbling upon this place took me back to the medinas of Morocco and the street shops of Sri Lanka. Suddenly the Midwest sprawl outside disappeared and I was transported to faraway places both familiar and unknown. It made me long, if only briefly, for the uncomfortable joys of traveling outside my comfort zone of America and Europe.
There are no white people here. Muslim women, covered head-to-toe, congregate and run the booths; they speak very little English but their friendliness and big smiles suffice as means of communication.
I knew Columbus had a big Somali population, but I had never "seen" them. They are the invisible major minority. Inside the "Global Mall", they have everything... stores, a barber shop, a butcher, coffee place.
Right across the street is "La Michoacana", a Mexican/South American market. White folks don't seem to frequent this area of Columbus.
Polls in local magazines routinely position Olive Garden and Chipotle as the best Italian and Mexican in Columbus, respectively. Somali/African food is not even an option.
Again, another fine American city segregated, separated. Divided.
