Purses, shoes, and cars

Batik fabric depicting electric shavers

2/14/08
Hamdallay has its market day on Tuesdays; people come from all over the area to sell and buy "stuff." The market is more or less divided into sections: meat, gum arabic, fabric, house stuff, and vegetables (kind of...). The vendors spread their stuff out on tarps on the sand, underneath wooden hangars that provide some shade; they're tall enough to stand under, usually. Walking through the market was very overwhelming at first: there is a lot of dust, sand, spices, and heat, and people everywhere, and good smells and bad smells, and color all over. Mom, your observation that the women look like bright butterflies is so accurate: they have a bright zane (skirt), a shirt, and a headwrap, plus another bright piece of fabric to tie their baby to their back. In case I haven't said this yet, I LOVE the fabric here!! My favorites so far include:

1. A blue-ish fabric with alka seltzer tablets fizzing in cups of water
2. The birdcage one that I have
3. The commonly seen ones that have everyday items on them: purses, shoes, cars...

It's so funny and entertaining to see women all dressed up in fabric that would be deemed ridiculous in the states. Please promise that if I look too outlandish when this is over, that you will tell me.