Tidwell nailed describing an African market. Those who have been there, with this experience as a major part of their overseas life, are left nodding their heads in understanding.
"To the uninitiated, an African market can be a startling thing. You don't visit such a place. It's poured all over you. You
walk in, move about, absorb a billion bits of sensory data, and
then walk away with your body limp and your faculties tingling. An African market is a sunburst of colors: brightly patterned pagnes, orange and pink and gold bars of soap, deep-crimson palm oil, multi-colored species, yellow bananas, amber papayas, red tomatoes. It's a landscape of odors: fresh bread, spoiled fish, tangy oranges, pungent peppers, woodsmoke, human sweat, human urine. It's a carnival of noises: talking, shouting, singing, chopping, pounding, bleating, barking, crowing, and always, always laughing. People laugh in African markets. Despite their
clamor and confusion, the markets maintain a cheerful air.
(Mike Tidwell. The Ponds of Kalambayi. Pg 224)
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