San Francisco del Alto

In the mountains of Guatemala there is a town called San Francisco, although not to confuse it with its better known namesake it has an addition del Alto. There on a market one can buy oneself a pig.

One can also buy there an elaborately woven huipil. A huipil of Guatemalan ladies is shorter than in Mexico. The Maya ladies wear it with a corte, wich is worn like a skirt.

Oaxaca

 The market in Oaxaca is dominated by ladies fashion. This fashion is clearly different than on the other side of the Atlantic. It seems that in most cases the garment sold (or at least exhibited) is huipil, an Indian tunic, made with two rectangular pieces of fabric, woven in colourful patterns. Some seller ladies wear a huipil, others are engaged in producing a next one (it seems a perfect occupation while waiting for customers).

Market in Luganville

 It looks like for a market to exist one needs a town, some of whose inhabitants do not produce food and have to buy it. In some parts of the world an idea of a town like this is a new concept, brought by colonisation. In some countries, independent today, there are almost no towns. For example in Vanuatu there are just two towns: the capital Port Vila and Luganville on the biggest island. There are markets there.

There are vegetables to buy there but they are very different vegetables than in Europe. For example taro roots. Some bulbs are sold in baskets made of still green palm leaves.

Apparently there is a custom there to sit under a sand. The seller has to be visible but the rest of the family does not, so they sit under the stand.

Christmas Fair in Cracow

 In Cracow before Christmas there is a fair, which is called “kiermasz adwentowy”, in the old market square. It officially means “Advent fair”, but you can buy on it things for Christmas, like cribs (szopki) or ginger bread with “Wesołych Świąt” (Merry Christmas) written on it.

Spice bazaar in Istanbul

 The spice bazaar in Istanbul is in a hall covered with arches. The narrow and winding streets outside it are really a continuation of the bazaar, they are full of little shops.

Turkish men are dressed the European way but Turkish ladies are covered up the Muslim way. Judging after the comments those blokes make about European women, the Turkish ladies know what they are doing.

Mennonite market

 Mennonites of Canada till the land and sell produce of their work at farmers' markets. They don't sell anything special (although what they sell is usually organic, and that includes meat), you will see similar produce at other farmers' markets, but they are picturesque because they dress in a different way than we do. They (or at least some of them) also don't use cars, all their transport being by horse-drawn carts.

All their clothing is supposed to be self-made, although (as one of the pictures here proves) shoes can sometimes be shop-bought.

Nuku'alofa market

 At the market at Nuku'alofa things sold are specific to Tonga. There may be some fruit and veg but the thing you see most, and which you won't see anywhere else, are mats. The are called ta'ovala and are to be worn during special occasions (you can see them in my other entry, Tongan attire). For example to church, or at a funeral, or at a concert for a crew of an American ship that came to the key. Women can sometimes wear a smaller thing called kiekie.

Normally they are only worn at special occasions but one can see a kiekie seller wearing one, just to show what it looks like.

One can buy ta'ovala and kiekie, but also other things made of reed (as I assume, I am not quite sure what they are made from), like fans (with the name of Tonga written on it, so they are probably for tourists who sometimes come here).