Kariakoo Market

On Saturday, my adventure was to explore the Kariakoo Market, which is a thriving, vibrant market, inside a two-story shopping area, but also sprawling onto the streets and shops around it. I loved just soaking it all up - the sights, sounds, and - well, maybe not all the smells. I picked up a few household goods, a pot, a wooden spoon, and a couple items of produce. Inside the market building, I smiled at the election campaign banner hanging prominently on the side. (Note that Swahili word of the day from earlier in the week - Chagua Kikwete - choose Kikwete). My nerdy little self was amused by finding the agricultural goods second on the second floor, and using context clues to figure out Dawa la Kilimo = medicine for agriculture aka fertilizers, etc.

I enjoyed the market just as much for the artistic displays that I tried to capture in a few of my photographs that I took there on the sly (not exactly the kind of place you want to be flashing a camera around - petty crime is pretty common in this city).

So the following pictures are my snapshots of analogous colors, secondary colors, and all-around lively chaos.

And the SWAHILI PHRASE OF THE DAY is "Bei gani?" How much is it? Of course, it's helpful if you know the numbers in Swahili, too. So this was my crash course in learning and understanding numbers as well. (1,2,3 = moja, mbili, tatu)