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Chicken anyone?
So this would be where the lovely pre-packaged chicken really comes from... yum? The reality of having electricity set in this morning like a cold blast of water to the face, except that’s really how it happened. Eating dinner and going to bed by candel-light may hold some historic, romantic appeal, (is it not reminiscent of a different period when life was simpler, and heroic figures roamed the country side on horseback slaying dragons?) but having a cold shower on the one day the sun isn’t blaring down in full force is not appealing in the least. The electrician arrives today to sort out the problem; however, I’m not sure how successful that will be. Suzanne has little regard for the electricians in this town, I’m not of opinion in either way but I would like to be able to have warm showers for the next five weeks.
I went for walk around town this morning. I’m always surprised how quickly places become familiar and how familiarity shrinks their size. It is no longer an intimidating collection of shops and stalls with eyeing pedestrians but the local way of life. And I found one of the markets. It’s hard to know where to begin and I wish I had my camera, I was itching
its some exciting streetwork...
i realized the next day what the crowd was about... they were installing the city's first traffic light! woohoo! to take photographs because everything was so foreign and so incredibly fantastic that I couldn’t possibly do it justice. There was no indication of its presence as I walked along one of the larger roads until I reached it. I suppose I was at the top end and stretching into a dusty opening was the most hectic collection of produce, people and livestock anyone back home could imagine. It started as a small side street opening into a square with another smaller street exiting off from the back corner. At the top end, a blanket, covered in feathers, was lain down and two men crouched over half-plucked chickens, working to finish cleaning them off. After the birds were plucked they were passed on to a man with an impressive machete who, with skills a chef would be jealous of, quartered the birds and passed them onto the paying customs. Two whole birds were hanging from a barren tree, tied by their feet, a symbol marking the goods available. I guess it was the equivalent of our store-front signs. Entering into the market itself, wooden cages were stacked, each holding three or four of the birds for those who were daring
its a rock
this would be why the city is also known as the rock city, because there's a rock enough slaughter them at home, or were planning on having chicken some time in the future and wanted to let the birds fatten up a bit first. The meat counters of our supermarkets are a luxury I will never again take for granted. I think I may turn vegetarian for the time being, There’s some soy chips sold in the supermarket… mmm, delicious. Nah, I’ll work my way up to the chicken, at the very least, it’s gonna be fresh.
The street itself was lined with vendors, but there were no shops or stalls. Few sellers had a short table but most were seated on tarps and blankets with their produce stacked into pyramids. There were oranges, pineapples, bananas, mango, papaya, grapes and apples. There were Green peppers, chili peppers, zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, and avocadoes as big as softball. Women bartered with baskets piled high balanced on their hips or heads and I wandered in awe wishing I had myself a basket, and a few more words of Swahili. It is definitely one of my first stops after we return from Geita, I can’t wait to see how badly I get ripped off by the vendors!
Walking home with my one mango, there was no way I wasn’t going to buy anything but we’re heading off in a couple of hours so I had to restrain myself, I saw my pig again! It’s not really all that exciting but there’s not too many of them out here since something like 30-40% of the population is Muslim. When I passed by it yesterday for the first time it hadn’t looked very happy and I know pigs aren’t the most enthusiastic of animals, but this one reminded me of Eyore, it was so depressed. Anyways, and I’m still laughing just thinking about it, the poor pig was draped across a wooden bench and a huge fire was roaring in the back-drop. It’s a little sadistic but it was like the poor thing had a premonition something bad was going to happen and sure enough! Oh well, tomorrow the little piggy may even get to go to market but he isn’t going to be squealing all the way home ever again!
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