I took this photo at the market at Soni, near Lushoto, in northeastern Tanzania. The African market is fascinating, as I have written elsewhere, inspired, I must say, by Mikhail Bakhtin:In many ways, African culture resembles the African market. Crowded and noisy, the African market displays the vitality and exhuberance of African life. The language of the African market placeis vibrant and full of humour, as haggling develops into spirited joking. A bond develops between buyer, seller and spectators, which is precious in ways the exchanging of goods for money is not. Like many other contexts and situations in Africa, the market is a place for building relationships (Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences, page 95).
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A number of African writers have incorporated descriptions of the African market in their works. Peter Abrahams, for example, did so in his novel, "A Wreath for Udomo."
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