Nyamirambo market

Nyamirambo is a section of town not far from where I live that is described by the Bradt Guide as "a lively, busy district of small streets and colourful little shops. The atmosphere has a touch of London's Soho about it. This is said to be the part of the present-day city where people first settled, long ago."

I spent today wandering through this area of town, eventually making my way to the market. There I found stall after stall filled with luggage, children's clothing, pots and pans and anything else one might need for a household. Nearby was the food section of the market - tremendous baskets filled with beautifully colored beans, perfect piles of snow white flour, stacks of bottles and cans of cooking oils, tropical fruits and vegetables that have no English name piled high on makeshift tables. I wandered through this section of the market, tempted to buy almost everything in sight, until finally I found the section I had been seeking. Hanging from floor to ceiling in half a dozen stalls were the beautiful African fabrics with their bright colors and bold designs. I began looking at the different patterns, trying to decide whether I wanted "one piece" or "two pieces" (the fabric is measured by how many pieces of traditional women's clothing it will make) and bartering with the shop owners over how much I would pay. At the end of the day, I bought two pieces of cloth, realized that I now need to find a tailor and promised myself that I would return in a week or two when the stalls would surely contain completely different selections.