A Day at the Market

I went to souq (the weekly market) today. I almost didn't go, as it's about two kilometers out of town. But the weather was cloudy, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity. Also, I'm shopping for cheap clothes with funny English expressions on them, to wear to in order to share the hilarity other PCVs (I don't know where these clothes come from--maybe Spain--but they're awesome).

Souq is a bit crazy for us uptight westerners. The vegetable salesmen usually lay their wares out on mats on the ground. Then you go up to them and, elbowing past the throng of people, demand to know the price of the vegetable in question. For those of us who think in dirhams, you then have to divide the price by 20 to figure out the real price (I've gotten pretty good at this--it's kind of a thankless skill, to be able to divide any number by 20). Then you demand a "bagnole" from the salesman, you load it up with whatever you want (after groping every last item to check the quality), then you tell him how many kilos you're going for, and he'll add or reduce from what you've put in there.

While the craziness is intimidating, it also works to my favor--nobody notices me enough to cheat me, I think. I just have to elbow along with everyone else and act like I'm supposed to be there. Normally I go to the mini-market nearby my house. Convenient, indeed, but suspiciously more expensive.

The used clothing tables are a little scary in that the women who are also going through the clothes tend to stare at me. I imagine they're thinking, "Why isn't this French girl just going to a store in a city?" The tables have set prices, which is nice, and they range from one to twenty dirhams for an item. Today I scored a shirt that said, "Be the prom queen" and another that said, "Caampions" in sequined letters.

I saw a lot of people there. A student told me, "You've become hard-working!" which is what I hear every time someone sees me doing something that relates to housework. It was fun--sometimes I like it so much here, I walk around with a creepy smile on my face, and people think I'm all the crazier.