The Sandiara weekly market

What you'll experience

Saturday is louma day in Sandiara. In this inland town, some thirty kilometres from Nianing, farmers and herders from the surrounding villages come to sell what they have produced, and take the chance to do their own shopping for the week. The market comes alive early and is in full swing by mid-morning.

The sheep corner is often the most striking. In Senegal, sheep hold a special place: they are raised with care, chosen at length, and their price is discussed for long minutes. In the weeks leading up to Tabaski, the great festival of the sheep, the atmosphere becomes even more intense.

Further on, women run stalls of millet, millet couscous (thiéré), cowpeas and peanuts, sold by the measure from large basins. Depending on the season, mangoes are stacked in pyramids next to tomatoes, lemons and garden vegetables. You will also find oil, spices, utensils and everything a family needs for the week.

Demba guides you through the aisles, introduces the produce and teaches you to recognise what you will later find in Senegalese dishes: the millet of thiéré, cowpeas, the peanuts of mafé sauce… A very concrete way to understand village life, far from the tourist trail.

In pictures