Discovering the African Market

Wander around long enough in the African market in Oshakati, and you will meet more people than you'd expect. The sellers -mainly women- are just as interested in getting to know about you and why you're here as trying to sell their items. Everyone is friendly, and you can feel the warm atmosphere- as well as the 40 degrees Celsius temperature.

Above and Right: The friendly people who chatted with us
during our local market experience.

 Everything is so different and interesting, from the cow heads collecting flies on the floor to the lethal bow and arrows that can kill a lion. But the food may be the best, and tastiest, part. The traditional dishes surround you with foreign scents as you watch them prepare the food over small coal pits dug out in the concrete. I was only allowed to eat an orange colored, deep fried fish with local spices and chips (French fries) though, because my parents didn't trust any other dishes! Too bad I couldn't try anything else, because everything looked really good.

Some of the many dishes and items in the Oshakati market.

 Above: The kitchens made from concrete and pots which were all over the market. Below: a cow head, heart and hooves, which are put in soup and stew whole. My mom said no to trying these before I could even ask! ;(

 Above: different items used in cooking; the middle left bowl holds Mopani Worms, which are worms that come from inside the Mopani trees and can be eaten dried or in soup. Below: a fruit known as the Okongo orange that smells kind of like orange soda.

 The bowls above are used to grind corn, but my mom and I are thinking of getting one for house decoration instead. Below: the orange deep-fried fish I was allowed to try.