Sandaga is the largest market in Dakar, a sprawling commercial chaos that overflows the 1930s neo-Sudanese market building and into the surrounding streets — cloth merchants, fabric stalls (wax-print Dutch java, basin damask, plain cotton by the yard), electronics, perfume, watches, kitchenware, leather and every household good imaginable.
It is essential and overwhelming in equal measure. The street vendors and brokers can be persistent; keep things polite, decide quickly whether you are buying, and watch your bag. The original market building was demolished in 2020 and a replacement is rising on the site, but the trade carried on uninterrupted in the surrounding streets and shows no sign of being neatly contained. Best in the morning, before the worst of the heat.