The central market in Ziguinchor is one of the most animated in the Casamance region. Several interconnected sections cover everything from fresh produce and dried fish to fabric, hardware, and household goods. The fish section is particularly remarkable — the Casamance River and the nearby Atlantic supply barracuda, monkfish, shrimp, and oysters, and the women who run the stalls will tell you exactly how it was caught and how to cook it.
The market is busiest in the morning and on Saturdays, when traders come in from surrounding villages and the stalls overflow onto the adjacent streets. Women in brightly coloured boubous sell honey in recycled whisky bottles, pyramids of tiny dried shrimp, and groundnut paste ground to order. It is less intense than the great markets of Dakar — no one hustles particularly hard — and all the more enjoyable for it. Come early and take your time.