The air is tropical, balmy and laced with intoxicating scents of coconut, spice and fresh coriander. Warm, in atmosphere and temperature, and rich in cultural diversity and colourful scenes, the Flacq Market, on the north-eastern side of Mauritius, is a bustling centre of daily hubbub where ordinary people come to do their shopping. Without any walls, the market space is outdoors, but covered by a large, corrugated iron roof, interspersed with skylights, and held up by metal poles. Selections of fresh ingredients are tipped onto the kind of mechanical scale found in rustic farm kitchens, then bagged, before a quick exchange of cash and a few words spoken in gentle, French-based Mauritian Creole. All around us, small moments of calm interaction between strangers juxtapose the marketplace bustle.
As we weave…
