The street markets of Madagascar

In Madagascar, going out shopping means you're out to pay a visit to the street markets.

Whether you're looking for fresh produce or clothing, you're sure to never come back empty handed.

The street markets of Madagascar welcome you with a large variety of goods. The things being sold can be divided into three sections: Stuff from the within the country (Food, vegetables, meat, artisan crafts etc.), Imported products from Asian countries (Mostly China) and used clothing and footwear from first-world countries. Spending some time in these markets and observing the shoppers will give you a general idea of the kind of lifestyle the locals live in and how much a day they approximately live on.

Every produce is mostly fresh, processed food is both expensive and nonexistent here. The catch is that some of the fruits and vegetables will have imperfections and won't be in perfect shape like you would expect in a first-world country, but everything is fresh and organic, no added chemicals or anything.

Here as usual are some pictures snapped here and there from the street markets of Madagascar, hopefully this gives you an idea of how it is down there.

(Click the images to zoom and enlarge)

1000Ar for a kilogram of oranges, that's $0.30 per 2.2lbs

An artisan showcasing her collection of hats, they're all handmade.

This one sells Zana-dandy (Mealworms), Calamari, Shrimps, Fish, and more seafood.

Similar to meal-worms, the "zana-dandy" are edible larvae that are found in trees.

Breakfast at the street food market.

From left to right: Lettuce, Coriander, Green onion, Cucumbers, Green pepper, Tomatoes, Anandrano, Carrots. 

From left to right: Carrots, Guava, Potatoes.

From left to right: Potatoes, Garlic, Peeled garlic, Onions, Garlic (exotic), Ginger, Carrots, Green beans, cabbage, Garlic.

Cranberries.

Fresh vegetables in the roofed market.

Meat is bought from the "Mpivaro-kena" or "Meat seller". They're usually small stores covered with tiles and they sell Sausages, Porc, Beef and anything related to meat.

Used clothing is also a big thing in Madagascar, you find T-shirts, Jackets, shoes and dresses imported from the United States and European countries. People prefer buying these used clothes as they are durable and are from real brands, coming from first-world countries. A dress for women can go as low as 3000Ar ($1). Try any before buying!

That's about all I can bring to you for today, the street markets of Madagascar is a fun-packed place to be around, whether you're looking to buy something or are just interested in checking out what's up for sale. Maybe someday I will come back there and get myself some of those oranges!