A Morning at the Market . . .

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When visiting Réunion Island, which should be done at least once in life, one of the obligatory stops on any tourist's agenda should be the Friday morning market at St Paul. There is a reason for that; it is well worth a visit, if for nothing else, the abundant concentration of bright colors to be found there. Right on the sea front, one can shop for all manner of local produce, while enjoying the ocean views and breeze. Could that possibly be la Grenouille in a blue dress looking at handbags ???
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Smaller purses could be had for 2 euros . . .
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I could nibble on candied fruits all day long. The goyave was particularly good . . .
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The ubiquitous dodo logo of the local Bourbon beer was present at the market, as it was most everywhere on the island. Quite a marketing stretch to name a beer after an extinct flightless bird . . .
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More dodos . . .

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Although la Réunion is a long way from Haiti, I was wondering if these dolls may have been destined in some cases for voodoo related purposes . . .

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In 35°C or about 95°F temperatures, cool freshly mixed fruit juice blends can really hit the spot. The blenders were heavily solicited . . .

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More bags; when one heads for the beach frequently, bags are a necessity . . .

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Paintings could be had for a song. And if you look carefully, in the lower right is a painting of a place called Chez Loulou, which I had photographed earlier in the trip, and did a post about back in February shortly after getting home dedicated to Loulou of Indiaphragme out in India.

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Warm colors were not in short supply . . .

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Réunion Island's volcano is quite active, and present in the iconography of the culture . . .

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Pots for preparing picnic meals in at the numerous barbecue spots around the island . . .

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Now, let's get down to the serious business. Some people here like to drink. That is normal because it is a tropical island where it is very hot. But for some folks, water is not enough. They take their water with a little bit of refined sugar cane in it, a concoction otherwise known as rum. And for some, even plain rum isn't what is required, they'll be wanting rum which has been doctored in all manner of ways, with marinated herbs and fruits in it, which is called "rhum arrangé". . . or re-arranged rum. Well, all I can say is, you have to try it. Just don't try too much of it if you are planning on driving anywhere, because about one shot of this stuff will put you over the legal limit. Saj, Lynne, any takers ???

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And after you've had a shot or two, don't be surprised if you start seeing hordes of multi-colored turtles starting to come out of the woodwork, I'm not certain that alcohol is the only psychoactive ingredient in that rhum arrangé . . .
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Even the vegetables start looking strange after the visit to the rum stand ! God only knows what these are called, because I certainly don't. Or can't remember if I did . . .

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Hope you enjoyed the virtual visit, come back soon !
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