BAZAR

It was built in 1869, in the heart of old Victoria. A wealthy landowner (Mr. Michaud) had donated the land on which the farmers sold their produce. The Victoria market, known as the bazaar, is named after the English governor who built it, Sir Selwyn Selwyn-Clarke. To distinguish it from the small markets in other districts, it is simply called the bazaar an vil. Having shared the bill of 4.7 million rupees, the European Union and the Seychelles government have joined forces to give it a total rehabilitation. The "new" building, with the appearance of a Hindu temple and dripping with color, was inaugurated in 1999.

This market is a high place of Creole culture and is all the more pleasant because you can take pictures without being attacked. On the other hand, haggling is not really in order. For a customer, the choice of a particular merchant is more a matter of loyalty than of price: the best will go to the regulars! There are no more auctions. The few merchants who raise their voices do so more for the sake of folklore than to attract customers. Indeed, in the Seychelles, we never get busy! The bazaar offers a beautiful reflection of the Seychelles production, especially the fish. Under the huge mango tree (which has the particularity of producing two varieties of very succulent mango), or under the Guinness umbrellas, fruit, vegetable... and pepper sellers take place! At the back of the enclosure stands the air-conditioned stronghold of the butchers. There are about ten of them, always ready to cut a slice with the rare tourists who enter, to buy for example a good Creole blood sausage. The price is expensive: 1 kg of pork is worth 3 kg of fish!

A visit to the bazaar is never complete without a glance at the florist. In addition, the stalls of handicrafts are picturesque, with their bags of spices and cocktails of condiments made from mangoes and a variety of vegetables called mazavaroo. On the first level, a dozen souvenir stores and a pleasant bar-restaurant await the tourist. But it is on Saturday morning that the market becomes a real spectacle. What a hive of activity that morning! Market gardeners from Val d'Endor or Anse Boileau (in the south of the island) have taken their place alongside the retailers who have set up shop. Competition obliges, the prices posted by the latter are then revised downwards. It is also the only day when you can buy certain products such as live chicken!

We no longer monitor the big buyers of cassava and shark! In the past, people who bought these products in quantity were suspected of witchcraft: weren't they destined for those zombies (or dodosya) who were so fond of them? The madanm paton are still there. One cannot talk about the bazaar without mentioning these herons, who wait every morning for the fish offal that the fishmongers reserve for them. These madanm paton, as well as the mango tree and the water basin, are part of the eternal scenery of this pretty and authentic little market.

It is also necessary to stroll around, in the lari bazaar sung by Jean-Marc Volcy. It is a pity, unfortunately, that in this so lively Market Street, the old-fashioned stores, held by Indians or Chinese, are only counted on the fingers of one hand. Once past the Deevas Complex, which is not very interesting, we come across the small square where a few cabs are parked.