Sunday in Papeete. The market beckoned, I went at 05:00. Leaving the quiet pre-dawn of the sleeping boats in the marina behind, I entered the rowdy, colourful, vibrant space of commerce. Here there was music and conversation, laughter and banter. People jammed the aisles, spilling out onto the street. Vendors from all over the island converge here every Sunday to share their wares, eat their breakfasts, catch up with friends. The youth are courting, the old folks are smiling, some merchants Hawk their goods in a beautiful sing song call. The fruits of the land and the fish of the sea are laid out in an attractive array of rainbow colours, just waiting to go home with you. This is the best place in Papeete to sample authentic Tahitian cuisine, as many of the stalls offer cooked food of every imaginable variety. Local meats in a variety of sauces, hot bread on each corner, sweet treats line a lot of tables, and my very favourite; squeezed citrus juices and cane syrup making a kind of lemonade. Lush tropical floral arrangements caress both visual and olfactory organs, rounding out the feast for the senses that is Papeete Sunday market. Travelling on a sailboat round the world I have seen a lot of markets, but this one in Tahiti is second only to Marrakesh in Morocco! By the time the little rolly cart was full of a week’s worth of fresh fruits and veggies, daylight began to appear. Another beautiful day in paradise had begun. At full light a gorgeous tall ship came into the harbour, just augmenting the stunning Sunday scenery on our Sweet Dream.
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