In my post “Where’s the Pasta?” I lamented the missing pasta vendor at the Sunday Market in L’Isle sur la Sorgue. This week I set out, yet again, to look for the illusive (and I’m now convinced non-existent) pasta stand. My search wasn’t a complete waste of time, however, because while searching, I decided to count how many of each type of vendor actually are here. The results are in – I know you’re just chomping at the bit for this crucial information. So, without further ado, here you go…
42 Clothing (Includes all types, fabrics, sizes except the socks and scarves)
24 Jewelry
22 Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
18 Scarves
17 Linens (Mostly table clothes and napkins, but I included bedspreads, curtains, and tea towels)
14 Leather (Belts, purses, wallets)
10 Sausage
9 Shoes (Men’s, women’s, children’s)
8 Cheese
7 Soaps
7 Rotisserie Chicken
7 Fragrance/oil (Tended to be little bottles of oils or sachet)
6 Garlic
6 Cutters (Slicers, dicers, knives)
5 Wooden gadgets
5 Tapenades
5 Pictures (Paintings or prints)
5 Misc. Decor (do dads, napkin rings, small trays)
4 Olives
4 Herbs
4 Cloth purses/bags
4 Toys
3 Lavender
3 Dried Fruit
3 Honey
3 Spices
3 Mushrooms
3 Hats
3 Watches
3 Olive Oil
3 Baked Goods
3 Honey
3 Nuget
2 Flowers
2 Rocks
2 Rugs
2 Sunglasses
2 Fabric
2 Pottery
2 Pizza
2 Wine
2 Books/CD’s
1 Jam
1 Knobs
1 Socks
1 Gel Fruit
1 Nail Polish
1 Fish
1 Snails
1 Cooked pig
1 Gingerale
0 Pasta
Total Vendors: 293
Just a few remarks about my method. My method: tick marks on a legal pad. In order not to make a spectacle of myself, I moved quickly through the crowd ticking away. In some cases, it was difficult to tell where one clothing stand ended and the next began. I gave a tick for the predominant product at each vendor. For example, the fresh vegetable stands sold garlic, but there were also stands selling only garlic. There were also stands selling scarves with other clothes. In this case I marked clothing and only counted the scarf category for stands selling only scarves. I think you get the picture.
I suppose the count is not entirely accurate, but it should give you a good idea about what to expect if you come to this Sunday Market.