THE cloth of fashion

So I'm a bit of a texture freak... (as evidenced by my inability to consume fizzy drinks)... so Mindy (the Moz colleague who is working her charm to detain me here indefinitely) took me capanola (sp.?) shopping today. Capanolas are to southern Africa as saris are to India. Typically of a cotton blend, capanolas are essentially a sheet of fabric about a meter or so in length (you do the conversion) and are the epitome of multi-purpose functionality, serving as beach towels, skirts, table cloths, thingey-carrier, etc., etc. And they come in all colors, designs, and TEXTURES! So I was just having the most fun today hitting up all sorts of street stands feeling and checking out all these fabrics. Some are soft and thin, others are starchy and sturdier. And the coolest part is trying to identify where the capanola originates from as evidenced by the design. Some designs are made by using wax (think Easter egg dyeing) as seen in Tanzania, others with a flour paste (Zambia/Zimbabwe), indigo dye (Nicaragua), I forget Swaziland, and in Mozambique the design is big plaid. And IF there's a big central design (i.e. picture of the prez), upon wrapping it around your bottom in a skirt-like fashion, the design supposedly always ends up gracing (and drawing attention to) your arse. Neat. Given this, mine are making for very nice curtains.