_ 242 _ There are many of these cooks, because it is the custom of most of the merchants in these parts to eat food prepared in the bazaars, and not to eat at home; it is also the custom of the foreigners to gather in the city; for it is of such great importance, that there are always more foreigners there than natives. There are many other traders who make sweet preparations of various kinds, and other who have tents with fruit which have no rival in the Lisbon river region, a thousand others who sell thousands of baubles, objects and toys which amazed me with their abundance, and everything I bought by the infinite number of people who gather there all the time. At no time of day can one walk through these bazaars without encountering people, although they are very long, and as large as a big town. In the middle of these bazaars is a large square area built with arches, as large as a customs house in Lisbon, with five or six gates which can be closed, and barriers projecting from the walls to prevent horses from entering. In this silks and goods of all kinds are sold, and negotiations and contracts on a large scale are made. There are many stone benches and small buildings around, where people sit and sell, and there are always people here in great numbers at all hours. And it is a impossible to get through without great difficulty.
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