It's More Than Just Buying Food.....

Michael and I have begun to really get into the whole buying food thing here.  We've always loved the outdoor European markets and, while Mexican markets have a very different feel to them, they are in some ways quite comparable.  I'll start by describing the Wednesday Tianquis.  Tianquis just means market in some local native dialect.  The market stretches from the carreterra (the main road at the top of the village) down to within two blocks of the lake -- probably a distance of about 500 meters.  God!  I'm thinking metric!  When did that happen?  And, like European markets it's pretty unpredictable what you'll find beyond the regular offerings.  This week there were kittens, beautiful plates being sold by a tremendously handsome 8 year old and a woman who had any conceivable plastic kitchen item you could think of.    Our strategy is to walk up the hill to the carreterra scoping out the offerings and then to turn back downhill buying what we want as we head back to home.  The Tianquis also features the requisite kind of crazy guy who looks about 80, quite down on his luck but speaks perfect, colloquial English and several Indian begging women.  What is interesting is that the women who beg (at least outside the supermercado) commute from Guadalajara because the gringo population is a much better target market. This appeals to my background in marketing.

Hopefully, the photos will have loaded right and you will be looking at pictures of the Wednesday market. The majority of booths are vegetables and fruits -- some of which we actually recognize.  Let me tell you, there are a lot of items in these booths that we can't exactly pin down.  This is compounded when you ask what the name is and you are told the Spanish name which, of course, sheds no light. Sometimes we are tempted to just pick one up, bring it home and ask Nancy who helps us around the house what you do with it.  In fact we'll do that next week and I'll report on another post.  The variability is interesting too.  Last week, one vendor had beets the size of a large man's fist while the guy next door had these petite little beets.  I have no idea which is preferable but it was too hot for beets anyway.  We love the nut guy.  He has probably 50 trays of different nuts and some dried fruits.  It reminds me of all the different olives laid out in the French markets.  We can get 1/2 kilos of hot (spicy) peanuts, pistachios and walnuts for less than about $8.  We always end at the bottom of the market buying our seafood, flowers and coffee and then we head home.

I was initially concerned about eating vegetables from the market because of everything you hear about how sick you can get (ditto on the seafood).  However, Nancy to the rescue once more.  Our first week here she introduced me to the world of microdyne.  You fill up the sink, pour in a capful, plop your vegetables and fruit that you don't peel into the water and let them soak for 15 minutes.  Voila, no problem.  It has no aftertaste either.  Strangely, for I am not a terribly domestic person as you all know,  I get a strange satisfaction in seeing these beautiful, robust vegetables and fruit floating languidly in my kitchen sink.  The seafood is great here  -- a half kilo of jumbo or even bigger than jumbo shrimp is about $4.50.  But beyond the cost, it's just the freshness that is so nice.  Speaking of which, we went to a meat market here for the first time.  I was very unhappy with the hamburger I'd bought at the supermercado so decided to try this small butcher.  He ground the hamburger in front of me, after showing me the piece of beef and having me approve it.  The difference in  taste between anything I've had in the States or the supermarket stuff here was amazing.  We also bought 4 filet mignon for about $7.00 but haven't eaten them yet.  But I digress from the markets.

So that's the Wednesday market.  We also go to a Monday market and Tuesday market.  You will note with all this market-going there is barely time to go to the Tapas bar and Pier bar for half price margaritas.  We are truly going to roast in Hell for gluttony and sloth.  Now the Monday and Tuesday markets are very different from the Wednesday market because these are gringo markets -- produced by and for gringos.  Clearly there are Americans and Canadians who just can't give up working and they have discovered that in Mexico the best work for gringos is making things for other gringos that they are dying to eat but can't find here.

The Monday Market rather specializes in things that are fairly bad for you but irresistible.  Pulled pork, ribs, home made butter with herbs, outrageous desserts, sausages of all kinds, artisanal cheeses.  There is some healthy stuff like Spring and Summer Rolls, soups and bisques but those people are marginalized towards the back of the space (only kidding).

The Tuesday Market is also called the Organic Market which, of course, put me off because well...really.  However, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that they were not hopelessly full of themselves and nutritionally stuck up.  This is the land of milk (unpasteurized) and honey.  Also of hummus, hand made soap, samosas (divine!) and home made (organic) quiche and tamales.  It is great having the three markets because we usually pick up several meals that are kind of already prepped and then make a number of meals from scratch from the Wednesday market.  We eat out 2-3 times a week as well.  Sounds like we eat a lot doesn't it?

Anyway, don't want you to think we are obsessed with food but it is a very different and fun food environment here.  Quick boy update.  Justin will arrive next Saturday for his first visit to the house.  Alex is in Gatlinburg.  His phone got soaked and is broken.  Needs to get a new one and then back on the trail.  He has had his share of problems but seems in excellent spirits.  Hope all of you are well and we'll post again soon.