Trip to the Market

Having issues with computer, and not able to manipulate pictures...

One of my preconceived expectations of China was that I would be going to the local vendors and buying everything fresh and homemade, every day at a really good price. This could be food or clothing or furniture or whatever. However, being an expat places me in a wealthy neighborhood, surrounded by stores and locals who assume I too, am wealthy. All expats have money to burn or so they think. Ok, many of them do, but going to the stores hasn't been much of a treat for me. I'm a tightwad, probably even more so than before moving because I know the local people are buying the same things for a fraction of the cost. Nine months into this and I'm finally starting to learn where to go and with whom to go.

Mr. Liu has been a huge help and now with Linda, there is a whole new Suzhou for me to explore. My friendly neighborhood center with its fresh fruit and vegetables is "tai gui le" according to her. So, I was kind of in a dilemma. Auchen is cheaper, but the produce doesn't always look so great. Enter the world of the locals.

The Expat group recently visited a fresh market and it was great. However, when a group of about twenty "western" women go anywhere very little occurs besides talking and picture taking. All I really wanted to do was to go from vendor to vendor, ask a ton of questions and buy, buy, BUY. The only thing I did buy was some strawberries, gorgeous berries. I had been paying 20RMB/kg at the neighborhood center and 4RMB for about 8 berries at Auchen. Well, today I bought 2 kg for 1o RMB. That was just the beginning. Farmers from all over the area come to this market to sell. Some have large stands, others sit on a little stool and sell only a couple of vegetables laid out in front of them. Cage after cage of all things feathered, bucket after bucket of all things slimy. A couple of larger fish must have sensed my presence because right in front of me they leapt from the bucket onto the walkway.Yes, I screamed, which the locals thoroughly enjoyed.

Everything looked gorgeous and fresh and at times totally scary, but dirt cheap. I mean DIRT cheap. Yes, there was plenty of dirt and one should never wear sandals or beige pants (both of which I had on). The people were gracious and patient and a bit amused by me and my incessant picture-taking, but there were too many moments I didn't want to miss. After I took one little old lady's picture I asked her if she wanted to see it. As she was looking at her picture she laughed the best laugh, I just had to take another picture, which made her laugh even louder.

This is this China I've waited to see.