Sunday, October 9, 2011

A New Discovery -- La Feria!

What’s my new favorite place to visit on Saturday mornings?  La feria (farmer’s market) in Guadalupe.  I have never in my life seen such a wonderful, vibrant, and deliciously appetizing array of fresh, local produce all located conveniently within an area about the same size as a football field.  Farmers from all around the Central Valley come to Guadalupe around 6 AM on Saturday morning to sell their fruit and vegetables to us city people until around 1 PM.  Canopies and boxes of produce create aisles upon aisles of vendors and food to choose from.  There’s even a cold section with meats, cheeses, and eggs.  I’ve now been introduced to all sorts of new produce including maracuya, cas, cherimoya, yucca, and chayote.  Not only is the quality of the fruit and veggies at the market superior to local grocery stores, but it is also generally much less expensive.  I end up walking away from the market with as much as I can possibly carry and wishing my arms were a bit stronger.  Visiting la feria is going to be my new Saturday morning tradition!
While we’re on the food topic, I guess I’ll mention that I have also been introduced to a few new entrees at Casa Maria in addition to the usually rice, beans, and spaghetti.   One day I was privileged to receive chicken intestine served over rice.  Not easy to stomach I dare say.  Another day I sat down to be startled by a battered pig foot that was happily nested atop my pile of rice.  The correct way of eating the specialty pig foot, I was told later that evening when I recounted the lunch to someone, is to suck on it and slurp the juices out each bone from its end.  I guess my palette is not refined enough to appreciate this treat.  However, my palette is just perfect to appreciate the lovely huevos rancheros, gallo pinto (beans and rice mixed together), and handmade tortillas that I got to eat this weekend when Marta, the physical education teacher at St. Francis College, invited us over to her house for brunch.  She is from Guatemala and is married to an American.  The couple lives comfortably in a gorgeous sunlight home with pictures of their two twenty-something year old children who are both currently attending universities in the United States.  Marta and her husband, Paul, were even generous enough to invite us over to their home for the American Thanksgiving celebration that they host every year!  I guess I won’t miss out on Thanksgiving after all this year (though it won’t be comparable to Thanksgiving at home of course).

No comments:

Post a Comment