I had the privilege recently to accompany Kathleen on her trip to the fruit and vegetable market in Suzhou. I now carry the camera on all outings, routine and otherwise, to capture snapshots for the blog. This market was certainly not like any Schnucks, Kroger, or Price Chopper superstore back in the U.S.
The market is located just a couple of blocks from where I work. Upon entering the market, the smell is quite uninviting. Fruits and vegetables are sold from stands run by individual entrepreneurs and there are several stands selling identical products. Kathleen has a favorite vendor who she always buys from - shown in the first picture. The produce is quite nice and fresh, while many items are unidentifiable. My favorites are the apples - they have some very fresh and delicious varieties that taste like my favorite Braeburns.
While Kathleen was shopping I wandered off and photographed the meat counter. It was disgusting with the freshly chopped remains of beef and pork spread on the counter and hanging above. The next interesting sight was the egg vendors stall. The variety of eggs available is astounding. Where in the U.S. we might be able to buy brown or white and large or extra large, the Chinese egg vendor has eggs sized from huge to tiny, many different colors, speckled or solid, and on and on. Who knows what variety of birds produced these products, but it certainly went far beyond the humble chicken. I wondered why Kathleen has not yet ventured to make an omlette from any new grade of east asia egg.
The market is located just a couple of blocks from where I work. Upon entering the market, the smell is quite uninviting. Fruits and vegetables are sold from stands run by individual entrepreneurs and there are several stands selling identical products. Kathleen has a favorite vendor who she always buys from - shown in the first picture. The produce is quite nice and fresh, while many items are unidentifiable. My favorites are the apples - they have some very fresh and delicious varieties that taste like my favorite Braeburns.
While Kathleen was shopping I wandered off and photographed the meat counter. It was disgusting with the freshly chopped remains of beef and pork spread on the counter and hanging above. The next interesting sight was the egg vendors stall. The variety of eggs available is astounding. Where in the U.S. we might be able to buy brown or white and large or extra large, the Chinese egg vendor has eggs sized from huge to tiny, many different colors, speckled or solid, and on and on. Who knows what variety of birds produced these products, but it certainly went far beyond the humble chicken. I wondered why Kathleen has not yet ventured to make an omlette from any new grade of east asia egg.
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