Sunday, May 09, 2004

Ai-ya! I meant to post more frequently this week. Alas. Well, since I'm sure you're all quite tired of hearing about my work right now, I'll write upon a different topic. I have to admit I feel so silly about being such an ignoramus of my own neighborhood for so long. A year passed before I realized there is a traditional Taiwanese market (including a wet market) in lanes and alleys adjacent to mine. I've since then walked through the market a number of times, but usually I'm in a rush to get somewhere and don't have time to stop and poke around, although the different produce, dry goods, and prepared foods stands always seem so fascinating and full of goodies.

This morning I decided to venture into the enclosed wet market that had always seemed so forbidding. Yes, the tiled floors were mucky and wet. Yes, stalls with prepared food were next to stalls featuring fresh fish on ice. But I found a nice produce stand where a number of items are organic, and I could chat with the proprietors about which items were locally grown and which were imported. Especially since I am functionally illiterate, this is a great way to make sure I get what I want.

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