Where I get my food: Part 1

Saturday Market, Cayo

I like to get up early on Saturdays and get to the market before it gets too hot out.  I usually catch a bus- saves me $2, although it takes about 20 minutes longer to get there then a taxi.  But it makes me feel thrifty.  When I get to the market, I have my routine:  first, go around to the movie guy and see if there is anything new, then circle around the back of the market too see if anyone is selling anything interesting (ie, books), and finally stop in at the tiawanese flower sellers to drool over the orchids and roses and silently curse my goats for eating about $100 worth of  my flowers. 

After that I get down to business: fruits and vegetables.  Bananas come from the little boy who sells a bag (about15 bananas) for a dollar.  Today I gave him a $2 bill and he asked me, “how much change do you get?”  Apples come from the vendor who sells 12 apples for $10- a bargain because apples normally are $1 a piece.   Cucumbers, lettuce, carrots, onions- I like to walk around and compare prices.  Usually I will go with the random farmer who has only set up for one day rather then the weekly vendors, cause their stuff tends to be fresher and I think they need the money more.  Potatoes can be bought “clean” or “dirty”- literally those that have been scrubbed, or those that still are dirty from the ground.  The clean ones, of course, are 25 cents more expensive per pound.  It’s the Belizean version of pre-prepped food.  I usually splurge and get the clean ones.

 If Daniel needs a treat, I stop by the roasted peanut guy who sells…roasted peanuts. And then on to the “El Che Hangout” run by a very polite and sweet older gentleman to get a weekly paper.  Finally, home by taxi! (I stopped taking the bus home after an experience where I was carrying multiple bags of stuff on a very crowded bus and ended up standing in the aisle because there were no seats. I couldn’t hold on to anything because my hands were full, and when the bus stopped suddenly I ended up in a very surprised old man’s lap :-)